On Saturday, June 1st, the Russian military launched a new round of large-scale airstrikes against Ukraine. Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko confirmed that Russian forces launched a massive barrage of missiles and drones overnight, targeting energy facilities in five regions of Ukraine.
According to reports from Reuters, the Russian military’s large-scale airstrikes have caused damage to energy facilities in five states of Ukraine, including Donetsk in the east, Zaporizhzhia in the southeast, Dnipropetrovsk in the east-southeast, Kyrovohrad in the central region, and Ivano-Frankivsk in the west.
Ukraine’s national grid operator, Ukrenergo, stated on Saturday that “this morning, Russian forces once again launched attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities… This marks the sixth large-scale and complex missile and drone attack on civilian energy infrastructure since March.”
The Ukrainian Air Force commander stated that air defense forces successfully intercepted 35 out of 53 Russian missiles and 46 out of 47 Russian drones.
Since March, Russia has escalated its bombing of Ukrainian infrastructure, destroying a significant portion of thermal and hydro power plants, resulting in widespread power outages and pushing Ukraine’s electricity imports to historic highs.
Ukraine’s largest private power generation company, DTEK, reported that two of its thermal power plants were severely damaged in the attacks.
Reports from Kyiv Independent in Ukraine indicated that the airstrikes launched by Russia on June 1st have resulted in at least 20 injuries, including several children and a pregnant woman.
Serhii Lysak, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military Administration, reported that the Russian attack on Nikopol city resulted in at least four injuries, including a seven-year-old girl, and damage to a house, two buildings, and a van.
Maksym Kozytskyi, Governor of Lviv Oblast, stated that Russian forces attacked energy infrastructure in the region, causing four injuries.
Oleh Syniehubov, Governor of Kharkiv Oblast, reported that Russian missile strikes on Balakliia town in the Izium district wounded 12 people in two houses, including eight children and a pregnant woman.
Ivan Fedorov, Governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, reported on Telegram that around 3 AM local time, the region experienced multiple explosions. Twenty residential and social buildings were damaged in the attacks with no casualties reported at the moment.
In Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, an energy facility was attacked, sparking a fire. Governor Svitlana Onyshchuk stated that no casualties have been reported thus far.
In response to the threat of Russian cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, drones, and bombers, the Ukrainian Air Force declared a nationwide (including western regions) state of alert on Saturday.
Russian missiles flew over Zakarpattia Oblast in Ukraine, which borders western neighboring countries including Poland, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia.
Ukrainian air alerts indicated that the city of Mukachevo, only 26 kilometers northeast of the Hungary-Ukraine border, was under threat of missile attacks.
Poland’s Armed Forces Operations Command stated on social media that Polish and allied aircraft were scrambled in response to reports of Russian missile attacks on Ukraine.
Local Ukrainian air raid alerts were lifted at around 5:30 AM local time, and the emergency response actions by Polish and allied aircraft concluded around 6:30 AM.
Just a week ago, a large supermarket in Kharkiv, Ukraine, was bombed by Russian forces, resulting in at least 19 deaths and 44 injuries. Hours later, Russia launched a second attack, leading to 25 more injuries.