Ukraine’s Zelenskyy urges support for sanctions as winter attacks loom

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged support for US sanctions against Russia after Donald Trump put a sweeping package on hold. Zelenskyy also reported attacks on more than 15 energy sites as Ukraine braces for winter and further Russian strikes

Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged supporters on Saturday to speak out in defence of new US sanctions against Russia, hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order pausing a sweeping package of restrictions targeting the Russian economy.

The White House’s decision has further raised fears that Ukraine could be left exposed to Moscow’s escalating assaults as winter approaches.

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Zelenskyy described Trump’s move to put the sanctions on hold as unfortunate but did not directly criticise the US leader, despite deepening tensions between Ukraine and Washington in recent days.

“Unfortunately, a decision was made in America to completely disregard the Lindsey Graham Act, which was supposed to impose truly effective pressure on Russia to bring this war to an end,” Zelenskyy wrote.

He also expressed hope that the new sanctions could be revived. “This Act could have helped enormously — and still can! But it needs to actually work, and every voice in support of it matters,” he said.

Kyiv says Moscow carried out a massive energy strike

Zelenskyy also said on Saturday that Moscow had carried out a massive strike on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, targeting more than 15 sites across the country.

“The sheer scale and unrelenting pace of Russia’s strikes, specifically against our energy sector, are unfortunately having severe consequences,” he said.

Ukraine’s air force said Russian forces had launched four cruise missiles and 332 attack drones overnight. All four missiles and 289 of the drones had been intercepted or destroyed, it said.

Russia’s heavy bombardment of Ukraine’s power grid ahead of winter has been an annual feature of the war, aimed at wearing down Ukrainians’ appetite for the fight by denying civilians heat and running water. Ukrainian officials have warned that Russia is stockpiling ballistic missiles for further attacks in the coming months.