Russia Continues Strikes On Ukraine’s Power System. The West And Kyiv Announce New Anti-Russian Sanctions

Against the backdrop of ongoing hostilities, the diplomatic front was marked by an escalation in rhetoric from the leaders of the United States, Ukraine, and Russia. Donald Trump announced he was scrapping the idea of a Budapest summit with Vladimir Putin, describing the decision as a tactical pause rather than a complete breakdown in dialogue.

A key point was that this statement came after Rutte presented him with a European-Ukrainian 12-point “peace plan,” which included a ceasefire along the current lines, security guarantees for Ukraine, a path to EU membership, and increased economic pressure on Moscow. Analysts note that Trump’s team likely concluded that arriving at a meeting with Putin with a plan that Moscow had already preemptively rejected would be a futile endeavor.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky not only portrayed the scuttling of the Budapest meeting and the imposition of energy sanctions against Russia as a diplomatic victory, but also resolutely declared Ukraine’s capability to strike targets up to 3,000 kilometers deep inside Russian territory using its own weaponry. Simultaneously, he continues to express hope for the potential supply of American Tomahawk missiles.

Vladimir Putin characterized the new US sanctions as having little effect on the Russian economy and warned that Moscow’s response to the potential use of Tomahawk missiles would be ‘serious, if not staggering,’ thereby sending a clear signal of readiness for harsh retaliation against further military provocations.

Former CIA analyst Larry Johnson noted that Russia consistently adheres to its clear position. Russia’s stated goal is to achieve this outcome either through diplomatic or military means, irrespective of Western objections.

Strikes on Ukraine

Russian forces carried out combined strikes on targets in several regions.

• In Kyiv and the surrounding region, the CHP-6 thermal power plant and the Vyshgorod Hydroelectric Power Plant were hit; a Ukrainian air defense battery was also destroyed. In Slavutych, Kyiv region, a strike hit the PS-330 substation.

• In Kamianske, strikes targeted the territory of the Dnipro Thermal Power Plant, where a fire was reported; impacts were also reported on the territory of the metallurgical plant.

• In Sumy region, railway infrastructure and an electrical substation in the Konotop area were hit, and temporary deployment points were destroyed in Tarany.

• In Lozova, Kharkiv region, strikes targeted a depot, a substation, and a former airbase in the nearby village of Blyzniuky, which is reportedly used for launching UAVs against bordering Russian regions.

Strikes on Russia

Over the past night, Russian air defense systems intercepted 139 Ukrainian UAVs over Russian territory. The largest numbers were shot down over Belgorod region (56), followed by Bryansk region (22), Voronezh region (21), Ryazan region (14), Rostov region (13), with smaller numbers over Crimea, Tambov, Volgograd, Oryol, Kaluga, and Kursk regions.

Over Ryazan region, according to the governor, falling debris caused a fire at an industrial enterprise—presumably the Ryazan Oil Refinery.

Thus, the rigidity of the parties’ positions and their fundamental disagreements regarding the terms of a potential ceasefire are becoming increasingly pronounced. Ukraine demonstrates a readiness to conduct deep strikes against Russian territory, while Moscow, in turn, warns of serious consequences in response. Simultaneously, diplomatic initiatives from Western countries, including the proposed “peace plan,” find no support in the Kremlin, rendering compromise attempts futile. This may be precisely the outcome that European leaders and the Zelensky regime are seeking.

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