Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Russia carried out a massive nighttime attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure using a record number of ballistic missiles, a day before peace talks with Moscow and Washington are due to resume in Abu Dhabi.
Zelenskyy said the attack involved more than 70 missiles – including 32 ballistic and 28 cruise missiles – as well as more than 450 attack drones that targeted eight regions, including Kiev, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Sumy, Vinnytsia, Odesa and Zaporizhia.
Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said five people were injured and three others rescued in Kharkiv after a drone strike caused a fire in a high-rise residential building.
“The Russian military took advantage of the US proposal to briefly halt strikes, not to support diplomacy, but to stockpile missiles and wait until the coldest days of the year, when temperatures in large parts of Ukraine drop below -20°C (-4°F),” Zelenskyy wrote on X.
RUSSIA AND UKRAINE DISCUSS TERRITORY, AS TRUMP SAYS BOTH SIDES ‘WANT TO MAKE A DEAL’
The upper floors of a multi-storey building burn after debris fell from a Russian drone in Kiev, Ukraine, February 3, 2026. (Yan Dobronosov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
The widespread strikes came after President Donald Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to pause attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure for a week as freezing temperatures caused widespread power and heating outages.
Trump announced the weeklong pause on Thursday, but Russia resumed its attacks just days before the period was due to expire, hitting a maternity ward in Zaporizhia and a bus carrying Ukrainian miners, killing 12 people.
ZELENSKYY ANNOUNCES NEXT TALKS WITH US, RUSSIA AS UKRAINE AIMES FOR ‘REAL AND DIGNIFICANT END TO THE WAR
Kyiv residents take shelter in the Dorohozhychi metro station during a Russian drone-and-missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, February 3, 2026. (Ihor Kuznietsov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
Residents took to subway and subway stations on Monday to hide underground as air raids sounded throughout the night.
“As temperatures drop to -25°C (-13°F), Russia is once again consciously aiming to leave hundreds of thousands of people, including children and the elderly, without heat or electricity,” said Yulia Svyrydenko, the Prime Minister of Ukraine.
“This is an attempt to force civilians to surrender. Thanks to the Ukrainian air defense forces, the majority of missiles and drones were intercepted,” she added.
Rescue workers extinguish a fire in a multi-storey building hit by debris from a Russian drone in Kiev, Ukraine, February 3, 2026. (Yan Dobronosov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
Zelenskyy said the work of his negotiating team “will be adjusted accordingly” as his country prepares for a new round of meetings in the United Arab Emirates with US and Russian officials on Wednesday and Thursday.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff met with his Russian counterpart Kirill Dmitriev in Florida on Saturday and said the talks were constructive amid ongoing hostilities in Ukraine.
“We are encouraged by this meeting that Russia is working to secure peace in Ukraine and are grateful for @POTUS’ critical leadership in seeking a lasting and lasting peace,” Witkoff wrote on X.
