Russia has launched over 40 missiles and about 70 drones in its attack early this morning against Ukraine, mainly targeting essential infrastructures and the energy system. No casualties have been reported.
The state energy company Ukrenergo reported emergency power cuts in the regions of Kharkiv, Sumy, Poltava, Zaporizhia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kirovohrad.
The country woke up to a nationwide air alert due to the threat of Russian cruise missiles in various parts of the country following a major attack by Kiev forces in several Russian regions.
Ukraine claimed on Tuesday to have carried out the "most massive" attack of the war on military and industrial facilities in various regions of Russia using six American ATACMS missiles and six British Storm Shadow missiles, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is on a historic visit to Poland following an agreement on the Volyn massacre exhumations.
Trump's advisors admit that his campaign promise to achieve a peace agreement on his first day in the White House, Monday the 20th, was a combination of campaign bravado and a lack of understanding of the conflict's difficulty.
Russia Confirms "Grouped Attack with High-Precision Weapons and Drones"
The Russian army confirmed that it attacked on Wednesday "essential infrastructures" of the energy network in Ukraine, following Kiev's troops' bombardment of Russian territory, the most significant since the conflict began in 2022, reports Afp.
"This morning, the armed forces (...) launched a grouped attack with high-precision weapons and attack drones against critical gas and energy infrastructures supporting the Ukrainian military-industrial complex," the Russian army stated in a release.
The Kremlin Warns EU Sanctions on Russian Aluminum Could Destabilize the Market
The Kremlin stated on Wednesday that the EU sanctions on Russian primary aluminum imports could destabilize an already "fragile" global market.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that the European Commission intends to propose a ban on Russian primary aluminum imports in its 16th package of sanctions against Russia for its war in Ukraine.
"We saw the news. It is very possible to assume that such discussions are taking place. The market in this segment is quite fragile, and such decisions could hypothetically lead to the destabilization of the global market," said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov to the press.
The Russian aluminum giant Rusal, the world's largest aluminum producer outside China, had no immediate comments.
Rutte: Russia Has China, North Korea, and Iran by Its Side "to Undermine Our Freedom"
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte stated on Wednesday that Russia is trying to weaken democracies and undermine the freedom of allies, with support from China, North Korea, and Iran.
"Russia is striving to weaken our democracies and undermine our freedom. And it is not alone; it has by its side China, North Korea, and Iran," Rutte said in a speech to the Chiefs of Defense Staff of the Alliance countries meeting in Brussels, as reported by Efe.
The former Dutch prime minister emphasized the need, five and a half months before the next allied leaders' summit in June in The Hague, to "continue doing everything we can together to keep all our people safe."