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What the 25 December strikes meant for Ukraine's grid
Summary
A retrospective on the Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure reported around 26 December 2024.
What did Russia's strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure leave behind by 26 December 2024? As reported at the time, the attacks on 25 December had killed at least two people, injured 20 others and caused widespread emergency blackouts.
The strikes combined ballistic missiles and drones. They targeted critical energy infrastructure in cities across Ukraine rather than a single location, which is why the outages were reported so widely.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin over the attacks, calling them "inhumane". That wording was his own, and the condemnation was aimed at the targeting of Ukrainian infrastructure.
A winter pattern
The attacks belonged to a broader campaign. Winter strikes on district heating and electricity during the Russo-Ukrainian war had by then caused repeated energy crises in Ukraine, and the events of 25 December fitted into the Ukrainian energy crisis.
The human toll reported at the time was two dead and 20 injured, alongside emergency blackouts in several cities.
