Ukraine-Russia war latest: Moscow says nuclear test proposals being prepared after Putins drones kill seven

State-owned energy company Tsentrenergo said the attacks were the largest on its facilities since the start of the war in February 2022, and that it had halted operations at its plants in the Kyiv and Kharkiv regions.

“The last strike was not even a month ago and the enemy has now struck all our generating capacity at the same time. The stations are on fire!” Tsentrenergo, which generates about 8 per cent of Ukraine’s power, said in a statement.

“Our generation is now zero.”

Ukraine’s General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces has reported that Russia has lost around 1,150,100 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion in February 2022, in new figures released on Saturday.

According to the report, Russia has lost 11,330 tanks, 23,544 armoured fighting vehicles and fuel tanks and 34,321 artillery systems during the conflict.

The figures include the loss of 1,538 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,239 air defense systems, 428 airplanes, 347 helicopters, 78,928 drones, 28 ships and boats, and one submarine.

Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk said emergency crews had stabilised the power grid, but warned consumers that further power cuts were needed to allow work to proceed after the attacks.

“We are assessing the aftermath and coordinating what actions to take in order to find alternative power sources to ensure people get their power and heating back,” Ms Hrynchuk said on national television.

News reports and unofficial social media accounts said blackouts persisted in at least two regions – Kharkiv in the northeast and Poltava in central Ukraine.

The case carries symbolic importance for the country, with suspects accused of executing Ukrainian soldiers usually out of its jurisdiction.

Criminal investigations are underway into the alleged murder of 322 Ukrainian servicemen who had unconditionally laid down their arms and/or surrendered since Russia invaded the country in February 2022, according to the Ukrainian prosecutor general’s office.

The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission said in February that there had been an “alarming rise” in reported executions of Ukrainian soldiers captured by Russia.

It is illegal under international humanitarian law to execute prisoners of war and the wounded, and such actions are regarded as war crimes.

Russia launched a barrage of drones and missiles in overnight attacks on Ukraine, targeting substations that supply two nuclear power plants and killing seven people, Ukrainian officials said on Saturday.

“Russia once again targeted substations that power the Khmelnytskyi and Rivne nuclear power plants,” Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X.

“These were not accidental but well-planned strikes. Russia is deliberately endangering nuclear safety in Europe.”

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had launched more than 450 drones and 45 missiles.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the start of mass production of a domestically made drone modelled after the Chinese DJI Mavic, aiming to reduce reliance on foreign drones used widely on the battlefield.

Ukraine’s new “Shmavic” drone is being produced by local firms and incorporates locally made components designed to resist Russian electronic warfare.

The move comes after China restricted DJI drone shipments to Ukraine, prompting Kyiv to accelerate domestic alternatives.

Ukrainian drones have reportedly struck a significant oil refinery in Russia’s Volgograd region for the second time in less than three months, according to Kyiv’s general staff.

The attack, which Ukraine claims occurred on Wednesday, targeted the largest producer of fuel and lubricants in Russia’s Southern Federal District.

Ukrainian officials estimate the refinery processes over 15 million tonnes of crude annually, accounting for approximately 5.6 per cent of the country’s total refining capacity.

The American president has outwardly pursued a rapprochement in US-Russian relations since returning to the White House in January, but continued provocations from Moscow have pressed Washington to change its stance.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has approved the appointment of a Commander of Unmanned Air Defense Systems to “scale up the development of the unmanned component within the Air Force”, the Ukrainian leader wrote in a post on X/Twitter on Friday.

A corresponding order has been signed by Minister of Defense Denys Shmyhal. The new commander, Yurii Cherevashenko, helped create the first group of mobile rapid-response air-defense brigades and has worked on interceptor drones, Zelensky said.

“At the Staff meeting, we approved numerous tasks for the new commander, with emphasis on actively integrating unmanned systems – in particular, interceptor drones – and strengthening our air defense capabilities with advanced armaments,” he wrote.

More than 1,400 citizens from 36 African nations are reportedly fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, Kyiv’s foreign minister revealed on Friday.

Ukrainian officials claim Russia is actively seeking to augment its invading army by recruiting individuals from various countries, often employing deceptive tactics.

Andriy Sybiha warned that Russia is luring Africans into contracts he described as “equivalent to … a death sentence,” urging African governments to issue warnings to their populations.