Ukraine's Air Defense Falters - Trypillia Power Plant Falls to Russian Missiles

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warns of the consequences of the lack of U.S. military aid. Efrem Lukatsky/AP/dpa

Ukraine was unable to repel a Russian missile attack that destroyed the largest power plant in the region surrounding the capital, Kyiv, last week, said President Volodymyr Zelensky. According to a report from “Reuters”, Zelensky attributes this to a shortage of air defense missiles.

Ukrainian defense exhausts dramatically

In an interview with PBS, the Ukrainian president said: “Eleven missiles were in the air. We destroyed the first seven, and four (remaining ones) destroyed Trypillia. Why? Because there were no missiles left. We ran out of missiles to defend Trypillia.” However, Reuters could not independently verify this statement.

Zelensky had previously warned that Ukraine would have to make tough decisions about what to protect and stated that his country could end up completely without defense missiles in the face of ongoing Russian attacks.

The Trypilska thermal power plant, destroyed on March 11th, was the largest energy facility near Kyiv and had a capacity of 1,800 megawatts, more than the pre-war needs of Ukraine’s largest city. Other power plants and imports have temporarily filled the gap, but residents were urged to save electricity.

Russia ruthlessly intensifies attacks on Ukrainian power grid

Since mid-March, Russia has intensified its combined missile and drone attacks on Ukraine’s power grid system. According to Reuters, this is the second coordinated Russian attack on the energy system since the Russian armed forces invaded Ukraine over two years ago, proving to be far more devastating than the first.

In recent attacks, Ukraine has lost about 7 gigawatts of power generation capacity, with significant thermal power plants and transmission facilities severely damaged.

The Kremlin claims the attacks are retaliation for recent attacks within Russia and are aimed at undermining Ukraine’s ability to fight.

Germany responds to Ukraine’s pleas for help

Western allies have hesitated to send additional air defense systems to Ukraine. The wartorn country needs 25 Patriot systems to properly protect its territory. However, Germany has pledged to deliver another system in response to urgent appeals from Kyiv.