Zelensky: Russia destroyed key power plant near Kyiv since Ukraine 'ran out of missiles' for its defense

Photo for illustrative purposes. The Trypillia thermal power plant in the city of Ukrainka in Kyiv Oblast on Nov. 2, 2015. (Dmitri Tovstonog/Wikimedia Commons)

Russian forces destroyed the Trypillia Thermal Power Plant (TPP) in Kyiv Oblast because Ukraine had run out of missiles to defend it during an attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with PBS NewsHour published on April 16.

The Trypillia TPP was completely destroyed in a Russian strike on Ukrainian energy infrastructure on April 11, leading to the 100% loss of Centrenergo’s generating capacity.

Russia launched 11 missiles in the direction of the plant, according to Zelensky. Ukraine was able to shoot down the first seven, and four “destroyed Trypillia.”

“Why? Because there were zero missiles. We have run out of all the missiles that protected the Trypillia TPP,” the president said.

The plant is located less than 30 kilometers south of Kyiv and was the main power supplier to Kyiv, Zhytomyr, and Cherkasy oblasts.

Ukraine’s capital city is understood to be the best-protected from Russian mass missile and drone attacks, but stocks of air defense are low across the country as U.S. military aid funding for Ukraine continues to be held up in Congress.

In the meantime, Russia has stepped up targeted attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, overwhelming local air defenses and destroying some of Ukraine’s largest coal-fired power stations.

On April 13, amid a renewed diplomatic effort from Kyiv to receive more air defense systems, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced the immediate delivery of an additional Patriot battery to Ukraine.