Blackout in Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia after Ukrainian shelling, says Kremlin
Russian-installed officials in Ukraine's occupied Zaporizhzhia region claimed on Tuesday that strikes by Ukrainian forces have plunged the entire area under Moscow's control into darkness, damaging key high-voltage equipment. Ukraine, meanwhile, signaled it had no intention of halting its pressure, with top officials calling for fresh sanctions against Moscow amid ongoing peace efforts.'As a result of shelling by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, high-voltage equipment was damaged in the northwestern part of the Zaporizhzhia region,' said Yevgeny Balitsky, the Russia-appointed head of the regional administration. 'There is no electricity throughout the region.'advertisementRussia's TASS news agency reported that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, located within the same region and under Russian control, remained unaffected.
The claim comes as Ukraine continues to step up attacks targeting logistics and infrastructure in Russian-held territory, aiming to weaken Moscow's grip ahead of potential new counteroffensives.Meanwhile, a senior aide to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv said Russia is deliberately stalling peace efforts and warned that harsher economic penalties are necessary to rein in the Kremlin's ambitions.'The Russians are doing everything to not cease firing and continue the war,' wrote Andriy Yermak, head of the president's office, on Telegram. 'New sanctions now are significant.'His comments followed the conclusion of the latest round of peace talks in Istanbul, where Ukrainian and Russian negotiators reportedly agreed to exchange lists of prisoners ahead of a potential large-scale swap.advertisementSpeaking at a separate online briefing, President Zelenskyy said the two sides had agreed to swap 1,000 prisoners each, with an option to exchange another 200 soon. Both sides also agreed in principle to repatriate the remains of fallen soldiers — an undertaking Zelenskyy described as requiring "careful preparation."He also raised a humanitarian issue that remains unresolved: the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia.'We gave the Russian side a list of nearly 400 children that we want returned home,' Zelenskyy said. 'They agreed to work on returning only 10 of them.'(With inputs from Reuters)
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