Russia strikes Ukraine gas hub ahead of winter in ‘cynical' attack, Zelensky says
The Orlovka gas interconnector, which pumps in LNG imported from the US and Azerbaijan, was struck during a Russian airstrike on the village of Novosilske, along the Romanian border, Zelensky confirmed Wednesday.
'This was a deliberate blow to our preparations for the heating season, absolutely cynical, like every Russian blow to the energy sector,' the Ukrainian president said on Telegram.
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3 Ukraine's gas pumping station in Orlovka was hit by a Russian airstrike overnight.
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The attack on the gas line was also confirmed by the Russian Ministry of Defense, according to the TASS state news outlet.
Kyiv has faced a serious gas shortage since Russia began escalating its daily bombardments on Ukraine earlier this year, plummeting domestic production and forcing the besieged nation to rely more on imported LNG as winter approaches.
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Ukraine's energy ministry said that the station that was hit on Wednesday was part of the gas route connecting Greek LNG terminals with domestic facilities facing shortages.
The gas line had already been used to deliver LNG from the US to Ukraine, with successful tests also conducted to move Azerbaijani gas, bolstering plans for a large energy deal between the two nations.
3 Zelensky slammed the attack on one of Ukraine's key gas pumping stations, with the country contending with a shortage as winter approaches.
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'This is a Russian strike purely against civilian infrastructure, deliberately targeting the energy sector and, at the same time, relations with Azerbaijan, the United States and partners in Europe, as well as the normal lives of Ukrainians and all Europeans,' the energy ministry said in a statement.
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The attack on the station also comes just days before Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is expected to meet with President Trump.
Kyiv said 400,000 cubic meters of gas were scheduled to be pumped through Orlovka on Wednesday, but energy officials did not say if it will continue to use the interconnector that was hit.
3 Russia has continued to fire daily mass bombardments across the border, with no sign of a cease-fire.
STATE EMERGENCY SERVICE OF UKRAINE HANDOUT/EPA/Shutterstock
While Moscow has repeatedly denied targeting civilian infrastructure during the war, which is in its third year, the Kremlin has defended attacks on energy systems are legitimate targets to hinder Ukraine's military defenses.
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The overnight attack on Orlovka also triggered Romania's military to scramble its F-16 jets, the latest NATO nation to respond as such in the face of Moscow's escalating attacks.
'On the night of August 5-6, the Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on the civilian infrastructure in the Ismail area, Ukraine, in the vicinity of the border with Romania,' Romania's defense ministry explained.
With Post wires
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