By Olena Harmash and Dan Peleschuk

(Reuters) – Russia launched a new barrage of missiles and drones in Ukraine on Wednesday, targeting gas infrastructure and other energy facilities in the western regions in the latest strike on the system. of electricity in the country as it approaches the middle of winter.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russian forces launched more than 40 missiles during the morning attack and used more than 70 drones overnight. Ukraine’s air defenses were hit by at least 30 missiles, he said.

“Another big attack on Russia. It’s the middle of winter, and the target for the Russians remains unchanged: our energy infrastructure,” Zelenskiy said in a social media post on the X platform .

“One of their goals is the gas and energy facilities that sustain the normal life of our people.”

The capital Kyiv was also under attack, with hundreds of residents sheltering in underground metro stations across the capital, sleeping on yoga mats and sitting on folding chairs with their pets.

The governor of Ukraine’s western Lviv region said two energy facilities, in the districts of Drohobych and Stryi, were damaged. In neighboring Ivano-Frankivsk, the governor said air defenses prevented Russian attacks on facilities.

Both said no injuries were reported.

Ukrainians use most for heating homes and cooking. The country uses gas stored in the summer months for use in the winter, when daily production does not include consumption.

Ukraine’s underground gas storage facilities are located in the western part of the country, including the Stryi area. Their role has grown since Kyiv refused to extend a gas transit agreement with Russia.

Russia has intensified its bombing of Ukraine’s electricity sector and other energy infrastructure since March 2024, removing half of available generating capacity and forcing long, rolling blackouts across the country.

Ukrainian cities, businesses, and residents are rushing to install new generation capacities, including solar panels, batteries, generators, and other equipment to increase their energy independence and survive critical which are cold months.

Zelenskiy, who visited neighboring Poland on Wednesday, repeated his request to Kyiv’s Western allies to strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses.

“We also discussed licenses for the production of air defense systems and missiles for them, which can serve as one of the effective security guarantees for Ukraine. This is both realistic and necessary to implement.”