Trump announced an energy-sector ceasefire on Sunday, 11 October, but Zelensky said on Thursday, 15 October, that Ukraine would no longer observe it, citing continued Russian drone attacks.
Russian attacks on power plants in Kyiv and Kharkiv on Tuesday, 13 October, left about 600,000 Kyiv residents temporarily without electricity, and around 370,000 people in northwestern Ukraine lost power overnight into 16 October.
Two people were killed by Russian drones in Kharkiv and one in Lutsk, while Russian authorities reported two deaths from Ukrainian air attacks on occupied Luhansk.
EU leaders met Zelensky in Brussels on Friday, 16 October, facing a gap of about 70 billion euros in Ukraine's budget for next year, and Merz said talks would continue in November and December.
On Sunday, 11 October, Trump announced on his own initiative a ceasefire covering the energy sectors of both countries. Zelensky accepted the truce, but Ukrainian strikes resumed because Russia ignored it and kept hitting Ukrainian infrastructure. On Monday, 12 October, Russian strikes damaged a gas plant and a filling station. On Tuesday, 13 October, Russia attacked power plants in Kyiv and Kharkiv, leaving about 600,000 Kyiv residents without electricity for a time. On Wednesday, Zelensky said Russia had targeted 26 power plants that day. On Thursday, 15 October, Zelensky said Ukraine would no longer observe the truce, citing continued Russian drone attacks, and a Ukrainian drone attack hit a refinery in Ryazan, about 200 kilometres from Moscow. Trump described that decision as a disgrace.
Overnight into Friday, 16 October, large parts of Kyiv lost power and water pressure dropped on the right bank of the Dnipro. Mayor Klitschko said several districts had been hit at power plants, that drones shot down over the city had started large fires, and that hospitals, schools and day-care centres were among the institutions affected. According to Klitschko, no deaths had been reported in the capital. Around 370,000 people lost power in northwestern Ukraine, and in Volhynia, a few hours from Kyiv, hundreds of thousands were cut off after what the regional governor described as continuous attacks by Shahed drones. One person died in an attack on Lutsk. In Kharkiv, Russian drones killed two people, while Russian authorities said two people died in Ukrainian air attacks on the occupied Luhansk region. The governor warned that the danger had not passed.
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The rift between Kyiv and Washington deepened after Trump and Putin agreed, in the week of 5 October, that Russia would supply diesel to the United States to lower pump prices ahead of the midterm elections. Zelensky reacted sharply, and Trump then suggested Ukraine needs a new president. Warnings of Russian missile attacks stopped appearing, and Starlink satellite internet was restricted. At a press conference in Brussels on Friday, Zelensky defended his tough tone, arguing that accepting diesel deals would lead to gas deals and then to the lifting of other sanctions. Asked whether Trump was using him as a scapegoat for high energy prices, he answered with a long silence and then a smile. Dutch prime minister Rob Jetten said Trump's remarks were not the right language and that the visit mattered for Zelensky's sense of belonging to Europe.
“The country has been in a terrible war for years and needs the help of Europe and the Americans.”
Estonian prime minister Kristen Michal said the United States is a NATO partner on which Estonia depends, and his Latvian counterpart Andris Kulbergs linked Trump's shifts to pre-election fever. Leaders pledged to help Ukraine through the coming winter, with Patriot missiles the most pressing need, and a gap of about 70 billion euros in Ukraine's budget for next year. Merz said there is broad consensus that Ukraine should be supported through the winter and into next year, while the European Commission still has to map the financial needs. Further talks are planned for November and December, and Merz said he sees no willingness on the Russian side to end the violence.
Acled data show that attacks by both sides rose this summer and damaged energy supplies, with collateral damage to petrol stations and high-voltage lines alongside strikes on power plants. Incident numbers are roughly level, although Russia has more ballistic missiles and Ukraine relies more on cheaper drones, with hundreds of attacks a month. Russian attacks often hit populated areas and kill many civilians. Danielle Bell, head of the UN human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), said the first two weeks of October were among the deadliest periods for civilians in years. Ukraine has also hit refineries deep inside Russia and occupied areas, where fuel depots in Donetsk and Luhansk were struck several times this month. Russia said parts of Crimea lost power on 8 October after Ukrainian drone attacks on the electricity network.
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Russian strikes on power plants in Kyiv and northwestern Ukraine cut electricity for hundreds of thousands, as Kyiv dropped the energy truce Trump had announced.
AI text based on reports by De Standaard, Telegraaf, de Volkskrant and other publishers. Published .