In a chilling display of force, Russia unleashed a barrage of more than 450 drones and at least 30 missiles on Ukraine overnight from December 12 to 13, 2025, plunging over a million Ukrainian households into darkness and leaving a trail of destruction across multiple regions. The latest strikes, described by Ukrainian officials as among the most intense in recent months, targeted energy infrastructure and civilian facilities, compounding the hardships faced by a population already battered by nearly four years of war.
According to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, the attacks delivered “painful blows to Ukraine’s energy sector,” with the Odesa and Mykolaiv regions particularly hard hit. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the scale of the onslaught, stating that “Russia had used more than 450 drones and 30 missiles” in the overnight assault. He emphasized, “It is important that everyone now sees what Russia is doing – every step they take in terror against our people, all their attacks, for this is clearly not about ending the war,” as reported by CNN.
The strikes left more than a dozen civilian facilities damaged and disrupted water supplies in several areas, regional authorities said. In Odesa, a key Black Sea port vital for grain exports, the attacks ignited fires in grain silos and damaged 20 electrical substations, according to Ukraine’s largest power company DTEK. Video footage released by DTEK showed personnel beginning to clear debris at the site of one of the battered substations. The city’s critical port and energy facilities were the main targets, with Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba reporting, “The enemy struck the Odesa seaport, causing a fire in the grain storage facilities.”
Across southern Ukraine, the situation was dire. Kherson, the regional capital, was left without electricity, affecting more than 140,000 customers. Water supplies there were reduced to just four hours per day as repair crews scrambled to restore basic services, local officials confirmed. In Mykolaiv, Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych described the attack as “one of the most massive attacks on Mykolaiv and the region in recent times,” with at least five people injured. Further north, Chernihiv endured more than 30 strikes overnight, according to regional military administration head Vyacheslav Chaus.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, was not spared the fallout. The facility temporarily lost all offsite power connections for the 12th time since the war began, forcing reliance on backup systems to prevent immediate disaster, as highlighted by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Although reconnection was achieved, the incident underscored the ongoing risks posed by military activity near the plant.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed the attacks were retaliatory in nature, targeting facilities supporting Ukrainian military operations. The ministry also reported intercepting more than 40 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory during the same period. Yet, the human toll was apparent on both sides of the border. In Saratov, Russia, a drone strike damaged a residential building and blew out windows at a kindergarten and clinic, killing two people, as confirmed by Saratov regional Governor Roman Busargin and reported by The Associated Press.
On the Ukrainian front lines, the fighting was no less fierce. Ukrainian forces reported a rare and significant counterattack in the Kharkiv region, claiming to have driven Russian units out of the town of Kupiansk and inflicting heavy losses. The Khartiya corps stated that since September, more than 1,000 Russian soldiers had been killed and nearly 300 wounded as Ukrainian units pressed their advantage. More than 200 Russian troops were said to be surrounded, and geolocated video from Friday showed Ukrainian forces operating throughout the town. These claims came in direct contradiction to Russian assertions last month that Kupiansk had been captured and that Ukrainian forces there were surrounded.
Meanwhile, the battle for Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region continued to rage. Ukrainian commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that “over the past few weeks, we have been able to regain control of about 16 square kilometers in the northern part of the city,” though he acknowledged the situation remained difficult with Russian reinforcements pouring into the area. Syrskyi added, “On some days, the number of combat engagements reaches 300 — the highest since the start of the war.” The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin and military leaders have tried to portray the Ukrainian front as on the verge of collapse, but the continued resistance and counterattacks tell a different story.
Amid the violence, diplomatic efforts pressed on. US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, was set to meet Zelenskyy and European officials in Berlin for talks on advancing a US-backed plan for peace. After discussions in Paris, France’s presidency highlighted the challenge: “The Americans insist on the issue of territories, while the Ukrainians and Europeans insist on the issue of security guarantees, and that is what must be balanced.” The French presidency further clarified, “The Ukrainians have not made a deal on the territories, are not considering a deal on the territories today, are not considering a DMZ.”
Russia, for its part, remained skeptical of the new proposals. Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov stated, “What the Americans are currently coordinating with the Europeans and the Ukrainians should ultimately be shown to us. This will naturally provoke a corresponding reaction; I don’t think we’ll be entirely happy with it either.” Ushakov also emphasized that Moscow would only agree to a ceasefire after Ukrainian forces withdraw from the front line, and that Russian police and national guard would stay in the Donbas region even if a peace settlement is reached, as reported by Kommersant and CNN.
The attacks come as winter deepens, with Kyiv and its Western allies accusing Russia of “weaponizing” the cold by targeting the power grid to deny civilians heat, light, and running water. Ukrainian emergency crews worked around the clock to restore power and water, while officials urged residents to conserve energy. The repeated strikes on energy infrastructure have forced rolling blackouts and increased reliance on generators and imported power, making daily life even more precarious for millions.
The broader pattern is clear: Russia has systematically targeted Ukraine’s energy sector throughout the conflict, escalating attacks before winter to maximize the impact on civilians. Ukrainian officials have repeatedly called for enhanced air defenses and greater international support to protect and repair the grid. The resilience of Ukrainian authorities and the population in maintaining grid operations under fire has drawn international admiration, but the need for sustained support remains urgent as restoration timelines stretch into the coming days.
As the conflict grinds on into another harsh winter, the latest wave of attacks has left over a million Ukrainians facing darkness, uncertainty, and the ever-present threat of further escalation. The intersection of military strategy and humanitarian crisis has rarely been more stark, with the fate of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure—and its people—hanging in the balance.
