Zelensky: too early to declare victory after repairs to power system

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday hailed efforts to restore power generation systems damaged by Russian attacks but warned the population it was too early to declare victory on the energy front.

Zelensky said power workers had done such a good job repairing the damage caused by Russian missile and drone strikes on Friday that most people had not had to face too many outages on Saturday and Sunday.

“The very fact that … after a massive missile strike this week, we can have such peaceful energy days proves the professionalism of our energy workers,” he said in an evening video address.

“We have to realize: this is not yet a decisive victory on the energy front. Unfortunately, there may be new terrorist attacks from Russia. There may be new restrictions if there is further destruction or growth in consumption.”

Zelensky said scheduled energy outages would once again be in place when the working week started on Monday.

Russia has carried out repeated waves of attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities in recent months, at times leaving millions of people without light, heating or water supplies during the cold winter.

Energy Minister German Galushchenko said the power deficit after the attacks had been significantly reduced thanks to “an ultra-fast repair program” which ensured that all nine nuclear power units on Ukrainian controlled territory were working and connected to the grid.

“This is the best response of Ukrainian energy workers to enemy shelling,” he said in a statement.

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