President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Ukrainians about Russia preparing for a new large-scale missile strike across Ukraine, saying that "blackouts are the last hope of terrorists."
"But even without light, we know well where to shoot and what to liberate," Zelensky said in his evening address on Dec. 12.
He urged citizens to react to air raid alerts and take all warnings from the military seriously, as "the absence of massive missile strikes only means that the enemy is preparing for them and can strike at any time," and the situation will remain dangerous as long as Moscow has missiles.
"And Russia still has them," he said.
Russia's missile stock is "critically low" but it still has enough reserves to launch "several more" large-scale attacks on Ukraine, according to Ukraine's Military Intelligence Chief Kyrylo Budanov.
"We should all be aware that Russia has not given up its terror tactics. At all levels, we must be prepared for any hostile intentions. And we will do everything to get through this winter," Zelensky said.
Since Oct. 10, Moscow has unleashed six large-scale strikes targeting Ukraine's energy sector, killing dozens of civilians and causing emergency blackouts.
Russia has fired over a thousand missiles and loitering munitions at energy infrastructure nationwide over the last two months, Volodymyr Kudrytsky, CEO of Ukraine's state grid operator Ukrenergo, said on Dec. 9.
The most recent nationwide attack on Ukraine occurred on Dec. 5, killing four and hitting energy sites in at least three regions.
