VLAD BARRAGE
NATO warplanes scrambled as Putin’s bombers launch enormous blitz on Ukraine with 93 missiles & 200 drones
Ukraine is now facing major power cuts in freezing weather
NATO warplanes were scrambled as Vladimir Putin's bombers launched a record blitz on Ukraine.
The Russian tyrant launched 93 missiles and some 200 drones overnight in strikes that has left the country freezing.
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Some 11 of the 81 missiles destroyed were downed by F-16 planes provided by Nato pals, Volodymyr Zelensky claimed.
Kyiv says it also blasted 80 of the 193 drones, but major damage appears to have been done to some power plants in the attack.
Rolling power cuts have now been introduced by authorities across the country despite freezing -5C conditions in the capital.
Residents of Kyiv huddled in underground train stations wrapped up warm as they waited out the blitz.
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A massive Russian onslaught had been expected but there were no immediate reports of the fearsome medium range ballistic missile Oreshnik being deployed, as had been predicted.
Instead, Ukraine was hit with Iskander, Kalibr, Kinzhal missiles and Iranian-designed Shahed kamikaze drones.
The missiles were launched from Tu-95MS strategic bombers and MiG-31Ks deep inside Russia.
Parts of Kyiv have now lost power with the city's underground rail system at a halt.
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Energy minister German Galushchenko said workers were now trying to prevent more damage being done to the system following the strikes.
He said: “The enemy continues its terror.
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“Once again, [the power sector] throughout Ukraine is under massive attack."
Some of the strikes hit in the west of the country, leading Poland to put its military on high alert and scramble its jets.
Zelensky has now blasted Putin over the attack and his claims that he wants peace.
The brave leader said: “This is how he wants ‘negotiations’ – terrorising millions of people.
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“Oil gives Putin enough money to believe in impunity. A strong reaction from the world is needed: a massive strike – a massive reaction. This is the only way to stop terror.
“We need ‘Patriots’ to shoot down these missiles and prove that terror will not achieve its goal."
Moscow claimed the mega bombardment was revenge for the latest Ukrainian strike with American ATACMS missiles.
The Kremlin said Kyiv used six ATACMS to hit an aircraft repair centre in Taganrog, more than 130 miles from the nearest Ukrainian held territory.
The ATACMS missiles have a range of 190 miles.
Unconfirmed reports said the site they destroyed housed a Beriev A-50 early warning radar plane worth £260 million ans an Ilyushin-80 command and control plane know as a “flying Kremlin”.
Ukraine downed two A-50s in a major blow to Russia’s air force Jan and Feb this year.
The long-range missiles are critical to Ukraine and its ability to disrupt Putin's war machine, it says.
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But their use has been hotly debated with Russia vowing revenge and some Western backers thinking they are too strong.
In late November, Trump told Time: “I disagree very vehemently with sending missiles hundreds of miles into Russia. Why are we doing that?”
Both US ATACMS and British Storm Shadow missiles have been used to hit Russian territory for the first time since last month.
Putin has been touting his Oreshnik super-weapon and threatening to unleash the hypersonic missile again on Ukraine.
The mad dictator has threatened to blast parts of Kyiv "to dust" with it after he launched it at Dnipro last month.
But insiders have claimed the missile is a bust and Putin's threats are just propaganda.
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It comes after a Ukrainian drone detonated in the air over an elite forces facility in Grozny, capital of Chechnya, an area run by local warlord Ramzan Kadyrov.
The attack damaged the barracks of a police special forces regiment named after Kadyrov’s assassinated father, Akhmat, who previously ruled the region.
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