In brief: Russian forces fired 36 ballistic missiles and 172 strike drones overnight into Saturday, Nov. 7, aiming all 36 ballistic missiles directly at Kyiv and the surrounding metropolitan region. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the barrage was intended to force power blackouts ahead of planned trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi. The strikes wounded nine people, including a child, hit the North Bridge and a kindergarten, and damaged high-voltage substations connecting the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants to central Ukraine.
Russian forces fired 36 ballistic missiles and 172 strike drones at Kyiv and the surrounding region during an overnight assault targeting civil life-support networks, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Saturday, Nov. 7.
Zelensky said all 36 ballistic missiles were directed specifically at the Ukrainian capital and Kyiv region, describing the massive assault as Moscow’s aggressive posturing ahead of planned trilateral negotiations.
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“Russia is preparing for trilateral talks by launching ballistics at Ukrainian critical infrastructure,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram. “The main target of the strike was again the energy sector.”
The combined barrage wounded nine civilians, including one child, across the capital and neighboring districts.
Alongside the strikes on Kyiv, Russian forces hit infrastructure across 12 other administrative regions, leaving municipal services in the multi-million capital contending with disruptions to electricity, running water, and central heating supplies.
Which nuclear power substations and regions were hit?
The strikes targeted critical high-voltage transmission substations in the Kyiv region that deliver electrical generation from the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants to the capital and central Ukraine.
“In the Kyiv region, there was an attack on substations connecting the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants to Kyiv and central regions of Ukraine,” Zelensky said.
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Beyond the capital province, the president confirmed damage to electrical transmission substations across six other regions: Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk.
In Kyiv itself, incoming fire and falling missile debris damaged residential apartment buildings, hit the North Bridge spanning the Dnipro River, and partially destroyed a municipal kindergarten in the Solomianskyi district.
Municipal utility teams, emergency service detachments, and specialized repair crews deployed across affected sectors to clear wreckage and stabilize compromised circuits wherever local security conditions permitted.
Ukraine requests supprot from the US ahead of talks
Zelensky emphasized that the systematic targeting of municipal life-support networks in a city of millions requires decisive, unified backing from Washington to prevent widespread winter blackouts.
“When Russia attempts to plunge Kyiv – a city of millions – and the entire country into blackout, Ukraine cannot be left alone,” the president stated. “We count on increased bilateral support from America. We count on increased attention to Ukraine from the US Congress.”
Zelensky noted that the scale of Russian aerial attacks continues to grow, making sustained bipartisan cohesion in the United States vital to deterring the Kremlin ahead of the winter heating season.
“It is important that support for Ukraine remains among the priorities of American politics,” Zelensky said.
“We count on bipartisan unity on security matters, support for Ukraine, condemnation of Russian aggression, and increased sanctions pressure on Putin. America’s determination and consistency in supporting Ukraine are of great significance for bringing peace closer.”
The remarks arrive as Ukrainian, American, and Russian delegations prepare for working-level consultations in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 10-11 to explore de-escalation parameters and humanitarian measures.
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