Starmer condemns Russia’s Christmas Day strikes on Ukraine power grid
Russia’s "bloody and brutal war machine" has shown no respite "even at Christmas", Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said, as he condemned strikes against Ukraine’s energy grid.
Ukraine has accused Russia of launching a missile on Christmas Day, with the aim of damaging energy infrastructure sites across the country.
More than 70 missiles, including ballistic missiles and over 100 drones, were used in the attack, according to Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Sir Keir condemned what he called an "ongoing assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure".
He added: "I pay tribute to the resilience of the Ukrainian people, and the leadership of President Zelensky, in the face of further drone and missile attacks from (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s bloody and brutal war machine, with no respite, even at Christmas."
This is the second year that Ukraine has officially celebrated Christmas on December 25, in a move to distance itself from the Russian Orthodox Church.
Russian Christians celebrate Christmas on 7 January, following the ancient Julian calendar.
Last year Mr Zelensky signed a law moving Ukraine’s official Christmas Day to December 25, with the aim of moving toward European cultural traditions, away from Russia's legacy.
On X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr Zelensky wrote: "Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane?"
He said 50 missiles and a "significant" number of drones had been shot down.
He added: "Unfortunately, there have been hits. As of now, there are power outages in several regions. Power engineers are working to restore power supply as soon as possible."
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