US supplying Ukraine with $53M in energy security aid amid Russian attacks

WASHINGTON

The US announced on Tuesday that it will provide Ukraine with over $53 million to help the war-torn country through what promises to be a biting winter made worse by Russian attacks on critical energy infrastructure.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the new aid, which is intended to help Ukraine acquire equipment to support its badly damaged energy grids, on the sidelines of a gathering of NATO foreign ministers in Bucharest, Romania.

"This equipment will be rapidly delivered to Ukraine on an emergency basis to help Ukrainians persevere through the winter," the State Department said in a statement. It will include distribution transformers, circuit breakers, surge arresters, disconnectors, vehicles, and other key equipment.

"We will continue to identify additional support with allies and partners, and we are also helping to devise long-term solutions for grid restoration and repair, along with our assistance for Ukraine’s effort to advance the energy transition and build an energy system decoupled from Russian energy," the department added.

Earlier on Tuesday, Ukraine’s power grid operator Ukrenergo said an energy shortage of 30% has been recorded in the country’s energy system.

Over the past week, Russian strikes have hit Ukrenergo's infrastructure in multiple regions, including the capital Kyiv. In response, the operator has announced emergency shutdowns in all regions "to protect power grids from additional technical accidents and support the operation of the power system."​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Since Russia began its war against Ukraine in February, Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been the target of Russian attacks, which increased dramatically after an explosion on Oct. 8 damaged Russia's key Kerch Bridge connecting the country with the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014.