Russia strikes Kyiv leaving it in the cold without heat, power as global leaders gather in Davos

KYIV – Russia launched a ferocious large-scale airborne assault on Kyiv and multiple regions across Ukraine on Jan. 20, striking as political and business leaders convened for the yearly World Economic Forum in Davos whose timing Ukrainian officials say underscores Moscow’s continued terror campaign against civilian infrastructure. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said dozens of towns and villages across at least seven regions came under attack, including Kyiv and the surrounding region, Vinnytsia, Dnipro, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Poltava, and Sumy.

“Kyiv and the region, Vinnytsia, Dnipro, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Poltava, Sumy, and other regions of ours. Repair crews, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, and all necessary forces are engaged everywhere,” Zelenskyy said.

According to the Ukrainian Air Forces, Russia launched one anti-ship missile, 18 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles, and 339 attack drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles from multiple directions.

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian air defenses intercepted a significant number of incoming weapons, aided by a new delivery of air-defense missiles received the day before the attack.

“Every support package matters. Missiles for Patriots, NASAMS, and other air defense systems are critically needed,” Zelenskyy said, urging partners meeting in Davos not to delay assistance. “Air defense missiles are real protection for human life.”

The impact was particularly severe in Kyiv, where Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said 5,635 residential high-rise buildings were left without heat or electricity amid freezing winter conditions.

Ukraine’s national energy operator Ukrenergo reported emergency power outages in several regions. In Bucha district, outside Kyiv, one civilian was killed in the attack.

“It is important that the world does not remain silent about this,” Zelenskyy said. “Russia cannot be treated as an equal member of the international community while it remains focused on killing and tormenting people.”