Russia accuses Ukraine of violating truce and targeting energy facilities

Hours after Russia and Ukraine, with U.S. mediation, agreed to a truce in the Black Sea to ensure the safety of ships, tensions between the two countries shifted to a new battlefield: energy facilities.

While Volodymyr Zelensky's government claimed there were no attacks—neither Ukrainian nor Russian—on energy facilities, Vladimir Putin's administration accused Ukraine of violating the agreed truce and launching military offensives targeting this critical industry.

"Despite statements by the Kiev regime about an alleged cessation of attacks on Russian energy facilities, the Ukrainian armed forces have continued to carry out attacks on energy infrastructure over the past 24 hours," the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement picked up by AFP.

Earlier, Kiev stated that neither Ukraine nor Russia had attacked an energy facility belonging to the other in the past 48 hours.

"Since March 25, we have not seen direct Russian shelling against the energy sector, so we did not attack them," a Ukrainian official told AFP. However, the official noted eight attacks on these facilities after March 18, despite Putin's declared moratorium on offensives against Ukraine.

Kiev: Moscow attacked a Black Sea port

On Wednesday, Ukraine condemned Russia for bombing a Ukrainian port in the Black Sea, violating the truce agreement ratified just hours earlier. For Zelensky, this act was a clear sign that Moscow is not pursuing "real peace."

Reports revealed that Russia attacked with 117 drones overnight on Wednesday, targeting the port of Mikolaiv, located at the mouth of the Bug River with access to the Black Sea. Ukrainian President Zelensky stated that the attack caused damage to infrastructure in the Krivói Rog and Sumi regions, as well as in Dnipro, Zaporiyia, Kharkiv, and Donetsk.

Europe wants more sanctions for Russia

At a summit held in Paris, the top leaders of Europe, joined by Zelensky, gathered to review their defense policies. They discussed the need to prepare all citizens for any scenario, including war, and analyzed the latest developments in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

After the meeting, European Council President António Costa declared that the European Union (EU) must continue to sanction Russia in order to maintain pressure on Putin.

In statements reported by AFP, Costa said, "The best way to support Ukraine is to remain constant in our goal of achieving a just and lasting peace. This means maintaining pressure on Russia through sanctions."

The president of the European Commission (EC), Ursula von der Leyen, simply stated that the alliance's goal remains "to strengthen Ukraine's security, and that of Europe in general."