Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia deliberately timed its large-scale attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure to the coldest days of winter, violating a ceasefire brokered by Donald Trump to protect civilian energy facilities. The attacks also came on the eve of new trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi.
Posting a video message on X, the Ukrainian president said he is waiting for the U.S. to respond.
“We await the reaction of America to the Russian strikes. It was the U.S. proposal—to halt strikes on energy during diplomacy and severe winter weather. The President of the United States made the request personally. Russia responded with a record number of ballistic missiles. The overnight strikes left more than a thousand residential buildings in Kyiv without heating as temperatures plunged to minus twenty degrees Celsius,” Zelensky wrote.
We await the reaction of America to the Russian strikes. It was the U.S. proposal—to halt strikes on energy during diplomacy and severe winter weather. The President of the United States made the request personally. Russia responded with a record number of ballistic missiles. pic.twitter.com/3SUyXk6aAk
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 3, 2026Zelensky said 71 missiles and 450 drones were fired overnight, primarily against energy infrastructure, as temperatures in Kyiv dropped to minus 20 degrees Celsius. The attacks left more than a thousand residential buildings in the capital without heating on Tuesday.
The Ukrainian president said Moscow used the short ceasefire period to stockpile weapons and then launched mass strikes “waiting for the coldest days of winter.” He said Russia was either interpreting its commitments arbitrarily or was not interested in diplomacy in the first place.
Moscow has responded to Kyiv’s complaint, stating that they beleived the ceasefire to have ended on Sunday, according to Magyar Nemzet, while the Ukrainian side had expected it to be observed until Friday.
In his own video message recorded from Kyiv, NATO head Mark Rutte slammed Putin for striking civilian targets.
“During my visit to Kyiv today, I saw a civilian heating plant targeted by Russian missiles. No military value whatsoever – attacks meant only to make people suffer. But Ukraine stands strong. And NATO stands with you,” he wrote in his post.
During my visit to Kyiv today I saw a civilian heating plant targeted by Russian missiles.
No military value whatsoever – attacks meant only to make people suffer.
But Ukraine stands strong. And NATO stands with you. pic.twitter.com/XWoX11xfEv
— Mark Rutte (@SecGenNATO) February 3, 2026Rutte emphasized that Putin seeks only “to create chaos and fear for innocent civilians,” while the United States and Europe are working hard for a just and long-lasting peace.
Trump has had no comment on the matter, other than via the White House spokesperson, who has stated he was not surprised and had asked Moscow to stop the attacks, apparently to no avail.
Talks in Abu Shabi are set to begin today, but Ukraine’s leader says it is clear that “terrorizing people is more important for Russia now than diplomacy.”
Only pressure, via increased weapons supplies and offensive actions on the ground, will get Putin to the negotiating table to make real concessions towards peace, Zelensky stated in his video message.
