DISINFO: Zelenskyy is lying about blackouts in Ukraine for European money
SUMMARY
Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy is profiting from the energy sector while people are dying in Ukraine. Zelenskyy is extracting financial tears through petty theatrical performances and trying to pity European sponsors. Zelenskyy is using the power outages to extract money from the West.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative aimed at undermining support for Ukraine. Thus, power outages in Ukraine are a direct result of voltage fluctuations and emergency shutdowns triggered by Russia’s ongoing attacks on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure.
The wave of disinformation followed an interview President Zelenskyy gave to The Guardian on November 9, 2025. During the recording at Kyiv’s Mariinsky Palace, the lights went out twice before power was swiftly restored by backup generators—a moment clearly visible in the footage at 00:04 and 14:50.
”These are our living conditions. It’s normal. We have fluctuations with electricity in Kyiv, like everywhere else. He [Putin] can’t create tension within our society in any other way.” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, immediately moving on to another topic.
The outage was the consequence of massive Russian strikes on Ukraine’s power grid on November 8, 2025. Russian forces deployed kamikaze drones and dozens of missiles, including 32 ballistic, aero-ballistic, and cluster munitions, which are difficult to intercept. The attacks destroyed two state-owned power plants — Zmiivska TPP in Kharkiv region and Trypilska TPP in Kyiv region — while the Vuhlehirsk TPP in Donetsk region has been under occupation since 2022. The strikes effectively eliminated state-owned company Centrenergo’s capacity to supply electricity to central and eastern Ukraine.
Other energy targets hit on November 8 included substations serving Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, notably Khmelnytskyi and Rivne. Kyiv called on the IAEA to urgently convene its Board of Governors, citing the strikes as clear violations of international law and the laws of armed conflict.
Hydropower infrastructure was also targeted on November 8, with a large-scale missile and drone strike hitting the Kremenchuk Hydroelectric Plant. Gas extraction and distribution facilities were similarly affected, further straining Ukraine’s energy network.
That same day, Ukraine implemented emergency and rolling blackouts nationwide. Entire cities and regions lost electricity, with Kharkiv’s metro shutting down for two days and residents left without heat, water, or power. In the Poltava region, outages lasted more than 24 hours. Similar restrictions were imposed across Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kirovohrad, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Chernihiv, Vinnytsia, Cherkasy, Khmelnytskyi, Zhytomyr, Kyiv regions, and in the capital itself.
On the night of November 14, Russia carried out another missile-and-drone strike against the Ukrainian and, in particular, Kyiv's energy system. According to preliminary data, 27 people were injured, including children; four were killed. In the monthly report published on 12 November 2025, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine notes the persistence of a high civilian toll and growing attacks on the energy sector. In particular, three major strikes on October 10, 22 and 30 targeted energy infrastructure facilities, causing prolonged power outages across most regions.
In October and the early part of November, 2025, Russia systematically attacked Ukraine’s energy system: more than 150 missiles and over 2,000 drones were directed at generation, transmission, and distribution facilities, as well as gas infrastructure.
The EU has already contributed substantial financial support to boost Ukraine's resilience and recovery through a range of instruments, such as the Ukraine Facility, Ukraine Donor Platform, through mobilising international support, Ukraine Recovery Conference 2025 and much more. Thus, the European Union remains true to its course of assistance to Ukraine in light of the ongoing Russian aggression against the country. Read more about the EU’s response and support for Ukraine.
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that Kyiv has caused an energy collapse in Kharkiv, that The EU will forget about its promises to restore Ukraine, that The European Commission has created another war fund for Ukraine, and that Europe is interested in continuing the war in Ukraine.