Ukraine Gears Up for a Harsh Winter Amid Rising Russian Missile Threat

Ukrainian officials are warning that a Russian campaign against energy facilities could become the war’s toughest test this season. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly stressed the need to keep power plants and heating networks fully operational for the upcoming heating period. The government is also bolstering reserves of fuel and electricity while seeking additional financing from European partners.

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In late June, Zelenskyy confirmed former Naftogaz chief Sergii Koretskyi as prime minister, tasking the new cabinet with safeguarding energy and security infrastructure. Think-tank chairman Serhii Kuzan described the changes as a “revitalised” effort to improve inter-departmental coordination and accelerate winter-readiness measures.

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Ukraine’s domestic drone sector is racing to field anti-missile technology, a process that normally spans decades. Iryna Terekh, CEO of Fire Point, warned that compressing such development into a few months is unrealistic. Former U.S. ambassador to NATO Kurt Volker argued that while Russia may try to exploit winter, Kyiv is better positioned than last year to absorb ballistic missile strikes.

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Zelenskyy appealed on July 30 for “real human lives” to motivate American and European partners to supply needed air-defence systems. Ukraine is also counting on the European Union’s €90 billion (? $103.7 billion) support package to fund winter assistance. Former President Donald Trump, in a July 30 telephone interview with the Financial Times, said he had not yet decided whether to permit Ukraine to produce Patriot surface-to-air interceptors.

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• “Winter is coming, obviously, and the last winter was very hard for Ukraine and for big cities in general. This one would be no easier — and probably even harder,” — Iryna Terekh, CEO of Ukrainian drone maker Fire Point

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• “We are trying to squeeze in the program that usually takes 20 to 30 years to develop in a few years, and this is not something that you can do within a matter of three months before the winter,” — Iryna Terekh, CEO of Ukrainian drone maker Fire Point

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• “I hope that all of our partners – above all our American partners, as well as our friends in Europe – will feel that real human lives depend on whether they help us,” — Volodymyr Zelenskyy, ukrainian president

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• “In effect, the government has been reformed and revitalised to reset institutional processes and improve coordination between different departments,” — Serhii Kuzan, chairman of the Kyiv-based Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Center think tank

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• “Putin is on a long-term path to defeat. He cannot keep up with the battlefield losses. Ukraine is knocking out oil refining and export capacity, which is drying up the Kremlin's budget,” — Kurt Volker

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