Russian Drone Strikes Kill 4 in Kharkiv as NATO Reports Massive Russian Losses
Ukraine and Russia Exchange Accusations Over Energy Facility Attacks Amid Escalating Cross-Border Tensions.
Watan-Four people were killed and 35 others injured in drone strikes carried out by Russian forces in Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region, according to Ukrainian authorities late Thursday into Friday.
Ukraine’s emergency services reported that the bodies of three people were found beneath the rubble of residential and commercial buildings in one Kharkiv neighborhood, and later confirmed a fourth body was recovered from the site.
The drone strikes, attributed to Russia, also caused multiple fires in the area. Among the injured were 35 people, including a child. Additionally, five people were wounded in Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Kyiv regions, local officials said, also blaming Moscow for the attacks.
On the Russian side, a Ukrainian drone strike killed one person in the village of Belaya Beryozka in the Bryansk border region, according to Governor Alexander Bogomaz, who accused Kyiv of “deliberate attacks on civilians.”
Energy Facilities Become Latest Flashpoint in Russia-Ukraine War
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned what he described as “deliberate” attacks on energy infrastructure in southern and northeastern Ukraine. Writing on X (formerly Twitter), Zelensky stated:
“Another wave of deliberate strikes has damaged energy infrastructure,” noting that 74 Russian drones were launched.
Meanwhile, Russia accused Ukraine of deliberately targeting energy facilities twice in the border region of Kursk. Both countries reported to Washington that the other side had violated a ceasefire agreement on striking energy infrastructure—an arrangement brokered by the United States after tough negotiations in Saudi Arabia. However, no formal agreement was signed, and the terms of the understanding have not been publicly disclosed, with both sides continuing to trade accusations.
In this context, France and the United Kingdom on Friday accused Russia of continuing to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and stalling efforts led by the U.S. to find a resolution to the war. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said in Brussels:”For three weeks, Russia has been shifting its positions, continuing strikes on energy facilities, and committing war crimes.”
NATO: Russia Sustains Heavy Losses for Minimal Gains
Separately, a senior NATO official stated Thursday that Russia has suffered approximately 900,000 military casualties since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine over three years ago. The NATO assessment described the battlefield situation as “extremely difficult.”
Speaking on the sidelines of a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels, the unnamed official told the Associated Press:”While we do not expect a major collapse of Ukrainian defensive lines in the coming months, even if Moscow continues its advance, we believe Russia will maintain pressure along the frontlines and against Ukraine more broadly.”
The official said Russia is still pursuing a strategy of “high losses for slow gains,” pointing to recent territorial advances in eastern Ukraine, including in Toretsk and near Pokrovsk. According to NATO estimates, Russia suffered 35,140 fatalities in February 2025 alone.
