Kremlin says 'Fully' Agrees with Trump's Opposition to Ukraine Firing US Missiles

Trump said in an interview published Thursday that he disagreed "very vehemently" with Ukraine's use of American-supplied missiles to strike Russian territory.

The comments were warmly welcomed in the Kremlin, which on Friday said it had launched a massive aerial attack on Ukraine's energy grid as a response to Kiev striking an airfield with U.S.-supplied weapons this week.

"The statement fully aligns with our position, with our view on the reasons for escalation. That impresses us. It is obvious that Trump understands exactly what is escalating the situation," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Trump had told Time Magazine: "I disagree very vehemently with sending missiles hundreds of miles into Russia. Why are we doing that? I think it's a foolish decision."

Moscow has repeatedly raged against the supply of Western arms to Ukraine and said the use of the weapons makes NATO countries direct participants in the nearly three-year conflict.

Trump claimed on the campaign trail that he could strike a deal to end the fighting in 24 hours, and speculation over a possible ceasefire is ramping up ahead of his inauguration in January.

But the Kremlin said Friday that its "prerequisites" for holding peace talks with Ukraine had not yet been met.

"We don't want a ceasefire, we want peace, after our conditions are met and all our goals are achieved," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, adding that the "prerequisites" needed to open negotiations were not in place.

Trump's interview was conducted before the Nov. 27 Thanksgiving holiday and before his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the reopening of Notre Dame cathedral, a meeting brokered by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Russian attacks on energy sector

Ukraine said Friday that it was fending off a new missile attack on its energy system, the latest in Russia's campaign targeting the war-torn country's power grid during the winter season.

"Another Russian missile strike against Ukraine. Cruise missiles, ballistic missiles. According to preliminary reports, 93 missiles were launched," the Ukrainian leader posted on X, calling for more Western air defenses and harsher sanctions on Moscow.

Russia has escalated its strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, plunging hundreds of thousands into temporary blackouts as temperatures hit -5 degrees Celsius (23 Fahrenheit).

To fend off the strikes, Ukraine has been pleading for more air defense from its Western allies, amid fears support will soon be reduced when U.S. president-elect Donald Trump takes office.

"The enemy continues its terror. Once again, the energy sector across Ukraine is under massive attack," Energy Minister German Galushchenko said.

"Engineers are taking all the necessary measures to minimise the consequences," he said after explosions were reported in a few regions.

"Russia has launched a massive attack on DTEK's thermal power plants," the company said in a statement, adding that the attack "severely damaged thermal power plant equipment". It did not specify how many facilities were hit.

The air raid alert was announced at 7:00 am (0500 GMT), with social media channels that monitor threats reporting cruise and hypersonic Kinzhal missiles over several regions of Ukraine.

Ukraine's neighbour Poland said it placed its army on "high readiness" due to the threat of an attack.

Russia has conducted at least 11 large-scale strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure since the beginning of the year, Kiev says.

To manage the power deficit, Ukraine's energy operator has been implementing hours-long outages, and it announced increased restrictions on Friday.

Moscow has previously acknowledged striking Ukraine's energy sites but says they are legitimate targets as they "support the Ukrainian defense industry enterprises".

The latest strike comes a day after the Kremlin said it would "definitely" respond to a Ukrainian attack on a southern airfield using U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles.

Source: HDN