Russian missiles hit Kyiv power plant; Zelensky says no US warning despite ceasefire

Russian ballistic missiles struck Kyiv on the evening of October 13, 2026, hitting the Darnytska CHP-4 power plant and a residential building in the Desnianskyi district. According to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko, two people were killed and approximately 20 injured in the residential building strike. The CHP-4 facility supplies heating and electricity to central Kyiv districts and has been targeted multiple times during the war.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine received no advance warning from Western allies, including the United States, before the missile strikes. He emphasized this was the second consecutive night without prior intelligence warning about ballistic missile launches. Zelensky framed the attacks as violations of an energy ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump on October 12, under which Russia and Ukraine had reportedly agreed to halt long-range strikes on power plants and oil refineries. "This is absolutely unjust: when they are destroying our energy infrastructure, and Ukraine is not even receiving early warnings about ballistic missile launches," Zelensky said on social media.

US President Trump denied on October 13 that intelligence sharing had been suspended, stating: "We are helping them and we are sharing intel." He acknowledged working with both Kyiv and Moscow toward ending the war. However, Zelensky told NPR that the US had warned Ukraine it could suspend intelligence sharing, citing information conveyed at the military level to Ukrainian generals. Politico reported October 13 that Trump could cut off US intelligence support or pressure Elon Musk to disable SpaceX's Starlink service, on which Ukrainian military operations depend.

The strikes marked the second consecutive night of Russian missile attacks on Kyiv. On the night of October 13–14, residents heard explosions before air raid sirens sounded—a rare occurrence that Ukrainian officials attributed to the use of hard-to-detect missiles or possible technical issues. Zelensky noted that Ukraine's own air defense systems detected the incoming missiles only as they approached the city. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov previously stated that Ukraine did not deserve the "respite" a ceasefire would provide, and claimed Europe would use any pause to send Ukraine additional weapons.

The CHP-4 facility was severely damaged in a separate Russian attack in February 2026, forcing it to shut down and leaving over 1,000 residential buildings without heating and hot water, along with 47 schools, 72 kindergartens, and 18 medical institutions. Kyiv, home to approximately three million people, has faced intensifying attacks on energy infrastructure, with Western intelligence—particularly from the US—critical to Ukraine's ability to detect incoming threats.