FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a ceremony to open new youth centres in Russia's regions, via video link at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia April 4, 2024. Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
(Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia had been obliged to launch strikes that have inflicted heavy damage on Ukrainian energy sites in response to Kyiv's attacks on Russian targets.
The Kremlin leader, quoted by Russian news agencies, was speaking to his ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, after overnight attacks destroyed a large electricity plant near Kyiv and hit power facilities in several regions of Ukraine.
