Western allies pledge support for Kyiv’s grid protection after Russia’s strikes on power lines threaten off-site cooling for nuclear facilities.

WASHINGTON, DC –  Energy ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) countries on Friday condemned Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and pledged stronger support for Kyiv as winter approaches.

In a joint statement after a two-day meeting in Toronto, the ministers said strikes on Ukraine’s natural gas system were creating “risks to communities and human lives, weakening civilian infrastructure, and undermining the energy security of the Ukrainian people.”

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The warning came as Moscow intensified its aerial assaults on Ukrainian power facilities, which officials in Kyiv have described as “systematic energy terror.”

The attacks have repeatedly disrupted power supplies and threatened the external electricity lines feeding Ukraine’s nuclear power plants.

Ministers from the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Britain reaffirmed their “unwavering support for Ukraine in defending its territorial integrity and right to exist.”

They condemned Russia’s actions for causing “devastating social, environmental, and economic consequences for the Ukrainian people,” and said they would help strengthen Ukraine’s energy resilience by supporting protection and repairs of critical energy sites, diversifying and securing supply chains, and backing the IAEA in efforts to ensure nuclear safety and security.

The G7 also called for private investment to rebuild what it described as a “reliable, resilient, efficient, affordable, and more decentralized energy system” for Ukraine.

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry on Friday night issued a statement accusing Russia of “nuclear terrorism” after missile strikes on substations supplying power to nuclear facilities.