March 9, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

Engineers have restored electricity supply in most regions where energy facilities were damaged by Thursday's massive Russian bombardment, Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said in a statement. 

Halushchenko said Russia used a new tactic in its latest large-scale assault, launching different types of missiles and drones at the same time.

Earlier Thursday, the mayor of Kyiv said utility crews had fully restored power in the Ukrainian capital, but about a third of the city's homes were still without heat.

Halushchenko said this was Russia's 15th massive shelling of Ukraine's battered energy system.

This wave of strikes forced the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to switch to backup power from diesel generators.

"The whole world sees that Russians do not care about any risks of a possible nuclear accident. And today, thanks to the fact that Ukraine has always supported the plant's safety systems, all diesel generators that provide backup power to ZNPP have been used. Currently, the power supply to the plant, which has been provided by Ukraine for more than a year of occupation of ZNPP, has been restored," he said. 

Facing Russia's regular attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities, the country's power engineers have developed a number of mechanisms that help them restore service quickly despite the extreme conditions, the minister said. 

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned the latest Russian missile barrage on Ukraine during a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

In a tweet, von der Leyen said "Russia’s deliberate targeting of civilians and energy grid is a war crime."

Zelensky said that during the call, "we welcomed the new package of EU sanctions and agreed on further pressure on the aggressor. We also discussed in detail Ukraine's progress in implementing the recommendations of the European Commission to start negotiations on Ukraine's accession this year."

Russia launched one of its biggest aerial assaults of the year on Thursday, with 84 missiles targeted at Ukrainian infrastructure across the country. 

This included six Kinzhal ballistic missiles that eluded Kyiv's air defenses, the Ukrainian military said. At least 11 people were killed.

The 2024 fiscal year budget presented by US President Joe Biden's administration requests $63.1 billion for the State Department and the US Agency for International Development, including specific funding for the war in Ukraine and countering China – a nearly $5 billion increase from the fiscal year 2023 adjusted enacted budget.

The request includes $1.7 billion “that will help Ukraine win the war and lay the reform and recovery foundation for winning the peace and help other partners impacted by the war stabilize their economies and prepare for recovery,” according to a State Department fact sheet.

In addition, the new budget requests a $1.5 million increase to funding for the Global Engagement Center, which would support programs countering propaganda and disinformation by Russia.

It also seeks $8.9 million “to support a priority U.S. strategic objective of increasing NATO common funding starting in 2023 as agreed to by the North Atlantic Council in December 2022.”

The Biden administration also requested $842 billion for the Defense Department, including $753 million for Ukraine to counter Russian influence and to help Kyiv with its security, energy and cybersecurity needs.

With the war in Ukraine in its second year, the latest budget requests $6 billion to support Ukraine, NATO and other European partners.

CNN's Oren Liebermann contributed reporting to this post.

The Ukrainian military shared updates Thursday from multiple fronts in its defense against Russia's invasion.

The battle for Bakhmut: Russian forces are still working to encircle the eastern city of Bakhmut, "with further access to the administrative borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions," the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said.

The military said it "repelled numerous attacks" surrounding the city, saying more than half a dozen villages northwest, west and southwest of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region have recently taken enemy fire.

Elsewhere on the eastern front: North of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, Russian forces are trying to break through Ukraine's defenses in Kupyansk and Lyman, according to the General Staff.

South of Bakhmut, Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensives on several towns near the eastern cities of Avdiivka and Shakhtarsk, Ukraine's military said.

In southern Ukraine: Russian forces are on the defensive in the southern regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, according to Ukraine.

The General Staff claimed that in some Russian-occupied settlements of Kherson, "Russian invaders have intensified looting," using ammunition delivery trucks to smuggle out household appliances and other property.

CNN is unable to verify Ukraine's claim.

Ukrainian strikes: Over the last 24 hours, Ukrainian forces have carried out seven strikes on areas where Russian personnel and military equipment are gathered.

Missile troops and artillery units hit a Russian command post, six areas where Moscow's troops were concentrated, two logistics centers, three ammunition depots, an electronic warfare station and an anti-aircraft missile system, the General Staff said. 

US President Joe Biden informally dropped by a meeting between national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Finnish President Sauli Niinistö on Thursday, according to the White House. 

Biden, the White House said, “reiterated strong US support for the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO as soon as possible. The leaders also discussed their continued commitment to supporting Ukraine in the face of Russia’s aggression.”

Latest on Finland and NATO: Last year, the Nordic country ditched decades of neutrality and announced it would seek to join NATO, attempting to strengthen its security following the onset of the war in Ukraine. 

But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan objects to Sweden and Finland’s membership on what he claims are security grounds, and Hungary has also failed to ratify the accession of both Finland and Sweden.

NATO diplomats are split on whether they think Turkey will budge before the July 11 alliance summit. 

CNN's Luke McGee contributed reporting to this post.

Russia launched a total of 84 missiles over the last 24 hours, and Ukraine's air defenses intercepted 34 of them, the Ukrainian military said in a Thursday evening update.

An additional eight missiles in the assault did not reach their targets, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"The enemy also carried out 12 air strikes, in particular, using 8 Shahed-136 UAVs," the General Staff said, referring to Iranian-made attack drones. "Half of them were shot down."

Initially, Ukrainian authorities had said Russia fired 81 missiles in the barrage.

"Having no significant successes on the battlefield, the enemy continues to use terror tactics, thereby grossly violating the norms of International Humanitarian Law," Ukraine's military said.

CIA Director William Burns on Thursday emphasized the extent to which Russia’s war in Ukraine could color China’s thinking when it comes to Taiwan, telling lawmakers that “nobody has watched more intently” what’s happened in Ukraine than Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“That's something that President Xi has to weigh as he comes out of zero-Covid, tries to restore Chinese economic growth, tries to engage with, you know, the rest of the global economy,” Burns added.

Congressional advocates of continued US support for Ukraine have echoed Burns’ comments about China, arguing to their skeptical colleagues that countering China is one of the key reasons to continue helping Ukraine defend itself against Russia.

Utility crews have fully restored power in the Ukrainian capital, but about a third of the city's homes are still without heat, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said Thursday. 

"Work to restore heat supply is ongoing," the mayor said in an update on Telegram. "The utility plans to restore heat in full within 24 hours," he added.

Russia launched one of its biggest aerial assaults Thursday with 81 missiles targeting Ukrainian infrastructure across the country. In Kyiv, an air raid alert lasted for almost 7 hours overnight and officials implemented power outages as a preventative measure, regional authorities said.

In an earlier post, Klitschko said Russia's attacks knocked out the heat supply and hot water service at the Oleksandrivska Clinical Hospital. About 700 patients are receiving inpatient treatment at the hospital, he said. 

Mobile boilers, diesel fuel and generators were delivered to the medical center while crews made repairs, according to the mayor.

CNN's Robi Picheta contributed to this report.

Radio stations and television channels in Moscow broadcast false air raid alerts Thursday after their servers were hacked, the Russian capital's Emergency Situations Ministry office told state news agency TASS.

"As a result of a hacking attack on the servers of radio stations and television channels, a false air raid alert has been issued in Moscow. Moscow’s office of the Emergency Situations Ministry is hereby informing that the alert is false and isn’t real," the ministry said, according to TASS.

A similar incident occurred February 28, when false air raid alerts were issued in 15 Russian regions, according to TASS. 

Earlier Thursday, a false air raid alert was also broadcast on radio and television in Russia's Sverdlovsk region after the servers used by broadcasters there were hacked too, state media said.