Ukraine rushes to protect critical infrastructure from new Russian attacks, says Prime Minister
Photo: Ukraine's Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko (Getty Images)
The government has approved a series of urgent measures to speed up the protection and restoration of critical infrastructure, said Ukraine's Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.
According to the Prime Minister, the government is already strengthening the protection of key facilities.
"We must act quickly so that people always have light, heat, and water, even amid enemy shelling," she said.
Svyrydenko noted that during an extraordinary meeting, the Cabinet adopted several decisions to make the protection and restoration of critical infrastructure more effective. These measures will enable government agencies and services to quickly allocate funds and repair damage.
Center for Coordination of Engineering Protection of Critical Infrastructure
Svyrydenko explained that Ukraine will establish a Center for Coordination of Engineering Protection. It will unite representatives of the government, regional and local authorities, and infrastructure operators.
The center will set priorities for financing and reconstruction, coordinate efforts, and monitor implementation. Its work will be overseen by Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba and the Recovery Agency.
At the same time, the Prime Minister said the government has updated the list of expenditures that will be financed by the state on a priority basis.
"The Treasury will now be able to allocate funds from the state budget faster for the construction, repair, and protection of energy facilities to ensure they operate even during attacks," she added.
Construction of engineering protection systems
Svyrydenko said the Cabinet also approved measures to accelerate the construction of engineering protection systems around energy, transport, and essential infrastructure sites.
"Quality and safety control will remain in place, but the procedural steps — from approvals to signing contracts — will now take months less," she said.
According to her, this will make it possible to start construction and repairs more quickly, ensure the uninterrupted operation of energy infrastructure, and speed up the restoration of damaged facilities.
Funds allocated for critical infrastructure protection
The Prime Minister also announced that additional funds from the reserve fund will be directed toward protecting and restoring critical infrastructure in frontline regions and for Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian railways).
The money will be used to strengthen energy, transport, and essential systems — from generators and battery stations to the construction of engineering protection structures.
"This will allow us to build protective structures faster, restore damaged facilities promptly, and maintain stable energy operations," Svyrydenko said.
She emphasized that the goal of these decisions is to strengthen Ukraine's resilience and improve crisis response to the consequences of attacks, ensuring that life in the country continues even during wartime.
Protection of critical infrastructure in Ukraine
Recently, it became known that Kyiv has already allocated 2.7 billion hryvnias (about $64.5 million) to protect infrastructure facilities. Work on first-level protection systems has already been approved by a commission that included representatives of the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine.
Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine must secure more than 200 key facilities against Russian attacks.
