Russian strikes on Ukraine power line cause outages in neighboring Moldova

CHISINAU, Moldova — Moldova has reported “massive power outages across the country” after Russian military strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure downed a key power line that supplies the small nation, an official says.

“Following Russia’s bombardment against the Ukrainian energy system in the last hour, one of the power lines that ensures the transport of electricity for our country has been disconnected,” Infrastructure Minister Andrei Spinu says in a statement. “This has led to massive power outages across the country.”

Spinu notes that the downed power lines “were not damaged, but were automatically disconnected as a safety measure” and adds that the supplier, Moldelectrica, is working to restore power.

Moldovan citizens will be updated on the matter, he says.

Moldova isn’t a member of the European Union.