Ukrainian foreign minister thanks Poles for raising over 3 million zloty to buy generators for Kyiv

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has described a Polish campaign to raise money to purchase generators for Kyiv as a powerful display of genuine solidarity, humanity and sincere support.

Sybiha said the news that Ukraine's friends and neighbours in Poland are contributing to the "Warmth from Poland for Kyiv" campaign means a lot to Ukrainians.

"This is an expression of genuine solidarity, humanity and sincere support at a time when heat and light mean safety and life. Our sincere thanks go to everyone with an open heart, to the volunteers and to the organisations that launched the fundraiser and have supported it.

We feel we are not alone. Thank you to Poland for such important help and for the warmth that keeps us going in the darkest moments," Sybiha wrote on X.

By 12:40 Kyiv time, over PLN 3 million (around US$825,000) had been raised, with more than 25,000 people taking part. The organisers have increased the target to PLN 5 million (US$1.4 million).

The organisers are urging people to support the appeal, pointing out that overnight temperatures in the Ukrainian capital are dropping to 17 degrees Celsius below zero and many residents are without electricity, heating or both.

"We are running this fundraiser with a clear, concrete goal: to buy 100 generators and deliver them to Kyiv. These appliances will save lives. Generators can heat spaces where older people and children find shelter and enable water to be boiled… Every dollar or euro brings us closer to dispatching this life-saving equipment. For us it is a gesture of support, but for them it represents a real chance to survive this winter," the campaign organisers said.

The fundraiser has been launched jointly by several civic organisations and initiatives, including Euromaidan-Warszawa, the Democracy Foundation, Sestry.eu, the Open Dialogue Foundation, the PRB Foundation and the Entrepreneurs Help initiative.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on 17 January, following a meeting with Oleh Ivashchenko, Head of Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, that Russia is preparing further strikes on Ukraine's energy system and infrastructure, including facilities that service nuclear power plants.

Sybiha said earlier that Ukraine has warned its international partners about Russia's plans to strike substations serving Ukraine's nuclear power plants.