Cuba Restores Power Grid and Resumes Planned Blackouts

A street is lit by car lights during a nationwide blackout caused by a grid failure in Havana on December 4, 2024. (Photo by YAMIL LAGE / AFP)
A street is lit by car lights during a nationwide blackout caused by a grid failure in Havana on December 4, 2024. (Photo by YAMIL LAGE / AFP)
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Cuba Restores Power Grid and Resumes Planned Blackouts

A street is lit by car lights during a nationwide blackout caused by a grid failure in Havana on December 4, 2024. (Photo by YAMIL LAGE / AFP)
A street is lit by car lights during a nationwide blackout caused by a grid failure in Havana on December 4, 2024. (Photo by YAMIL LAGE / AFP)

After a nationwide blackout left millions without electricity for several hours in Cuba, the power grid was restored Thursday, authorities said, adding that scheduled power outages will now resume.
The latest blackout, the third one of this severity in less than two months, occurred in the early hours of Wednesday, after a breakdown at a thermoelectric plant in Matanzas province, east of Havana. The incident triggered a chain reaction, overwhelming an already strained power system.
On Thursday, classes and work activities gradually returned to normal.
As for the scheduled power outages, Cuban authorities said they will continue their current practice of implementing daily, five-hour power outages by block or zone as they have been doing for the past few months, The Associated Press reported.
On Oct. 18, the island suffered a significant blackout that, added to the passage of Hurricane Oscar two days later, left the island without electricity for several days.
Weeks later, Hurricane Rafael’s strong winds triggered another system-wide blackout that left the national energy system disconnected again.
Cuba’s power grid has been plagued by frequent outages in recent months, with more than half of the country experiencing power cuts during peak hours. The outages are primarily caused by fuel shortages and aging infrastructure. In many parts of the island, electricity is crucial for cooking and water pumping.



Ukraine Receives F-16s from Netherlands, 1st Mirage Jets from France

A serviceman of the 25th Separate Airborne Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, carries a Shark reconnaissance drone, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Oleksandr Klymenko
A serviceman of the 25th Separate Airborne Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, carries a Shark reconnaissance drone, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Oleksandr Klymenko
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Ukraine Receives F-16s from Netherlands, 1st Mirage Jets from France

A serviceman of the 25th Separate Airborne Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, carries a Shark reconnaissance drone, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Oleksandr Klymenko
A serviceman of the 25th Separate Airborne Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, carries a Shark reconnaissance drone, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Oleksandr Klymenko

Ukraine said on Thursday it had received a first batch of French Mirage 2000 fighter jets as well as US-made F-16 fighters from the Netherlands as European allies seek to strengthen Kyiv's hand in its war with Russia.

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion three years ago, Ukraine had only a largely outdated air force inherited from the Soviet Union when it broke up in 1991.

Now facing Russian advances in the east and long-range air strikes, Ukraine has repeatedly pressed Western allies to supply it with increasingly advanced arms and ammunition including armoured vehicles, tanks, long-range missiles and F-16 fighters.

Mirage 2000s are the latest sophisticated jets Ukraine has received from allies after the first F-16s arrived last summer, marking a military milestone for the country.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy praised France and the Netherlands for their commitment to helping modernise Ukraine's air force.

"These modern combat aircraft have already arrived in Ukraine and will soon begin carrying out combat missions, strengthening our defense and enhancing our ability to effectively counter Russian aggression," Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said.

The exact number of F-16 and Mirage jets delivered was not revealed.
The Dutch defense ministry said that for security reasons it would not comment on the timing of deliveries, nor on the amount supplied at any given time.

The Netherlands has promised to deliver Ukraine a total of 24 F-16s, next to the fighter jets it supplies to a training center for Ukrainian pilots and crew in Romania.

French officials also cited security reasons in declining to specify how many warplanes had been supplied, although they did say the jets had been adapted to enable air-to-ground strikes, Reuters reported.

The Mirage 2000 is a multi-role, single-engine jet fighter. Last June, President Emmanuel Macron promised that France would train Ukrainian pilots to fly the Dassault-made jets, crossing a new line in military support for Kyiv.

The Mirage, which has been replaced by the Rafale fighter in the French air force, was initially conceived for aerial dogfights.
A French parliamentary report at the end of 2024 said that of the 26 Mirage 2000s in the French air force, six would be given to Ukraine.
France will on February 12 host a meeting with Ukraine, its main European allies, Britain and the United States to discuss how to strengthen support for Kyiv.