Russia fires drones, missiles across Ukraine

Russian missiles damaged residential buildings in Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv and Odesa in the south, and a blizzard of drones caused temporary power cuts in Mykolaiv region and targeted the capital Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said yesterday.

Russia, which is making territorial gains in Ukraine’s east, is conducting nightly attacks on faraway cities using missiles as well as cheaply produced “suicide” drones and low-cost “decoy” drones, which tie up Ukrainian air defences.

Of 145 drones used overnight, Ukraine shot down 71 and lost track of 71 more, likely due to electronic warfare measures used against them, the air force said.

Meanwhile, Russia said its air defences had shot down eight ballistic missiles fired by Ukraine.

Ukraine fired US-made ATACMS ballistic missiles into Russia for the first time last week after receiving approval from Washington, prompting a furious reaction from Moscow.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Kyiv’s Western allies to step up pressure on Russia to prevent the components needed for the weapons systems reaching it.

“These Russian attacks on Ukrainian life can be stopped,” he said.

“With pressure, sanctions, blocking the occupiers’ access to the components they use to create the tools of this terror, arms packages for Ukraine, and a resolve that must be unwavering,” he added.