According to the Kyiv Post and CNN, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia fired a total of 731 aerial weapons overnight, including 675 drones and 56 missiles.
The primary target of the attack was Kyiv. Russia deployed Kinzhal air-launched ballistic missiles, Iskander-M ballistic missiles, Kh-101 cruise missiles, Shahed-type attack drones, and decoy unmanned aerial vehicles.
The Ukrainian Air Force stated that it intercepted or suppressed 693 targets, including 41 missiles and 652 drones. However, 15 missiles and 23 drones struck 24 locations, and debris from intercepted missiles fell in 18 areas.
Damage in Kyiv was significant. Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that part of a nine-story apartment building in the Darnytskyi district was destroyed. Eighteen apartments collapsed, and rescue teams managed to save 11 residents from the rubble. Oleksii Kuleba, Ukraine's Minister of Regional Development, confirmed that one person died in Kyiv. CNN, citing Mayor Klitschko, reported that 32 people were injured, including a one-month-old baby.
Damage was also reported in several areas of Kyiv. In the Obolonskyi district, debris from intercepted missiles fell on residential buildings, causing fires. Damage to residential buildings, roads, parked vehicles, and non-residential facilities was reported in the Dniprovskyi, Holosiivskyi, and Solomianskyi districts.
The timing of the attack is noteworthy. CNN reported that explosions were heard in Kyiv while President Trump and President Xi were meeting in Beijing. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba criticized on Telegram, stating, "While the world expects peace, predictability, and cooperation, Putin launched hundreds of drones and ballistic and cruise missiles at the Ukrainian capital at the very time the leaders of great powers met in Beijing." He added that "President Trump and President Xi have sufficient influence to tell Putin to end the war."
According to Chinese state media, Presidents Trump and Xi discussed the Ukraine war during their meeting, although specific details of their discussions were not immediately disclosed.
This attack is interpreted as a saturation strategy aimed at depleting Ukraine's air defense capabilities rather than just a large-scale bombing. Ukrainian officials believe that Russia aimed to weaken air defense munitions and surveillance systems by deploying drones in multiple waves, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of missile strikes. The Kyiv Post noted that Russia had launched approximately 800 drones at Ukraine the previous day, describing this assault as one of the longest and largest continuous bombardments since the war began.
Ukrainian officials analyzed that Russia seeks to exert psychological pressure not only through military damage but also on civilians. The attack, coinciding with the Trump-Xi meeting, appears intended to project an impression of Russian superiority on the battlefield to the international community.
This airstrike is expected to further highlight the issue of the Ukraine war during the Beijing talks. Ukraine is demanding that the U.S. and China exert substantial pressure on Russia.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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