Three people, including a child, were killed and 7 others injured in Russian air raids targeting the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and the surrounding area on Wednesday, amid a widespread exchange of drone attacks between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine’s Air Force said it had shot down 5 ballistic missiles and 155 Russian drones targeting several parts of the country.
Death and injury toll in Kyiv
The Kyiv City Military Administration said 2 people had been killed and 4 others injured in the attacks on the capital. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said fires broke out during the raids, damaging homes, a shop and a warehouse. In the Kyiv region surrounding the capital, Governor Tymur Tkachenko said a Russian missile and a drone attack had killed a child and injured 3 people.
He added that the attacks damaged infrastructure facilities, as well as homes, warehouses and cars. Statements issued by Ukraine’s Defence Ministry and armed forces showed that Romania and Poland had sent warplanes to protect their airspace following the Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory.
Russia says it targeted Ukrainian facilities
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had carried out a large-scale overnight attack targeting a communications centre in Kyiv and energy facilities in the area surrounding the capital, which it said supported military production, as well as infrastructure at the port of Izmail. The ministry added that Russian air-defence systems had shot down 384 Ukrainian drones overnight.
The developments came a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged that the interception rate for fast Russian drones flying at high altitudes «had not been sufficient». He said Kyiv expected to enhance its defensive capabilities as production of interceptor missiles increased.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine had set production targets to counter Russia’s capabilities in jet-powered drones during October, describing the effort as a «strategic mission». He added that Ukrainian forces had intercepted 18 of the 29 Russian jet-powered drones launched by Tuesday evening, noting that Ukrainian fighter jets were now involved in shooting down this type of aircraft.
The Ukrainian president also said Belgium had pledged to deliver 3 F-16 fighter jets to his country by the end of the year, as part of Kyiv’s efforts to strengthen its air and defence capabilities.
