Russia fired ballistic missiles and dozens of jet-powered drones at Kyiv, according to Ukraine’s air force, in an expanding campaign of day-and-night bombardment that Ukrainian officials say is putting pressure on the capital and other cities.
The Associated Press reported that the latest attacks have highlighted a growing challenge for Ukraine’s air-defence network. Russia has used new jet-powered drones that fly too fast and too high for Ukrainian ground-based systems to shoot down. Ballistic missiles have also penetrated Ukraine’s defences as the country faces shortages of US-made Patriot interceptor missiles, which Ukrainian officials describe as the only reliable means of stopping Russia’s ballistic attacks.
Ukraine is attempting to respond by developing faster interceptor drones. Ihor Klymenko, head of Ukraine’s national security and defence council, said on Tuesday that new systems were already being tested and deployed with some combat units. But producing and fielding new weapons takes months, leaving Kyiv under pressure as attacks continue.
Ukraine’s air force said its defences had shot down two ballistic missiles overnight, a development that suggested Kyiv may recently have received additional Patriot systems. Patriot stockpiles are low, largely because of the Iran war, and Ukraine has received only small numbers this year despite President Volodymyr Zelensky’s appeals, according to the report.
“Russia’s terror against Ukraine is intensifying by the day,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X. He described the attacks as a deliberate escalation rather than an acceptance of Ukraine’s offers to cease fire, negotiate and end the war.
Moscow says it seeks a comprehensive peace settlement, including the surrender of Ukrainian territory that Kyiv rejects, before agreeing to a ceasefire. US efforts to broker peace over the past year have made no significant progress, according to the Associated Press.
Kremlin negotiator Kirill Dmitriev was in Washington on Monday for talks with American officials about ending the war and possible US-Russia energy initiatives after the conflict, a US official familiar with the visit told the Associated Press. The official described the conversation as constructive.
The demand for air defence is expected to grow as winter approaches. In the years since Russia’s full-scale invasion began on February 24, 2022, strikes on Ukraine’s power grid have intensified during the colder months, a strategy that Ukrainian officials say deprives civilians of heating and running water.
Kyiv has experienced almost constant disruption. Klymenko said the city had faced more than 235 air-raid alerts since August 27, lasting a combined 261 hours. The National University of Kyiv is switching to remote learning for the coming weeks because of concerns about the safety of staff and students as attacks increase.
F-16 fighter jets have been able to shoot down the jet-powered drones, although doing so costs considerably more. Zelensky announced on Tuesday that Ukraine was due to receive three F-16s from Belgium by the end of the year.
The latest barrage also affected civilian areas. Ukrainian authorities said strikes hit apartment buildings, houses and public transportation in Kyiv, wounding one person. In the northern city of Sumy, teachers and students evacuated a school shortly before four glide bombs struck during classes, Zelensky said. The bombs also hit a residential area, killing two people, he said.
Local officials said an overnight attack in Odesa wounded eight people and damaged residential buildings, civilian infrastructure, a school, an animal shelter and port infrastructure.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had struck data-processing centres in Kyiv that Moscow says are used by the Ukrainian military. The ministry also said Russian forces targeted facilities in Kyiv and the surrounding region where drones and cruise missiles were stored, along with an electrical substation, a drone-manufacturing facility and port infrastructure in the Odesa region.
Ukraine has continued to carry out attacks of its own. Its long-range drones have targeted Russian missile and drone manufacturing plants and launch sites, as well as Russian oil refineries, which Ukraine says have contributed to fuel shortages.
Despite the air campaign, the two armies remain largely deadlocked along the long front line in eastern and southern Ukraine. Zelensky has said Moscow plans to increase recruitment for another battlefield push. Late on Monday, he said that 10,000 more North Korean troops were heading to Russia, in addition to 8,000 he said were already there. Russia and North Korea have openly acknowledged their military cooperation.
For Kyiv, the immediate challenge is to protect civilians and critical infrastructure while expanding domestic air-defence production. The combination of ballistic missiles, fast-moving drones and repeated attacks on the capital is testing Ukraine’s limited supply of interceptors just as winter brings greater dependence on the country’s power and heating systems.
