Russia intensifies air attacks on kyiv

The Ukrainian capital Kiev was targeted at dawn on Wednesday by a combined Russian attack of missiles and drones, for the first time in two months, as Ukrainians are losing ground on the front and fear losing US support.

This escalation comes on the day that the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken promised in Brussels a “firm” response to North Korea's involvement alongside Russia in the war in Ukraine.

In this regard, Washington has corroborated kyiv's claims that North Korean troops are now “engaged in combat operations” alongside Russian soldiers in the Russian region of Kursk, a small part of which is occupied by Ukrainian forces.

Ukraine: the positions of the military forces © AFP – Valentin RAKOVSKY, Sophie RAMIS, Cléa PECULIER

Russia has significantly stepped up drone strikes on kyiv, carrying them out almost daily since early October, but this is the first time in more than two months that missiles have been fired at the Ukrainian capital at the same time.

“The Russian armed forces launched a combined missile and drone attack on kyiv. The first time in 73 days,” said the military administration of this city, populated by three million inhabitants before the war and located hundreds of kilometers from the front.

-Six missiles and 90 drones –

According to this source, Moscow used ballistic and cruise missiles in addition to drones for this operation which “lasted more than two hours” but which did not cause any deaths thanks to the action of the Ukrainian anti-aircraft defense.

Photo released by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine on November 13, 2024, showing a firefighter fighting a fire after a Russian attack in Brovary, near Kyiv © State Emergency Service of Ukraine – Handout

An initial report indicates that one person was injured by falling debris from a projectile that fell over Brovary, a suburb of the capital.

Drones also struck the southern city of Beryslav, killing a 52-year-old woman, regional authorities reported.

In total, according to the air force, six missiles and 90 drones targeted the regions of kyiv, Poltava, Sumy, Cherkassy, ​​Zaporizhzhia, Chernihiv and Kirovograd during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday. Only the Zaporizhzhia region is located on the front line.

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The same source confirmed that two cruise missiles, two ballistic missiles and 37 drones had been destroyed.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov repeated that the Russian army was only striking “military targets”, in response to a question about the increasing number of civilian casualties in Ukraine.

Moldovan police announced on Tuesday that they had found a drone that they said was accompanying a Shahed drone sent by the Russians and had crashed in eastern Moldova, near its border with Ukraine. There is no risk to the local population, they added.

– American assistance threatened –

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, commenting on the nighttime attacks against his country, once again denounced “Russian terrorism” and praised the “effective” response of the anti-aircraft defense.

Photo released by the Ukrainian State Emergency Service on November 13, 2024, showing firefighters battling a fire after a Russian attack in Brovary, near Kyiv © Ukrainian State Emergency Service – Handout

He expressed “gratitude” to his Western allies who have been supplying weapons and ammunition for two and a half years.

But this assistance seems to be under threat, with Ukrainians and Europeans fearing that the United States, with the return of Donald Trump, could cut off aid to the Ukrainians at a time when they are facing great difficulties on the battlefield.

In eastern Ukraine, the Russian army, despite significant losses, conquered hundreds of square kilometers in October and is approaching tactically or strategically important cities, in particular that of Pokrovsk.

Moscow claimed on Wednesday the conquest of Rivnopil, a village of less than 100 inhabitants before the war and located at the junction of the eastern and southern fronts.

In addition, Russian forces have received, according to the West and kyiv, reinforcements of more than 10,000 North Korean soldiers, which the Kremlin does not deny.

They began fighting in the Kursk region, partially occupied by Ukrainian soldiers since August, following an offensive that was supposed to divert the Russian military to defend their own territory but which did not have the expected results.

Faced with this situation, outgoing President Joe Biden is seeking to accelerate the delivery of military aid. Of the envelope voted in the spring, there remains approximately 9.2 billion dollars to be allocated, namely 7.1 billion to be drawn from American arms stocks and 2.1 billion to finance arms purchase contracts, according to the Pentagon.

It seems unlikely, however, that the Americans will lift their veto on the use of long-range missiles deep in Russian territory, despite kyiv's entreaties.

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