Russian missiles hit Kyiv, Kharkiv; 6 dead
A complex Russian missile attack targeted the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Kharkiv on Tuesday morning, killing at least six people, wounding dozens and damaging buildings, officials said.
In the capital Kyiv, at least one person was killed, city administration chief Roman Popko said. Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said 18 people were injured, including a 13-year-old boy. Residential infrastructure was damaged in at least four districts.
In Kharkiv, the country’s secondlargest city, five people were killed and 38 were wounded, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said. An entire section of a multistory residential building was destroyed, trapping an unknown number of people there, he added.
Recent Russian attacks have tried to find gaps in Ukraine’s defenses by using large numbers of missiles and drones in an apparent effort to saturate air defense systems.
The massive barrages — more than 500 drones and missiles were fired between Dec. 29, 2023 and January 2, officials in Kyiv said — are also using up Ukraine’s weapons stockpiles.
Tuesday’s missile attack came a day after Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk visited Ukraine, vowing to keep supporting it against Russia’s nearly two-year-old invasion and announcing a new military aid package that includes a loan to buy larger weapons and a commitment to find ways to manufacture them together.
Meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Tusk said they had reached “an understanding” to resolve through talks any differences between their countries over grain shipments and trucking. Those issues recently soured ties between the neighbors.
Ukraine’s allies have recently sought to reassure the country that they are committed to its long-term defense amid concerns that Western support could be flagging. United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and France’s new Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne also traveled to Kyiv in the new year.
Tusk, who returned to power last month and is keen to show that a change in government won’t alter its policy on Ukraine, also met with his Ukrainian counterpart Denys Shmyhal.
Kyiv was the first foreign capital Tusk visited since becoming premier again. He returned to Polish politics after serving as president of the European Council, one of the European Union’s top jobs.
He framed the war as a wider struggle between Europe and Russia that had repercussions beyond Ukraine, making it a priority for Poland.
“Today, Ukraine is shouldering the security matters of the entire European continent, today Ukraine is paying the huge price of blood for the values that are fundamental to the free world,” he said. “Poland’s security is also at stake in this struggle.”
Zelenskyy described the talks as “very productive” and said Poland’s new military aid would include a loan allowing Ukraine to purchase big-ticket weapons. They also assessed opportunities for joint arms production, he said, in line with similar discussions with other allies.
On Sunday, Moscow-installed officials in eastern Ukraine reported that Ukrainian shelling killed 27 people on the outskirts of the Russianoccupied Donetsk region. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called it a “monstrous terrorist act,” and the Moscow-backed local authorities declared a day of mourning.
The Ukrainian military, however, denied it had anything to do with the attack.
It was not immediately possible to verify either side’s claims.