Russia Intensifies Drone Assaults as Ukrainian Leader Zelenskyy Attends European Summit

As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy journeyed to Spain to garner support from Western nations at a meeting of approximately 50 European heads of state, Russia escalated its drone strikes against Ukraine early on Thursday.

The Ukrainian Air Force reported that the nation’s anti-aircraft defenses successfully intercepted 24 of the 29 Iranian-manufactured drones that Russia directed towards the southern regions of Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kirovohrad.

Andriy Raykovych, the chief administrator of the Kirovohrad region, announced that a critical infrastructure site within the area was hit, prompting the activation of emergency services to extinguish the resulting blaze. He confirmed that there were no fatalities.

The escalation transpired just as Zelenskyy set foot in Granada, Spain, to participate in a conference hosted by the European Political Community, an organization established subsequent to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Zelenskyy conveyed, via a statement on his Telegram channel, that a primary objective for Ukraine is to bolster its air defense capabilities, particularly as winter approaches. “There already exists a foundation for new accords with our partners,” he added.

During the last winter season, Russia aimed drone and missile strikes at Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and other key installations, causing widespread and ongoing electrical blackouts throughout the nation. Although the Ukrainian power system has demonstrated considerable resilience and adaptability, concerns persist that Russia may amplify its attacks on energy facilities as colder weather looms.

The Ukrainian President also remarked that the Granada summit would address collaborative efforts toward global food security and safeguarding freedom of navigation in the Black Sea. This area has come under focus after Russia pulled out of a United Nations-endorsed grain agreement meant to facilitate secure grain exports from Ukrainian ports.

According to the U.K. Foreign Office, intelligence indicates that Russia might plant underwater mines near Ukrainian ports as a tactic to target civilian shipping while attributing the responsibility to Ukraine. “Russia is highly likely seeking to avoid overtly sinking civilian vessels, instead falsely attributing any assaults against civilian ships in the Black Sea to Ukraine,” the office stated, noting that the U.K. is collaborating with Ukraine to enhance maritime safety.

In further instances of Russian aggression within the last 24 hours, artillery shelling resulted in the deaths of two civilians in Kherson and another in Krasnohorivka, situated in eastern Donetsk. At least eight individuals sustained injuries due to the Russian artillery fire, as confirmed by Ukraine’s presidential office.

In a reciprocal response, Ukraine has consistently launched its own drone strikes across the Russian border.

Roman Starovoit, the governor of Russia’s bordering Kursk region, revealed that Ukrainian drones targeted infrastructure facilities in multiple locations, causing electrical outages. He further reported that Ukrainian artillery shelling damaged the border town of Rylsk, wounding a local citizen and causing structural harm to several residences.

Contributions to this report were made by Yuras Karmanau, based in Tallinn, Estonia.

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More about Russia-Ukraine Conflict

• Ukrainian Air Force Statement on Drone Interception
• European Political Community Summit Agenda
• U.K. Foreign Office Intelligence Report on Black Sea
• Update on Ukraine’s Power System Resilience
• Russia’s Kursk Region Governor Statement on Ukrainian Drone Attacks
• Yuras Karmanau’s Reporting Archive