Russia is effectively carrying out drone attacks against Ukraine around the clock; more than 40 people are currently reported injured, including five children.
This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a video address.
“Today, for almost the entire day, starting from last night, Russia has been striking Ukraine with “shaheds.” There was a massive attack during the night – both missiles and “shaheds” – and throughout the day, new waves of drones continued. More than 550 drones of various types were launched just today, a significant number of them specifically “shaheds.” The geography of this attack is extensive. Although the majority of drones were shot down – more than 500 confirmed interceptions – unfortunately, there were still hits in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, as well as in the Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, Kharkiv, and Dnipro regions. Sadly, people have been killed. My condolences to the families and loved ones. As of now, more than 40 people have been reported injured, including five children. All are receiving the necessary assistance,” Zelenskyy said.
According to him, the Russia continues its operation aimed at breaking Ukraine and its energy system. The centers of Ukrainian cities were also attacked, including the historic center of Lviv, in particular the Church of St. Andrew, whose history dates back to the early 17th century.
“Iranian “shaheds” enhanced by Russia hit a church in Lviv – this is utterly perverse, and only the likes of Putin could take pleasure in it. In Ivano-Frankivsk, a maternity hospital was damaged,” Zelenskyy emphasized.
He noted that the scale of the attack clearly indicates that Russia has no real intention of ending this war. And considering that Russia is also helping the Iranian regime carry out strikes across the entire region, the conclusion is entirely obvious: without additional and strong pressure on Russia, without tangible losses for Moscow, there will be no willingness to end the war, the President stated.
In his opinion, there is currently too little pressure on Moscow; moreover, there are signals that encourage Russia, increasing its aggressiveness.
“The fact that sanctions against Russia have been partially eased serves Russia’s interest to continue the war. The Russians will earn at least two billion dollars from the easing of sanctions in these weeks alone. This is dangerous for everyone. Precisely as a signal,” Zelenskyy stressed.
The President thanked everyone working on developing new and effective formats of international coordination to jointly defend and effectively counter missile and drone attacks.
“There definitely must be more control and more coordination, so that Russia, the Iranian regime, and other similar formations cannot easily access microelectronics or other components needed to produce weapons. Europe and other parts of the world must certainly have greater production capacity and more cooperation to ensure modern and reliable air defense,” Zelenskyy emphasized.
According to him, the technologies of war have reached a level where air defense must be multi-component.
“And to be truly strong, air defense must be collaborative – when it’s not just one party, but everyone acting together to protect the skies,” the head of state stressed.
