Global Courant 2023-05-16 14:28:00
Kyiv, Ukraine –
Ukraine’s air defense thwarted an intense Russian airstrike on Kiev on Tuesday, shooting down all 18 missiles on the capital.
Loud explosions boomed over Kiev as the night attack combined Russian missiles launched from the air, sea and land in an apparent attempt to overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses. No casualties were reported.
Russia’s latest attack on Kiev was “exceptional in density – the maximum number of attacking missiles in the shortest time,” said Serhii Popko, the head of Kiev’s military administration.
British Ambassador to Ukraine Melinda Simmons tweeted that the barrage was “pretty intense”.
“Ponies and shaking walls are not an easy night,” she wrote.
It was the eighth time this month that Russian airstrikes have targeted the capital, a marked escalation after weeks of silence and ahead of a long-awaited Ukrainian counter-offensive. It also came as President Volodymyr Zelenksyy wrapped up a whirlwind European tour to greet Ukraine’s key wartime allies, leading to an additional tranche of pledged military aid.
The Ukrainian Air Force said 18 different types of missiles were launched, including drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles. All were intercepted, Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat said.
Six “Kinzhal” aero-ballistic missiles were launched from MiG-31K aircraft, nine cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea and three land-based S-400 cruise missiles were aimed at the capital, Ihnat said in a statement on Telegram.
After the initial strike, Russia also launched Iranian-made Shahed attack drones and conducted aerial reconnaissance, Ihnat said.
Debris fell in several districts of the capital. In the Solomyansky district, a fire started in a non-residential building.
Debris set cars on fire and fell on the grounds of a zoo, but no losses were reported, Kiev mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
The barrage came as European leaders were due to attend a rare summit of the 46-nation Council of Europe, the continent’s main human rights body.
The two-day meeting in Iceland is trying to set up a way to record damage in Ukraine caused by the Kremlin’s forces so that claims for damages can be made against Moscow.
