Ukraine war: Selenskyj calls for long-range weapons after drone attack on Kyiv

Ukraine needs long-range weapons to protect its cities and troops on the front line from Russian bombs and drones, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday after a massive drone and missile attack overnight.

Russia launched its fifth drone attack on Kyiv overnight in two weeks. Ukrainian air defense systems destroyed all air forces before they reached the capital, the Ukrainian military said.

The Ukrainian Air Force said on Telegram that its air defense systems had destroyed 35 of the 39 drones and two cruise missiles that Russia fired overnight. The weapons, according to the Air Force, targeted ten Ukrainian regions.

It was not immediately clear how many drones were fired at Kyiv. There were no casualties and no significant damage was reported, Serhiy Popko, head of the military administration of the Ukrainian capital, said on Telegram.

“Last night alone, the Russian army used almost 40 ‘Shaheds’ against Ukraine. What is important is that most of them were shot down by our defenders of the sky,” Zelensky said on Telegram, referring to the drones.

He said it was necessary to destroy Russian bombers at Russian air bases to protect Ukraine from air strikes.

“Our sufficient long-range capabilities should be an adequate response to Russian terror. Anyone who supports us in this supports defense against terror,” Zelensky said.

On Friday, Zelensky renewed his appeal in London to Western allies to allow long-range strikes on Russia. Britain should try to persuade its partners to lift restrictions on their use.

NATO members have different approaches to how Ukraine can use the weapons it donates. Some have made it clear that Kyiv can also use the weapons against targets inside Russia, while the US has taken a narrower approach, allowing the use of its weapons only just beyond the Russian border against targets supporting Russian military operations in Ukraine.

Russia fired three Iskander ballistic missiles, the Ukrainian Air Force said, but did not disclose what happened to them.

The military administration of the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine on the border with Russia said on Telegram that a Russian missile had damaged critical infrastructure in the region’s Shostkynskyi district.

The government did not provide any further details on which infrastructure was affected.

There was no initial comment from Russia on the attacks. Moscow says it does not attack civilian targets in Ukraine.

“These systematic attacks … using drones prove once again that the intruders are actively looking for an opportunity to attack Kyiv,” Popko said. “They are testing new tactics, looking for new approaches to the capital and trying to uncover the locations of our air defenses.”