Russia, Ukraine Escalate Deadly Drone and Missile War; Romania Raises Alarm (Worthy News Radio)
By Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief
KYIV/MOSCOW/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Ukrainian authorities said Thursday at least 16 people were killed and about 40 injured in massive overnight Russian drone and missile strikes on Kyiv and the wider region, while neighboring countries were placed on high alert amid reports of drones entering or approaching their territory.
Russia pounded the Ukrainian capital and surrounding areas with scores of missiles and drones during an aerial assault lasting for hours.
Local authorities said more than 38,000 people, including over 2,000 children, sheltered overnight in Kyiv’s subway stations.
Ukraine says Moscow has intensified ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv in recent months, exploiting a chronic shortage of U.S.-made Patriot air-defense interceptors.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly appealed for more Patriot systems and interceptors, but international supplies are under pressure amid Ukraine’s more than four-year fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion and the war involving Iran.
‘MASSIVE ATTACK’
Zelenskyy described the latest bombardment as a “massive attack,” saying Russia combined ballistic and cruise missiles with drones in an effort to inflict maximum damage on civilian infrastructure.
The strikes also alarmed Ukraine’s neighbors.
Romania said an unidentified drone entered its airspace before crashing and burning in an uninhabited area near the Ukrainian border.
Two Spanish F-18 fighter jets deployed on a NATO air-policing mission were scrambled to monitor aerial targets.
Romania also deployed two F-16 fighter jets against a separate naval drone detected near a major Black Sea gas installation, officials announced..
MARITIME DRONE
Local authorities later said the maritime drone was carrying explosives and was neutralized after being engaged by one of the fighter jets.
Moldova’s Defense Ministry also said its airspace had been breached by at least one drone.
It was not immediately clear who was responsible for all the drone incidents, though Ukraine’s Western allies have warned that Russia’s full-scale invasion has increasingly created security risks beyond Ukraine’s borders.
Russia claimed its forces struck an industrial site in Kyiv involved in producing components for Flamingo cruise missiles and other strategic targets. But residential areas were reportedly also hit.
It came as Ukraine carried out one of its largest aerial attacks on Russia.
HITTING RUSSIA
Kyiv said its forces struck Russian oil facilities, including a refinery in Tatarstan and an oil terminal in Russia’s Krasnodar region, causing fires.
Tatarstan leader Rustam Minnikhanov confirmed what he described as a “massive attack” in the region, according to Russian state media.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 726 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions, Russian-occupied Crimea and the Black and Azov seas.
The escalating long-range attacks come as neither side has gained a decisive advantage along the roughly 1,250-kilometer (777 mile) front line. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates that around two million soldiers have been killed, wounded or gone missing since early 2022, including about 1.4 million Russian troops.
Drones and missiles are playing an increasingly prominent role in the armed conflict, striking targets far beyond the front lines and raising growing security concerns in neighboring countries.
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