Ukraine drone strikes: Ukraine launches more than 400 drones towards Moscow after deadly Russian attack on eve of Nato summit
Ukraine launched one of its largest drone offensives against Russia overnight, sending more than 400 drones to Moscow and launching missile strikes in the Belgorod region, Russian officials said on Tuesday.The attack came just hours after deadly Russian missile and drone attacks killed dozens of people in Ukraine and came just before a major NATO summit in Turkey.Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that more than 430 Ukrainian drones flew into the Moscow region from Sunday night to early Tuesday morning. “Most of the drones were destroyed by air defense forces at a distance. 36 enemy drones were destroyed approaching Moscow,” he wrote on the state-backed MAX platform, according to AFP.Russian authorities later reported that about 14 drones had been intercepted near the capital, and emergency crews were deployed to the site where the wreckage fell.There were no immediate reports of casualties or significant damage from Moscow.
Belgorod attacked, civilians killed
Ukraine also struck Russia’s Belgorod region, with the region’s acting governor Alexander Shuvayev saying multiple missile attacks targeted the city of Belgorod and nearby areas.In the first missile attack, one civilian was killed in the village of Belovskoye and it also caused a fire at an infrastructure in the city of Belgorod.
After deadly barrage attacks in Russia
The Ukrainian drone offensive comes after Russia launched one of its largest combined missile and drone attacks on Ukraine early Monday.According to Reuters, Russian air strikes killed at least 30 people, including 11 in Kiev, and injured dozens more.Residential buildings in Kiev were severely damaged as emergency workers searched for survivors trapped under rubble.The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched 68 missiles and 351 drones in the night attack.While Ukrainian forces intercepted most cruise missiles and drones, officials said no ballistic missiles were intercepted due to a lack of Patriot interceptor missiles.
Zelensky appeals to Patriots again
Ahead of a NATO summit in Ankara, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky renewed his call for stronger Western air defense support.“It is critical that the world – starting with the United States and our European partners – make a strong decision to support our air defense at the NATO summit in Ankara,” Zelensky said.Zelensky urged the United States to allow Ukraine to produce Patriot air defense systems under license.“We have long demonstrated that we are capable of producing this defensive weapon ourselves. If Ukraine obtains a U.S. license to produce Patriot missiles, our own production will be sufficient to protect Ukraine and help partners in need,” he said.Zelensky added that Ukrainian forces had successfully intercepted all six Kalibr cruise missiles and 31 of the 33 cruise missiles launched overnight, but stressed that the shortage of Patriot interceptors remained a major vulnerability against Russian ballistic missile attacks.
NATO summit focuses on Ukraine
The escalation comes as NATO leaders prepare for a meeting in Ankara, where the war in Ukraine is expected to be a major topic of discussion.Zelensky is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the summit, before Trump holds separate talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin as Washington attempts to revive stalled peace efforts.NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the allies would discuss strengthening the alliance’s deterrent capabilities, boosting defense production and ensuring continued military aid to Ukraine.Russia and Ukraine have significantly stepped up long-range strikes in recent months, with both sides increasingly targeting areas far from the battlefield as the war enters its fifth year.
