Russia’s largest ever drone attack on Ukraine burns Kyiv government building
washingtonpost.com
KYIV — Russia unleashed a massive air assault on Ukraine early Sunday, sending more than 800 drones and 13 missiles into the country in an hours-long attack that set the main government building in Kyiv ablaze for the first time during the war. A Russian drone also struck a residential building in the capital, killing a woman and infant. At least 20 other people were wounded, officials said.
The morning attack sent residents running to bomb shelters as plumes of smoke rose over the city center. The assault marked the largest number of Russian drones ever sent into Ukraine in a single day and continued a worrying trend of increased Russian attacks on the center of the capital, following another huge strike on Kyiv last week.
“Such killings now, when real diplomacy could already have begun, are a deliberate crime and an attempt to prolong the war,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram. “It has been said more than once in Washington that sanctions will follow for refusing to talk. We must implement everything that was agreed upon in Paris.”
Zelensky visited Paris to meet with European and U.S. officials last week and discuss future security guarantees for his country in the event of a ceasefire. Russian President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, proposed that Zelensky visit Moscow — a nonstarter for Kyiv — if he is serious about ending the war. Zelensky has long insisted he is ready to meet with Putin in various locations, including the Middle East or Europe.
Firefighters deployed to the Cabinet of Ministers headquarters to try to quell the fire, which was burning through the roof of the historic building that houses offices of many of the country’s top officials.
It was not immediately clear whether the building took a direct hit or Ukraine’s air defenses had shot down the armed drone and debris sparked the fire. Helicopters swooped over the city for hours, pouring water onto various buildings that were struck overnight.
Drone and missile warnings continued to blare in the capital as firefighters hosed down the building. As Washington Post reporters arrived on the scene, another Russian drone buzzed overhead, sending police and other emergency responders running for cover.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the fire in the government building followed “the suspected downing of a drone.”
“We will rebuild what has been destroyed. But the lives lost cannot be restored. Russia continues to terrorize and murder our people every single day,” Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko wrote on X, adding that Ukraine’s partners must intensify sanctions — especially against Russian oil and gas industries. “And most importantly, Ukraine needs weapons. Only strength can stop the terror and prevent Russia from killing Ukrainians every day.”
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