Russia's ballistic missile and jet-propelled drone blitz keeps Kyiv on edge

KYIV, Ukraine — Russia fired ballistic missiles and dozens of jet-powered drones at Kyiv, Ukraine's air force said Tuesday (Sept 29), as Moscow seeks to make Ukraine buckle under the pressure of day-and-night bombardment of its capital and other cities.

Russia has used new jet-powered drones that fly too fast and too high for Ukrainian ground-based air defences to shoot down.

Ukraine is scrambling to keep pace by developing faster interceptor drones in the latest example of how the war has driven military innovation, but making and deploying new weapons takes months.

Russia's ballistic missiles have also penetrated Ukraine's defences as the country is desperately short of US-made Patriot air defence interceptor missiles needed to stop Moscow's ballistic attacks.

Patriot stockpiles are low, largely because of the Iran war, and Ukraine has received only small numbers of them this year despite President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's pleading. 

Ukraine said its air defences shot down two ballistic missiles overnight, which suggested that Kyiv might have recently received more Patriots.

"Russia's terror against Ukraine is intensifying by the day," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X. "This is Russia's deliberate escalation instead of accepting Ukraine's offers to cease fire, negotiate and end the war."

Moscow says it wants a comprehensive peace settlement, including a Ukrainian surrender of land — a demand unacceptable to Kyiv - before agreeing to a ceasefire.

US efforts to broker peace over the past year have made no significant progress. 

Kremlin negotiator Kirill Dmitriev was in Washington on Monday for talks with American officials about ending the war and possible US-Russia energy initiatives once it's over, according to a US official familiar with the visit who spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the official wasn't authorised to speak publicly. 

The official described the conversation as constructive.

Air defence needs are mounting with the approach of the bitter winter months, which in the years since Russia's full-scale invasion began on Feb 24, 2022, have brought an escalation of strikes on Ukraine's power grid. 

That strategy denies Ukrainian civilians heating and running water, among other things.

Ukraine is working to scale up production of domestic interceptor systems able to counter Russian jet-powered drones, with new systems already being tested and deployed with some combat units, Ihor Klymenko, head of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, said Tuesday.

The work is urgent, as Kyiv has been under almost constant attack with more than 235 air raid alerts since Aug 27, lasting a combined 261 hours, Klymenko said.

F-16 jets have been able to shoot down the jet-propelled drones, although at a much greater expense. Ukraine is due to receive three of the fighter jets from Belgium by the end of the year, Zelenskiy announced Tuesday.

The unrelenting attacks have disrupted everyday life in Kyiv. The National University of Kyiv is switching to remote learning for the coming weeks because of fears for the safety of staff and students.

The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces hit data processing centres in Kyiv that Moscow says are used by the Ukrainian military, which is increasingly deploying artificial intelligence on the battlefield.

Other Russian targets included facilities in the Ukrainian capital and the Kyiv region where drones and cruise missiles were stored, as well as an electrical substation, a drone manufacturing facility, and port infrastructure facilities in the southern Odesa region, the ministry said.

Ukrainian authorities said the barrage hit apartment buildings, houses and public transportation in Kyiv, wounding one person.

Meanwhile, in the northern Ukrainian city of Sumy, teachers and students evacuated from their school just before four powerful glide bombs struck during classes, Zelenskiy said. The bombs also hit a residential area where two people were killed, he said.

In southern Odesa, the attack wounded eight people overnight and damaged residential buildings, civilian infrastructure, a school, an animal shelter and port infrastructure, local officials said.

In the face of the Russian blitz, Ukraine's long-range drones have targeted Russian missile and drone manufacturing plants and launch sites. Ukraine also has hit Russian oil refineries, causing fuel shortages.

The two armies are largely deadlocked on the long front line in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Zelenskyy says Moscow intends to increase recruitment for another battlefield push.

He said late Monday that another 10,000 North Korean troops are heading to Russia, adding to the 8,000 he said are already there.

Russia and North Korea have made no secret of their military co-operation.

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