Russia and Ukraine trade drone strikes as Zelenskyy calls on allies for ‘unwavering’ help

LONDON — Ukrainian authorities said at least 23 people were injured and 41 buildings damaged by a Russian missile attack in the northeastern city of Kharkiv overnight on Monday, as Moscow’s forces launched a new offensive effort in the region and claimed battlefield gains along the eastern front.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Telegram that the S-400 anti-aircraft missile impact in Kharkov was part of a multiple barrage against Ukrainian cities overnight. Kiev, Odessa and Zaporizhia were all also targeted.

The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched 145 drones, of which 71 were shot down and 71 were lost in flight. One UAV flew into Belarusian airspace, the air force said.

The Russian Defense Ministry, meanwhile, claimed to have shot down 23 Ukrainian drones over several regions. The ministry also said it downed eight ballistic missiles, but did not specify which type.

Vladislav Shapsha, the governor of Kaluga Oblast, which borders Moscow Oblast to the southwest, said falling drone debris caused a fire at a production facility. However, the Ukrainian General Staff said the attacks destroyed the Kaluganefte oil depot in the city of Kaluga.

“In total, Russia has deployed about one and a half hundred attack drones, aerial bombs and missiles against more than ten of our regions since last night,” Zelenskyy wrote in Telegram early Monday.

“These attacks by Russia on Ukrainian life can be stopped,” he added. “With pressure, sanctions, blocking the occupying forces’ access to the components they use to create the instruments of this terror, weapons packages for Ukraine and a determination that must be steadfast.”

Just 30 kilometers from the Russian border, Ukraine’s “second city” of Kharkiv has faced near-constant attacks since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in early 2022.

Russian forces failed to encircle and capture Kharkov during the first weeks of the invasion, but fighting along the shared border has continued throughout the conflict.

Ukraine’s General Staff said in a Facebook post on Monday that Russian forces launched attacks on the settlement of Kozacha Lopan, about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the border and 16 miles (26 kilometers) north of Kharkiv.

Ukrainian military blogger Deep State Telegram reported that Russian forces have also launched an amphibious operation across the Oskil River in the eastern Kharkov region, where Russian forces have reached the strategic objective of Kupyansk.

Russian forces gained a foothold on the Ukrainian-controlled side of the waterway, Deep State wrote. The blogger’s claims could not immediately be verified.