Over 400 drones were targeted last night in the Moscow region, the mayor of the Russian capital Sergei Sobyanin announced today, saying that most of them were shot down, TASS reported, quoted by BTA.
„From 8:30 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., more than 400 enemy drones targeted the Moscow region. Most were neutralized by air defense forces while they were still far from the city. "Eighty-five drones were destroyed as they approached Moscow," Sobyanin wrote on Telegram.
"Six people with varying degrees of explosion injuries were taken to the hospital in Domodedovo, south of Moscow," the hospital said on Telegram, without specifying whether the injuries were related to the drone attack.
Domodedovo is home to one of Moscow's international airports.
The strikes came after the Ukrainian capital Kiev was hit in what President Volodymyr Zelensky called "one of the largest ballistic missile attacks" on Sunday night. He reported one death and 16 injuries, AFP noted.
In recent months, Ukraine has also stepped up its attacks on Russia, saying it is mainly targeting oil and gas infrastructure in an attempt to limit Moscow's ability to finance its military operations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was continuing his consultations with Ukrainian military commanders on the situation on the battlefield and the further strategy aimed at forcing Russia to end the war on terms acceptable to Ukraine, Ukrinform reported.
“Today I continued my talks with experienced Ukrainian military officers - Mykhailo Drapati, Volodymyr Gorbatyuk and Oleg Apostol. Each of them is well-known in the army. They reported on the situation in the relevant directions, and we also discussed the general course of the war“, Zelensky said.
The head of state stressed that it is now important to assess the future strategy and active actions of Ukraine on how to force Russia to end this war “with a decent peace for Ukraine and guaranteed security“.
“There are different components to this, and I want to hear how commanders at different levels in the defense and security forces of Ukraine see this issue. Tomorrow I will hold key talks. Ukraine must achieve its goals and it will achieve them“, Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president also said in his evening address to his compatriots that Russia continues to rely on ballistic missiles as the main tool of terror, which is why it is necessary to accelerate the delivery of air defense systems to Ukraine.
“In Kiev, work is still ongoing on the sites hit by Russian strikes. A large number of ballistic missiles were used. Today was one of the largest ballistic missile attacks. Kiev and the region were the main target of the Russians. They have been preparing this attack for several days, accumulating missiles. The threat, of course, remains now and this must be taken into account“, Zelensky noted.
The head of state reported that more than a hundred objects in Kiev and the Kiev region were damaged in today's enemy strike. He also noted that strikes were carried out today in Kharkiv, Sumy region, Donetsk region and Kherson.
Zelensky thanked everyone who “really helps people and saves their lives“.
The president emphasized that Russia relies on ballistic missiles and that “it is because of them that Putin still believes in his war“.
According to him, the Ukrainian air defense forces managed to shoot down 18 missiles and neutralize more than 100 drones.
“I very much count on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and other representatives of state power at all levels to quickly start working with our partners on the packages that we have already reached an agreement on. It is important that everything be accelerated, both with our European partners and with the United States. The result is needed every day“, the president emphasized.