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Russia fired more than 650 drones and three dozen missiles at Ukraine in a large-scale attack that began during the night and stretched into daylight hours Tuesday, officials said. At least three people were killed, including a four-year-old child.
Moscow’s latest combined strike hit energy facilities in western regions the hardest, said Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, and came days after another round of U.S.-led peace talks to end the nearly four-year-old war.
Tuesday’s attack killed two people including a four-year-old in the central Zhytomyr region and one person outside the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, where local officials said at least five were also wounded.
“This Russian strike sends an extremely clear signal about Russia’s priorities,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X, adding that it involved more than 30 missiles and 650 drones across at least 13 regions.
“An attack ahead of Christmas, when people simply want to be with their families, at home, and safe.”
A vehicle with large debris fallen on top of it after it was hit by a Russian strike in Ukraine’s Zhytomyr region, during a large-scale overnight attack that killed three people. (Ukrainian Emergency Service)
Russia’s Defence Ministry said it had attacked Ukrainian energy and military facilities and captured two villages along the front line in Ukraine. There was no immediate comment from Kyiv, which often disputes Russian reports of territorial gains.
Polish aircraft deployed
Ukraine’s grid operator said most regions were experiencing emergency power outages as a result of the attack.
In the southern Odesa region, Russia struck energy, port, transport, industrial and residential infrastructure, according to regional head Oleh Kiper.
A merchant ship and over 120 homes were damaged, he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his hours-long year-end news conference in which he repeated dubious claims about Ukraine starting the ongoing war between the two countries and also claims Russia is ready for peace.
Poland, a NATO member bordering western Ukraine, said Polish and allied aircraft were deployed to protect Polish airspace after Russian strikes targeted areas of western Ukraine near the border.
Moscow has stepped up strikes on Ukrainian energy and logistics to boost pressure on Kyiv as it seeks to soften the terms of a U.S.-backed deal that could involve painful concessions.
Weekend peace talks in Miami brought together U.S. officials with Ukrainian and European delegations, alongside separate contacts with Russian representatives, as Washington tested the scope for a settlement.
Russia, which is also pressing a battlefield offensive against outnumbered Ukrainian troops, has demanded that Ukraine cede its eastern Donbas region and significantly restrict its military capabilities before it stops fighting.
“Putin still cannot accept that he must stop killing,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “And that means that the world is not putting enough pressure on Russia. Now is the time to respond.”