At least 14 people were killed after Russia launched another wave of missile and drone attacks on Kyiv early Monday, striking residential buildings for the second time in a week as NATO leaders prepared to meet for a crucial summit in Ankara.
The attack came just days after another deadly Russian bombardment claimed more than 30 lives in the Ukrainian capital, prompting fresh appeals from President Volodymyr Zelensky for stronger Western military support.
Zelensky urged NATO allies to leave this week’s summit with concrete commitments to strengthen Ukraine’s air defences.
“It is critically important that the world first and foremost the United States and our European partners emerges from the NATO Summit in Ankara with strong decisions to reinforce our air defence and protect civilian lives,” he said on social media.
The overnight strike ripped through a multi-storey apartment building, leaving a massive crater and shearing off its upper floors. AFP journalists in Kyiv reported hearing more than 10 explosions during a prolonged ballistic missile alert, with flashes lighting up the night sky.
According to Ukrainian officials, Russia launched 68 missiles and 351 attack drones during the assault.
At least 14 people were killed in Kyiv and the surrounding region, while about 60 others sustained injuries.
Authorities in the Kyiv suburb of Vyshneve ordered evacuations over fears of unexploded ordnance scattered across affected neighbourhoods.
Residents in the heavily targeted Podilsky district described another terrifying night.
“At about 1:30 a.m., there was a huge explosion. The blast wave shattered every window, and then three more strikes followed,” said 68-year-old Oleksandr Bakhlukov.
“Glass was falling everywhere. Not a single window remained intact in our apartment.”
Russia’s Defence Ministry said the operation targeted what it described as military-industrial facilities and fuel and energy infrastructure across several Ukrainian regions.
Around 30 residential buildings across Kyiv sustained damage, with emergency workers continuing search-and-rescue operations hours after the attack.
Zelensky said Ukrainian forces intercepted most Russian drones and cruise missiles but lacked sufficient interceptor missiles for the US-made Patriot air defence system to stop incoming ballistic missiles.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the latest assault underscored Ukraine’s urgent need for additional air defence systems, adding that the issue would feature prominently during NATO discussions.
The summit is expected to include talks between Zelensky and US President Donald Trump, who is scheduled to meet the Ukrainian leader on Wednesday.
A senior White House official said Trump intends to discuss ways to revive stalled efforts to end the more than four-year war before following up with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The president is meeting President Zelensky because ending this war has long been one of his priorities,” the official said.
Russia’s military claimed it also intercepted more than 500 Ukrainian drones overnight.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said several waves of Ukrainian drones had targeted the Russian capital before being shot down.
Ukraine has intensified long-range drone attacks against Russian energy infrastructure in recent weeks, aiming to disrupt Moscow’s military logistics and fuel supplies.
Despite renewed diplomatic efforts led by Washington, negotiations remain deadlocked.
The Kremlin continues to insist on territorial and political demands that Kyiv and its Western allies reject as unacceptable.
Meanwhile, fighting remains fierce along the eastern front.
Although Moscow claimed last week to have captured the strategic town of Kostyantynivka, Zelensky said Ukrainian forces continue to defend the area.
