new air attacks hit kyiv and several regions

“This is the ninth consecutive air attack” on the Ukrainian capital “since early May”. kyiv was targeted by a series of air attacks on Thursday, May 18 at dawn, announced the civil and military administration of the capital. This judges that the Russian strikes carried out in recent weeks are “unprecedented in their power, intensity and variety”. Other Ukrainian regions were also affected.

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Kiev authorities say cruise missiles were launched by Russian strategic bombers from the Caspian Sea region, and reconnaissance drones then flew over the capital. A fire broke out at a business following falling debris, but no injuries were reported, according to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

kyiv says it shot down most Russian missiles

On the other hand, one person was killed and two others injured in the port of Odessa, on the Black Sea, during a strike against an industrial site, according to the regional military administration. The military also reported attacks by “cruise missiles” in the Vinnytsia region in the center of the country, and local media reported explosions in Khmelnytskyi, about 100 kilometers further west.

Ukrainian forces claim to have shot down almost all of the Russian missiles that targeted the country during these new attacks. In detail, the Ukrainian air commander reports that “33 aerial targets, 29 missiles and four drones” were destroyed.

This series of strikes occurred during a visit to kyiv by a senior Chinese official, Li Hui, special representative for Eurasian affairs and former ambassador to Moscow. According to Beijing, this trip aims to discuss the “political settlement” of the conflict. Still on the diplomatic level, the UN Security Council is due to meet on Thursday to discuss the situation in Ukraine.