Ukrainian officials reported that the capital city of Kyiv endured a major Russian assault early Thursday, as ballistic missiles rained down on multiple districts, setting off explosions and sparking fires.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram that emergency services were battling blazes across the capital after a warehouse in the Sviatoshynskyi district and a non-residential building in the Darnytskyi district were hit. He added that falling missile debris struck a non-residential development area in Darnytsia, triggering additional fires.

Ukraine’s Air Force Command later confirmed that the immediate threat was lifted after approximately one hour. The attack came hours after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Kyiv and announced a new “drone deal” between Ukraine and the European Union. The agreement aims to combine Kyiv’s battlefield expertise with the EU’s industrial capacity to establish joint projects and rapidly scale up production.

Speaking at a ceremony to mark Ukraine’s Statehood Day, von der Leyen emphasized the need to “combine our strengths”, stating that the deal would “bring together Ukrainian ingenuity and Europe’s industrial scale”. She claimed that the EU could offer Kyiv significant advantages, including “huge technological and industrial capacity” alongside “safe and secure production sites” to support the initiative.

More than four years into the Russian invasion of Ukraine, escalating strikes from both sides over the past several months have resulted in a rising toll of civilian casualties. On Wednesday, Ukrainian regional officials reported that a series of Russian bombardments across the country killed 13 people and left approximately 50 others injured. The daylight attacks specifically struck industrial plants and healthcare facilities in the Black Sea port city of Odesa and the northeastern city of Sumy, located near the Russian border.

Source: www.aljazeera.com