Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Friday that Russia carried out a large-scale overnight attack involving the launch of 597 drones and 26 long-range missiles.
He called on the international community to impose tougher sanctions on Moscow, as Russian strikes have intensified in recent weeks.
Zelensky urged Ukraine's Western allies to take stronger action to stop Russia's ongoing war, which began in February 2022. "The pace of Russian airstrikes demands swift decisions, and they can be curbed through effective sanctions," he said.
The Ukrainian president emphasized the need to penalize entities assisting Russia in drone production, highlighting that oil exports remain a crucial lifeline for the Russian economy, particularly amid existing Western sanctions.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's Air Force reported it had intercepted 319 drones and 25 missiles, noting that one missile and approximately 20 drones struck five targets. Further details on the locations or damage were not provided.
The escalation comes as Ukrainian forces claimed to have targeted a Russian fighter jet manufacturing facility in the Moscow region and a missile production site in the Tula region with drone strikes, resulting in explosions and fires at both sites.
Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that its forces had shot down 155 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 11 headed toward Moscow.
