Russia and Ukraine exchanged fresh attacks on Tuesday, with Ukrainian authorities saying a massive Russian missile and drone strike on the Kyiv region killed at least 16 civilians.
Consequently, Russian officials reported four fatalities following a Ukrainian attack in the Kursk region.
The two countries remain entangled in a more than four-year war and have yet to reach a breakthrough in peace negotiations, despite holding talks in Istanbul in July.
The latest round of diplomatic efforts comes despite several previous attempts to broker peace since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Deadly strike on Kyiv region
According to Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration, the overnight assault left 36 people injured and damaged 78 facilities.
This extensive damage included warehouses, industrial buildings, homes and vehicles, with the Brovary district being the hardest hit, where 10 people were killed and 16 injured.
Five people were killed in the Bucha district and one in the Fastiv district, Tkachenko said in his Telegram channel.
He added that all the emergency services were continuing to work at the affected sites while recovery and clearing operations are still ongoing.
Stronger air defence for Ukraine
As Russia intensified its missile and drone attacks on Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy renewed his call for stronger air defence, stressing that it remains the country’s top priority to protect civilian lives.
“Air defence is the top priority. It is important that our partners hear Ukraine and know that every package for our air defence truly protects lives – people’s lives,” Zelenskyy said on Tuesday during his nightly address.
The Ukrainian leader also said that Kyiv remained in contact with US representatives on diplomatic efforts to end the war.
The discussion included the idea of continuing discussions with other international partners on security and negotiations.
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Moscow on drone alert
On the Russian side, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that drone attacks targeting the capital had increased significantly in recent months, claiming that two out of every three Ukrainian drones launched at Russian territory were aimed at Moscow.
In an interview with TASS, Sobyanin said the Russian authorities were strengthening Moscow’s air defence by expanding defensive positions, deploying additional resources and producing drone interceptors.
He also said the authorities were working with other regions to improve drone detection and interception capabilities through closer co-ordination and information sharing.
Kursk attack leaves four dead
Kursk Region Governor Alexander Khinshtein said the death toll from a Ukrainian strike on an industrial facility in Russia’s border region of Kursk had risen to four.
He added that another person sustained a traumatic brain injury, acoustic trauma and multiple shrapnel wounds and was receiving medical treatment.
“The number of people killed in the Belovsky District has increased to four,” Khinshtein wrote in a social media post, as quoted by TASS.
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