War in Ukraine: Heavy shelling of the Ukrainian capital

afp | At least two people have been killed in new Russian attacks on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. “Once again, Kyiv and its civilian infrastructure – residential buildings, a maternity hospital, energy facilities and logistics facilities – were the main targets of the (Russian) attack,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on the Telegram online service on Thursday. It is “already known that two people were killed.”

According to journalists from the AFP news agency, more than 20 explosions were heard on Thursday. The Ukrainian Air Force had previously warned of Russian ballistic missiles heading towards the city and the region, as well as the Chernihiv region north of the capital.

“Explosions in Kyiv,” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram. "The capital is under attack with ballistic missiles. Stay in shelters," he added.

In the Ukrainian Black Sea city of Odessa, authorities reported that a medical facility, an educational institution and residential buildings were damaged by Russian attacks.

Kyiv, with its around three million inhabitants, has been the target of particularly violent Russian drone attacks in recent days. The day before, at least seven people were killed in new Russian attacks on Ukraine.

Russia has been attacking Ukraine with drones and missiles almost every day since February 2022. Ukraine responds with attacks on Russian territory. Both sides have increased their attacks in recent months.

The latest Russian attack came during Zelensky's visit to the United States. There, the Ukrainian president met with members of the US Congress to call for tougher sanctions against Moscow.

“Each of these attacks occurs because pressure on the aggressor is still not comprehensive and Russia believes it can continue its ballistic terror,” Zelensky wrote after the latest attack. He once again called on the USA to supply his country with interceptor missiles and to tighten sanctions against Russia.

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Moscow does not want to stop its attacks on Ukraine for the time being. Lavrov made the comments at a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York on Wednesday. He had previously met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Zelensky subsequently announced to the UN General Assembly in New York that his country's armed forces would attack Russian thermal and energy facilities this winter. In his speech, he once again criticized Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin.

Putin is constantly "looking for someone who can help him kill more - kill more people for every kilometer of land, conquer more territory and take over more land, instead of just stopping and ruling his own country," Zelensky said in his speech. His compatriots knew “that this winter could be very hard for us,” he added. “But we have no choice but to make it painful for Russia too.”

Since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, the USA has been trying to bring an end to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, which has been going on for more than four and a half years. However, previous rounds of talks between negotiators from the USA, Russia and Ukraine have failed to produce a breakthrough.