In brief
In a swift wake‑up call, President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned a night of Russian missile strikes that left 15 civilians dead across Ukraine’s central and eastern regions. He highlighted the destruction of a residential building in Pryluky as a “birthday gift” to President Putin, while also announcing Ukrainian‑launched retaliatory hits on Russian energy and military sites. Santiago’s appeal urges greater support from partners as the conflict’s deadly momentum continues to surge across Kyiv, Dnipro, Kremenchuk, and the Black Sea.
Zelensky condemns Russia’s overnight attacks that killed 15
Zelensky called the recent barrage by Moscow’s forces a "most vile" assault, following 15 civilian deaths scattered across Kyiv, Dnipro, Kremenchuk, and the Chernihiv region.
He blamed Russia for hitting a four‑storey apartment block in Pryluky—arguing it was a cruel birthday gift to the 74‑year‑old Putin—while warning that people could still be trapped in the rubble.
President Zelensky confirmed Ukraine struck four Russian targets—two oil sites and a training ground in Perm, Samara and Astrakhan—following an earlier 70‑missile raid.
He demanded that allies accelerate the delivery of air‑defence packages, admitting only a fraction of the missiles launched were intercepted.
In addition, Zelensky cited a wealthy response in the Black Sea, noting an oil tanker off Sochi suffered a massive fire after a drone strike, and highlighted Russian pressure to keep targeting Ukrainian infrastructure.
Ukraine’s national police released images of fragments of an unexploded Iskander missile in Kyiv’s Shevchenkivskyi district, confirming the continued threat to civilian areas.
Russia declared no comment, while Russia’s transport ministry cited unmanned boats for the tanker incident.
