A massive Ukrainian drone attack on the Russian capital of Moscow killed at least three Russian civilians in the surrounding areas as Ukraine carried out one of its biggest attacks on Russian territory in the more than four-year-old conflict.
According to Russia’s TASS news agency, two men were killed in the city of Mytishchi in the Moscow Oblast when a Ukrainian drone hit a house that was under construction. A woman was also killed by a drone that hit a house in Khimki, another city just outside of Moscow.
Another Russian was killed by a drone attack in Russia’s Belgorod region, according to Al Jazeera, bringing the death toll inside Russia to at least four, and the Russian Defense Ministry said that it shot down 556 drones over Russian regions. Media reports have previously revealed that Ukraine relies on intelligence from the US and NATO to launch its long-range drone attacks inside Russia, meaning the attacks always risk an escalation between Russia and NATO countries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that the Ukrainian attacks on Russia were an “entirely justified” response to Russia’s strikes on Ukrainian cities. The attack came a few days after Russia launched one of its biggest attacks on Kyiv, which killed 24 people, including two children, according to Ukrainian officials.
“This time, Ukrainian long-range sanctions reached the Moscow region, and we are clearly telling the Russians: their state must end its war. Ukrainian drone and missile manufacturers continue their work,” Zelensky wrote on X.
The escalation in the war comes after a failed short-term ceasefire and talks between the US and Russia on potentially ending the war. The main sticking point is Russia’s demand that Ukraine cede the territory it still controls in the Donbas, something Zelensky refuses to do, and will likely continue to reject as long as he continues receiving Western support.
The Trump administration continues to fuel the war by providing military aid, mainly funded by other NATO countries, and the US House of Representatives is expected to vote soon on a bill to provide Ukraine with $1.3 billion in military assistance.
