Ukraine war latest: Putin bombs Kiev after nuclear-capable missile test

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said Ukraine is concerned about the impact the war could have on its population and economy if it continues for a few more years.

“I have no doubt that Ukraine will survive as an independent state,” Tusk told the Sunday Times. “Now the main question is how many victims we will see. President Zelensky told me [on Thursday] He hopes that the war will not last ten years, but Ukraine is ready to fight for the next two, three years.

Russian officials said this morning that Russian air defense systems destroyed 34 Ukrainian drones that targeted Moscow through a series of strikes overnight and forced the temporary closure of two of the city’s four airports.

Mayor of the Russian capital Sergei Sobyanin said the drone was shot down over a six-hour period just before 10 p.m. Sunday Moscow time (1900 GMT).

Russian aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said Domodedovo Airport and the smaller Zhukovsky Airport were closed for about two and a half hours from 2240 GMT to ensure air safety.

In the Tula region, which borders the Moscow region to the north, 24 drones were destroyed early today, regional governor Dmitry Milyaev said on Telegram.

Russia has suggested it is still open to a leaders’ summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, which the US president skipped last week.

“The president can’t just meet for a meeting, he can’t just waste his time, and he’s open about that. That’s why he instructed (Russian Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov and (U.S. Secretary of State Marco) Rubio to prepare this process. This process is complicated,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state TV Kremlin correspondent Pavel Zarubin.

Peskov also commented on sanctions imposed by the US on Russian oil giants Lukoil and Rosneft, calling it “an unfriendly step”, but said Russia wants to build friendly relations with all countries, including the US.

Peskov, a close ally of the Russian president, said, “Despite the various nuances expressed by the President of the United States, we should still be oriented toward our own interests. Our interests are in building good relations with all countries, including the United States.”

Peskov said, “Of course, the actions taken this week were an unfriendly step. They have really harmed the prospects for reviving our relations. But this does not mean that we should abandon these aspirations. We should do what suits us.”

At least three people were killed after Russia targeted Ukraine’s capital with drones, officials said.

At least 29 people were injured, seven of them children, in the second consecutive night attack on Kiev to kill civilians.

Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klimenko said those killed included a 19-year-old woman and her 46-year-old mother.

Russian drones caused a fire in two residential buildings in the Desnyansky district of the capital. Emergency crews evacuated civilians, extinguished fires and cleared debris from the nine-story and 16-story buildings.

Russia attacked Ukraine with 101 drones overnight Sunday, 90 of which were shot down and disabled, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. The statement said five drones struck four locations and drone debris fell at five other locations.

At least two airports in Moscow were closed as Russia deployed its air defense systems overnight to thwart Ukrainian drone attacks, officials said.

Russian aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said the larger Domodedovo Airport and the smaller Zhukovsky Airport were closed from 2240 GMT to ensure air safety.

Within a five-hour period just before 10 pm Moscow time last night, Russian defense units downed 28 drones, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.

Details of any potential damage were not immediately clear.

Russia’s Defense Ministry rarely discloses the full scale of damage caused by Ukrainian attacks inside its territory unless civilian objects are involved.

Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Sunday that Slovakia would not participate in any EU program aimed at financing military aid to Ukraine in the fight against Russia’s aggression.

Slovakia stopped state military aid to Ukraine when Fico’s government comes to power in 2023, but still allows commercial sales. Fico disagrees with EU states on the war and says the solution does not lie on the battlefield.

EU leaders on Thursday agreed to fund Ukraine’s “urgent financial needs” for the next two years, but refused to support a plan to use frozen Russian assets to finance a 140 billion euro loan to Kiev.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that the money can be immediately used to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense, air fleet and front-line positions.

“I refuse to allow Slovakia to participate in any financial scheme aimed at helping Ukraine manage war and military spending,” Fico said in a televised press conference.

Efforts to negotiate an end to Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine hit a deadlock trump Administration took this step to increase pressure Russiaenergy sector” and “undermining the Kremlin’s ability Increase revenue for your war machine and support its weak economy”.