Latest Ukraine war: Zelensky condemns ‘rogue attack’ on Kiev that killed four

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday that his troops used “Long Neptune” cruise missiles at targets in Russia overnight.

“Overnight our warriors successfully used ‘Long Neptune’ against specified targets on Russian territory – and this is our completely justified response to Russia’s ongoing terror,” Zelensky wrote on X.

“Ukrainian missiles are producing significant and accurate results almost every month.”

The head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom is in talks with the head of the UN nuclear watchdog, Russia’s RIA state news agency reported on Friday.

Alexey Likhachev was said to be meeting with Rafael Grossi in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.

The two officials have discussed nuclear security issues in the past, including issues surrounding the Russian-controlled Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in south-east Ukraine.

Ukrainian intelligence reported on Thursday that a Russian UAV operator was detained at the Lithuanian border while trying to enter the EU posing as a Ukrainian refugee.

The suspect, originally from Sumy, Ukraine, had reportedly moved to Crimea after the annexation and obtained a Russian passport. Upon joining the Russian army, he was given a role working with unmanned systems on the southern front, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said.

The SBU said the soldier “assessed the risks” and decided to flee his station towards the European Union. He planned to use his Ukrainian passport to obtain refugee status, he said.

They report, “Lithuanian colleagues exposed the terrorist on the border of the Baltic state and handed him over to the Ukrainian side for justice.”

Ukrainian officials said Friday that at least three people were killed in overnight Russian attacks on Kiev.

Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said Russia launched “massive” attacks on the Ukrainian capital, injuring at least 26 people.

Timur Tkachenko, head of the city’s military administration, said residential buildings in “practically every district” were hit by fire.

Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that Russia fired about 430 drones and 18 missiles overnight.

“This was a deliberate attack aimed at causing maximum damage to people and civilian infrastructure,” the Ukrainian president wrote on Twitter.

“Ukraine is responding to these attacks with long-range force, and the world must stop these attacks on life through sanctions.”

The Defense Ministry said Russian air defense forces shot down or intercepted 216 Ukrainian drones overnight.

The ministry said it downed 66 drones in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, where officials earlier said an oil depot and port were targeted.

The governor of Russia’s Saratov region said drone strikes had damaged civilian infrastructure, while the head of the Volgograd region said air defense had repelled an overnight drone attack on energy infrastructure.

Russia’s FSB security service said it had foiled a Ukrainian plot to assassinate an unnamed top Russian government official and accused Kiev of planning similar attacks in other parts of the country.

The FSB said in a statement that the aim of the Ukrainian plot was to kill the officer while he visited the graves of his relatives in a Moscow cemetery.

Reuters could not independently verify the FSB’s claim, but Ukraine has targeted Russian military and other officials inside Russia since Moscow sent thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

Russia Is preparing for a “big war” in Europe by 2029, Volodymyr Zelensky Ukraine’s allies were warned in an urgent message.

Posting on X, the ukrainian president Called on the international community to double sanctions Russian economy and weapons to “undermine their capabilities”.

He wrote: “Given the battlefield situation, we do not think Russia will want to stop.

“The problem is that when we look at the Russian military industry, we see that they are increasing their production. In our assessment, they want to continue this war.”

Russian air strikes on Kiev have killed at least one person and injured 15, AFP reported, citing Ukrainian emergency services.

“More than 40 people have been rescued” as several districts across the city were attacked.

Those admitted to the hospital include a pregnant woman and a man whose condition is critical.