Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated a call on Saturday for his Western allies to provide Kiev with more air defense systems, after Russian attacks which left five people dead, according to Ukraine. Attacks on the Black Sea port city of Odessa overnight Friday and Saturday left three people dead, including a child, and a nine-story building destroyed, officials said. Ukrainians. At the same time, bombings killed a 76-year-old man in the Kharkiv region, near the Russian border, and another person in the Kherson region, according to regional authorities.
“Russia continues to strike civilians,” President Zelensky lamented on social media. “We need more air defense from our partners. We need to strengthen Ukraine’s air shield to better protect our people from Russian terrorism. More air defense systems and more missiles for air defense systems save lives lives,” he said.
After two years of war, in recent days, the Ukrainian leader has repeatedly urged his Western allies to deliver military assistance more quickly, calling in particular for ammunition, more air defense systems and combat planes. Victory against Russia “depends on you”, he told his Western allies last Sunday, whose support is essential for kyiv, but who have been reluctant in recent months to validate new budgetary envelopes for this purpose.
Drone falling from the sky
According to Ukrainian Defense Minister Roustem Umerov, half of the Western weapons promised to kyiv are being delivered late. For its part, Ukraine appears to have carried out its own drone attack overnight from Friday to Saturday, which damaged a residential building in St. Petersburg, Russia’s second city. The Russian city official reported that an “incident” had occurred – language previously used to describe Ukrainian attacks – but said there had been no casualties.
Videos posted on Russian social media showed what appeared to be a drone falling from the sky into the building and setting off an explosion, while residents reported blown out windows and small fires caused by a drone. According to Ukrainian media, Russian air defenses shot down a drone that was targeting an oil depot less than a kilometer away.