Kyiv strikes kill 17 as Zelensky presses NATO for more air defence interceptors

Russian missiles and drones struck Kyiv overnight, killing at least 17 people and wounding 44, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The barrage, which the president said overwhelmed defences that failed to intercept a single incoming missile, has thrown the shortage of ballistic interceptors into sharp relief.

Zelensky said on Wednesday he had spoken with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte about securing additional air defence missiles from countries that hold the necessary stocks. "Mark is well-informed about the threats, and we have coordinated our efforts regarding countries that possess the necessary missiles and the capability to help," Zelensky wrote on X. "It is crucial to eliminate all bureaucracy and make the required political decisions."

Evacuations and front-line pressure

As the capital absorbed the latest blow, authorities ordered the forced evacuation of 525 children and their guardians from Kramatorsk, a key stronghold in the eastern Donetsk region. Russian forces are now within 20 kilometres of the city's eastern edge, according to the Ukrainian-aligned monitor DeepState. Governor Vadym Filashkin called the move "difficult but necessary" given the deteriorating security situation.

Wider escalation

The overnight assault was part of a broader uptick in violence. Russia's defence ministry said its forces hit three cargo vessels in the Black Sea carrying Ukrainian military supplies, a claim Reuters could not independently verify. The shipping attacks have helped push global wheat prices higher and risk turning the Black Sea into a strategic chokepoint akin to the Strait of Hormuz.

Inside Russia, the director of the Uraldronzavod factory, Vladimir Tkachuk, was critically injured and his driver killed when their car exploded near Yekaterinburg. The plant produces the Upyr drone used by Russian forces. Separately, a fire broke out at the Roscosmos Central Research Institute of Mechanical Engineering in Korolyov outside Moscow; authorities blamed a short circuit and reported no casualties.

International response

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the Kyiv strikes and said the European Union would increase pressure on Russia through new sanctions while strengthening military support for Ukraine. The European Commission also announced it would transfer €1.4 billion from interest on frozen Russian central bank assets to Kyiv, with President Ursula von der Leyen stating: "Russia must pay for the destruction it has caused."

Ballistic interceptors are what could have saved the lives of those killed today. It is very important for partners to realise that delays in their deliveries or failure to provide anti-ballistic measures lead to such terrible casualties and destruction.

In Germany, prosecutors have taken over the investigation into a drone found carrying an explosive device at Leipzig/Halle airport near a Ukrainian Antonov Airlines cargo plane. The airport serves as a hub for NATO and German military transport. Ukraine's ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, pointed the finger at Moscow.

What comes next

Zelensky's appeal to Rutte signals that Kyiv expects NATO to act as a clearing house for interceptors held by individual member states. The alliance has no central stockpile, so any rapid deployment depends on bilateral political decisions. Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin has formalised a new Unmanned Systems Forces branch under General Denis Lyamin, institutionalising the drone warfare that has become central to Russia's strategy. On the commercial front, UK-listed iron ore producer Ferrexpo suspended its Ukrainian operations, citing war risks and a need for working capital.