The Japan Times - Deadly strikes rock Kyiv as Zelensky appeals for air defences

Of the 27 ballistic missiles launched, Ukraine could only intercept one due to shortages of air defences, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Ukraine has pleaded with its allies for more supplies of US-made Patriot missile interceptors in recent months, its only line of defence against ballistic attacks.

Russia has escalated its use of the ultra-fast class of weapon since June, killing dozens of Ukrainian civilians.

"It is this shortage of ballistic missile interceptors that only encourages Russia to launch such attacks that take human lives," Zelensky said in a post on X.

More than 30 people were wounded in Saturday's attack, which struck five districts of Kyiv, Ukrainian authorities said.

Among the buildings damaged was the embassy of Lithuania, with that country's foreign minister publishing images appearing to show a cracked door and damaged light fixture.

AFP journalists reported hearing more than 10 explosions in a row early Saturday, triggering car alarms on the streets.

In Kyiv's eastern Darnytsky district, the attacks damaged multiple buildings and vehicles, with authorities reporting seven people killed and 14 wounded in the area.

Two people were killed and eight others were wounded in the western Solomiansky district, where strikes damaged a five-storey residential building, officials said.

"Everything was smashed, the windows, everything," 75-year-old resident Kateryna Kravchenko told AFP of her apartment.

"I can barely stand. I don't know how I'm going to get through all this."

Another resident, identified only as Oksana, said her plan was to leave.

"You can't stay here after something like this," the 46-year-old said.

"What guarantee is there that it won't happen again?"

Russia's defence ministry said it had struck "military-industrial complex enterprises and logistics centres".

AFP reporters saw dark clouds of smoke rising over Kyiv early Saturday.

- More than 100 rescued -

Photos posted to Telegram by Ukraine's state emergency service showed firefighters spraying water into what appeared to be a residential building.

Other images showed rescue workers with flashlights sifting through rubble.

Emergency services had rescued some 105 people as of early Saturday, according to the state emergency service.

As Kyiv has faced near-nightly attacks, Ukraine has escalated its retaliatory strikes on Russia in recent months, partly to pressure Moscow to the negotiating table after nearly four-and-a-half years of war.

Russian air defences intercepted and destroyed 274 Ukrainian drones overnight, the Russian defence ministry said.

Ukrainian strikes on Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine killed at least two people, Russian-installed officials said Saturday.

Both Ukraine and Russia deny targeting civilians.

- Trump walks back Patriot offer -

The attack comes as Ukraine presses its allies for Patriot air defences.

Zelensky had met with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday for talks, partly to lobby Washington for licenses to produce Patriots domestically.

The Ukrainian leader said following the meeting that Trump had agreed to license the production of the missiles to Kyiv.

But the US president appeared to express reservations on Friday, saying that Washington would have to be "very careful" about the decision.

On Saturday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said Russia's attacks showed Ukraine needed the weapon urgently.

"It is the battle for the skies that will define the trajectory of this war. The stronger the air shield over Ukraine, the closer peace becomes," he said.

Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, sparking Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II.

Tens of thousands have been killed and millions forced to flee their homes due to the fighting, while Moscow now occupies around a fifth of its neighbour -- including Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.

K.Yoshida--JT