At least three people have been killed in a Russian drone strike close to Ukraine’s capital, the interior ministry says. The overnight attack hit the central Kyiv region, killing two men and a woman. A residential apartment building, eight houses, several commercial structures and a number of vehicles have been damaged in the assault.
The Ukrainians responded to this challenge by maintaining a series of drone attacks within Russian territory and reported successful hits on oil facilities in Ryazan and a microelectronics factory in Bryansk. According to reports, air defenses from the Russian authorities intercepted and destroyed 121 drones from the Ukrainians that very night.
The drones were said to have been shot down in 13 Russian regions, which include Moscow, Kursk, Bryansk, Belgorod, and the Crimean Peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014. Reports from Russian news agencies indicate that Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that several places around the capital intercepted drones.
According to reports by Russian news agencies, the federal aviation agency stated that operations at two major Moscow airports, Vnukovo and Domodedovo, were temporarily suspended. Consequently, six flights were redirected to alternative airports.
Missile attacks were also reported by the governors of the Ryazan and Tula regions, to the south of Moscow. With the situation tense and developing, Moscow and Kyiv position themselves for potential gains as this may unfold in the first days of the Biden administration.
Before his inauguration, President Biden had stated publicly that he would want to hasten the end of the war, saying he would use aid as leverage to prod Kyiv to seek to negotiate with Russia, which invaded in February 2022.
This week, Biden intensified pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin, threatening to impose stricter economic measures if an agreement is not reached to conclude the nearly three-year conflict. In a recent interview, he stated, “If they don’t settle this war soon, like almost immediately, I’m going to put massive tariffs on Russia, and massive taxes, and also big sanctions.”
Kremlin sounded ready to have nuclear disarmament talks with Biden administration “sooner rather than later.” According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, “the president is not adverse to having a phone conversation with Biden and is waiting for an answer from Washington”.
