What’s New
Russia has launched an aerial assault on the Ukrainian capital, following a series of threats from President Vladimir Putin.
The missile strikes took place on Friday morning, and have so far killed “at least one and wounded seven,” according to Ukraine‘s Ministry of Defense via Telegram. The Kyiv City Military Administration later said that the number of injured had risen to 11.
The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces said that Russia launched one Iskander ballistic missile from the Rostov region, alongside a Kh-59/69 guided aircraft missile, and 65 Shahed strike drones.
Five ballistic missiles and 40 of Russia’s UAVs were shot down before reaching their target, the General Staff said.
Why It Matters
Ukraine has been petitioning its Western backers to provide more air defenses for its major cities, many of which were left without power following the late-November assault on the country’s energy grid.
Despite Ukraine’s air defenses intercepting many of the missiles in Friday’s attack, this has already wrought significant damage on Ukraine’s capital, causing fires to break out in several areas, with authorities urging residents to remain in shelters.
Fires breaking out in Kyiv as a result of the December 20 attack. Missiles which penetrated Ukraine’s air defenses, as well as falling debris from those intercepted, caused damage to buildings in several of Kyiv’s main districts.
National Police of Ukraine via Telegram
“As a result of the enemy attack, debris fell in Holosiivskyi, Solomyanskyi, Shevchenkivskyi and Dniprovskyi districts. There are fires—on the roofs of buildings, cars are also burning. A heating main in Holosiivskyi district is also damaged. Emergency services are working everywhere,” Vitali Klitschko, mayor of Kyiv, posted to Telegram.
In the Holosiivskyi district, hundreds of residential buildings are currently without heat, alongside 16 medical institutions, 17 schools and 13 kindergartens, Klitschko said.
What To Know
The barrage comes a day after Putin challenged the West to a “high-tech duel,” with Kyiv as the proposed theater.
Russian President Vladimir Putin holds his annual end-of-year press conference in Moscow on December 19, 2024. During the conference, Putin suggested that Russia and the West should engage in a “high-tech duel” to test the capabilities of its new Oreshnik missile.
Alexander Nemenov/AFP via Getty Images
During his annual new conference on Thursday, Putin responded to those who doubted the capabilities of Russia’s Oreshnik. The hypersonic ballistic missile, which Putin has claimed “virtually [eliminates] the need to employ nuclear weapons,” was first used to strike a military-industrial facility in Dnipro in November.
Responding to “Western experts,” who believe air defenses can intercept the Oreshnik, Putin said: “Let them propose to us and let them propose to those in the West and in the United States, to carry out some kind of technological experiment. Let’s say, some kind of high-tech duel of the 21st century. Let them determine some object to be hit, for example in Kyiv, concentrate all their air and missile defense forces there, and we will strike there with the Oreshnik. And we’ll see what happens. We are ready for such an experiment.”
“We will conduct such an experiment, such a technological duel and see what happens,” he added. “It’s interesting.”
Ukrainian President Volodymy Zelensky responded to the threats on X, writing: “People are dying, and he thinks it’s ‘interesting’… Dumba**.”
During the Thursday conference, Putin also encouraged the U.S. to provide Ukraine with a THAAD anti-ballistic missile systems, the kind provided to Israel in mid-October following an attack by Iran.
“I don’t know if they [THAAD] are in Ukraine or not, in my opinion, they are not. If the Americans decide to deliver them, let them do it,” the Russian president said.
“We can see what our boys can learn in Ukraine and ask if there are valuable technical solutions for us,” he added.
What People Are Saying
Wladimir Klitschko, former boxer and brother of Kyiv mayor Vitali, via X: “Kyiv this morning. Like every morning in #Ukraine the inhabitants are awakened not by the sun, but by the sound of the bombs and the cries of the victims. For almost three years, our morning routine has been one of mourning. We must stop this savagery and neutralize Putin’s Russia. NOW.”
Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, via Telegram on Friday morning: “The Western public is dumbfounded by the statement about a hypothetical technological duel using the Russian ‘Oreshnik’ and NATO missile defense using the example of some facility in Kyiv. Statements are heard ‘how is this possible,’ ‘this is unacceptable’ … Really? Every day Western leaders talk about strikes ‘deep into Russia.’ And no one in these countries faints from such statements, does not remember the law and international law, humanity and human rights.”
What Happens Next
A humanitarian headquarters has been deployed in the Holosiivskyi district to deal with those injured in the latest attack, Kyiv’s City Administration recently announced.
On December 11, State Department deputy spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters that Russia could deploy the experimental missile for a second time “in the coming days,” though it is unclear whether such a strike will take place or be used to target Kyiv, as Putin has suggested.
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