Russia and Ukraine exchanged strikes overnight, resulting in civilian casualties and injuries on both sides, according to local authorities. Russia has intensified its missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in recent weeks, exploiting a critical shortage of interceptors for U.S.-made Patriot systems, which are Ukraine's sole defense against ballistic missiles.
In the latest incidents, Ukrainian drones struck Russia's Belgorod region, killing five people and injuring two dozen others, including a 4-year-old boy. In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, Russian missiles hit a high-rise apartment building, killing two people and injuring 13. Odesa, a Black Sea port city, also sustained damage from what were described as "dozens of missiles and drones," injuring eight more people.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly appealed to international partners, particularly the United States, for additional Patriot systems and ammunition, citing their necessity for civilian protection. He has also explored options for domestic Patriot ammunition production or utilizing Elon Musk's Starlink satellite system to guide strikes within Russia.
Concurrently, Ukraine has maintained long-range drone strikes targeting Russian energy infrastructure and other sites deep within Russia, including the country's largest online retailer, Wildberries. Russia's defense ministry claimed its strikes on Sunday hit drone warehouses in the Kharkiv region and fuel depots in Odesa. The ministry also reported shooting down 153 Ukrainian drones overnight over Crimea and the Black and Azov seas.
In Russia's Belgorod region, drone attacks reportedly damaged apartment blocks, private homes, and administrative buildings. Debris from drones also fell on industrial sites and a private home in Novorossiysk, a city with a major fuel terminal. One person was injured in the Novorossiysk incident.
Separately, Bulgaria summoned Ukraine's ambassador after a drone entered Bulgarian airspace and exploded near an international gas pipeline. Bulgarian officials stated the drone appeared to be of a type used by Ukrainian forces and that the incident was likely accidental. Ukraine's foreign ministry is examining the incident and has stated it was not a deliberate targeting of Bulgaria.