A series of deadly drone attacks has intensified across Ukraine and Russia, resulting in multiple casualties and significant damage, including a strike on a border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova. The escalation in long-range warfare comes despite renewed international diplomatic efforts to halt the conflict.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that two people died and three others were injured when Russian drones struck the Starokozache crossing on the border between Ukraine and Moldova. The overnight attack led to the immediate closure of the border link, which is located approximately 500km (310 miles) south of Kyiv. Images from the scene depicted several burnt-out vehicles amidst debris, according to reports.
Odesa regional head Oleh Kiper stated that the attack killed two individuals and injured three. Moldova's foreign ministry also confirmed that a Moldovan driver sustained injuries in the incident.
The Prime Minister of Moldova, Vasile Tofan, addressed the increasing impact of the conflict on his country, confirming that 17 drones had struck Moldovan territory in August alone, a figure greater than the total for the whole of the preceding year. Writing on social media, Mr Tofan asserted, "Those who ignore or downplay these threats – and refuse to name the aggressor – are denying reality. Russia started this war. Russia alone bears responsibility."
President Zelensky renewed calls for international support following the attack, stating that "the aggression must be stopped here and now before it spreads any further."
Elsewhere in Ukraine, a woman was killed and 14 people, including two children, were injured after a Russian drone hit a nine-storey building in Kyiv, according to officials. In the north-eastern city of Sumy, three people died and 20 others were injured after a drone struck a shopping centre on Wednesday evening. Oleg Hryhorov, the regional head, confirmed that efforts to deal with the aftermath of the Sumy attack were ongoing.
Meanwhile, Russia reported multiple casualties and damage from Ukrainian drone attacks within its own territory. Officials stated that four people, including a child, were killed in a Ukrainian drone attack on the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. Governor Veniamin Kondratiev described the incident as a "massive overnight enemy drone attack," which also left 29 people injured and caused damage to residential buildings, a church, and a preschool.
Further north, in the Arctic city of Novy Urengoy, a drone attack targeting an "industrial facility" was repelled, according to regional governor Dmitry Artyukhov. He reported that falling drone wreckage triggered a fire, but no injuries were sustained. Ukraine's military later stated on Wednesday that it had successfully targeted the Novourengoysky ZPKT, a major oil refinery situated more than 3,000km from Ukraine's border. The Ukrainian military claimed that the facility's petroleum products and gas condensate were being utilised by Russia to support its ongoing war effort.
Russia's defence ministry stated its forces had shot down 596 Ukrainian drones overnight across its territory.
The latest wave of strikes underscores the intensified long-range attacks by both Russia and Ukraine, occurring at a time when diplomatic efforts to find a resolution to the conflict are reportedly being renewed. The developments follow a recent phone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and former US President Donald Trump regarding efforts to end the war.
The Trump administration has been advocating for direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, with Kyiv indicating that such discussions could potentially take place this month. However, the Kremlin has maintained that it is too early to discuss specific dates or venues for negotiations. This phone call took place after US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff held talks with President Putin in Moscow on Saturday, before proceeding to Kyiv for meetings with President Zelensky on Sunday.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and the conflict has continued to claim lives and cause widespread destruction across the region.
