Day 679 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Russia Launched Unprecedented 300 Missiles And 200 Drones In Just A Few Days - Most Were Repelled

Day 679 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• Strong explosions in Belgorod and Crimea
• Russia launched almost 300 missiles and over 200 drones in a couple of days, Zelensky said
• The situation in Ukraine is getting worse, according to the French representative in the UN Security Council
• Poland said the West should supply Ukraine with long-range missiles
• Ukrinform: Slovakia stressed the importance of providing Ukraine with the necessary means to defend itself

Strong explosions in Belgorod and Crimea

Loud explosions were heard last night in parts of southwestern Russia and occupied Crimea. Russian officials said the border city of Belgorod, where 25 people were killed on Saturday, was under attack again, as was Sevastopol in Crimea, where a Ukrainian missile was shot down. In recent days, the air war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified.

More explosions were reported in Belgorod overnight, with regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov saying two shellings were reported. Several drones have been shot down. The Ministry of Defense reported that 12 missiles were destroyed. In Sevastopol - the largest city in Russian-occupied Crimea - a missile was shot down over the port. There were no reports of casualties or damage. Yesterday, Russian missiles hit a number of cities in Ukraine, including Kharkiv and Kyiv. At least five people were killed and dozens injured, local authorities said. One was also reported killed in a Ukrainian attack on Belgorod.

Russia has used nearly 300 missiles and more than 200 drones in its attacks on Ukraine over the past three days. This was stated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his evening video message. He emphasized that the attacks were aimed at causing as much damage as possible.

“This is completely deliberate terror. In just a few days, from December 29 until now, Russia has already used almost 300 missiles and over 200 drones against Ukraine. No other country has ever repelled such combined drone and missile attacks, including aeroballistic ones. Only 10 Kinzhal missiles were shot down today.”

Russia launched almost 300 missiles and over 200 drones in a couple of days, Zelensky said

Russia has used almost 300 missiles and more than 200 drones in its attacks on Ukraine in recent days, the country's President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He emphasized that the attacks were aimed at causing as much damage as possible.

“This is completely deliberate terror. In just a few days - from December 29 until now, Russia has already used almost 300 missiles and over 200 drones against Ukraine. No other country has so far repelled such combined attacks with drones and missiles”, Zelensky said in his evening video address.

In the strikes, mainly against Kyiv and Kharkiv, five people died, over 130 were injured, and over 250,000 households were left without electricity.

The situation in Ukraine is getting worse, according to the French representative in the UN Security Council

The permanent representative of France in the UN Security Council Nicolas de Riviere is pessimistic about the situation in Ukraine in 2024, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.

"I don't think it's getting better, I think it's getting worse," de Riviere said.

He noted that the number of Russian drone and missile attacks was increasing, apparently targeting Ukraine's civilian infrastructure.

"It is clear that the aim is to intimidate the population. All of this is in complete contradiction to international humanitarian law," emphasized the French representative.

According to him, in the short term there is no hope for negotiations between the parties to the conflict, but efforts to achieve peace in Ukraine must be persistently continued.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had used almost 300 missiles and more than 200 drones in its attacks against Ukraine in recent days.

In late December, Russia launched its largest air attack against Ukraine since the start of its full-scale invasion, and on New Year's Day, Russian Federation troops launched 28 Iranian Shahed drones at Odesa.

Poland said the West should supply Ukraine with long-range missiles

The West should impose tougher sanctions on Russia and supply Kyiv with long-range missiles in response to the latest Russian shelling of Ukraine, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said today, quoted by Reuters.

Russia launched a missile attack on Ukraine's two largest cities, the capital Kyiv and Kharkiv, yesterday in a new wave of massive airstrikes that killed at least five civilians and prompted calls for the West to provide more arms to Ukraine.

"We must respond to the latest attack on Ukraine in a language that Putin will understand: by tightening sanctions so that he cannot produce new weapons with smuggled materials, and by supplying Kyiv with long-range missiles to neutralized Russian firing nests and command centers," Sikorski said on the X social network.

Ukrinform: Slovakia stressed the importance of providing Ukraine with the necessary means to defend itself

Slovak President Zuzana Caputova stressed the importance of providing Ukraine with the necessary means of defense against Russian aggression, Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform reported, referring to her statement on the X social network made in connection with Russia's latest massive air attack against Ukraine.

"New year, new brutality. Russia has fired a record number of missiles and drones at Ukrainian towns and villages to terrorize civilians. The best way to ensure that Moscow's aggression does not continue for another year is to provide Ukraine with the necessary funds to protect itself," wrote Caputova.

Yesterday, Russia launched another massive airstrike against Ukraine, involving a variety of weapons. Ukrainian forces said they destroyed 72 of a total of 99 enemy air targets, including 10 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, Ukrinform recalls.

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