Ukraine: Parts of Kiev without power after attack

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Kiev on February 7, 2024: Firefighters help a woman out of a building damaged by a Russian missile attack

Photo: Valentyn Ogirenko / REUTERS

According to Ukrainian information, a person was killed in the south of the country in a Russian air strike on Ukraine. Russia launched a cruise missile attack on Ukraine early Wednesday morning, firing projectiles toward Kiev and other regions, the Ukrainian air force said.

The Ukrainian Air Force said several explosions were heard in Kiev during rush hour in the morning because anti-aircraft defenses were in action. An air alert was declared across the country.

Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said at least nine people were injured in the attack. In addition, two high-voltage lines were damaged by rocket parts in the capital. An energy company said the power was out in some households. In addition, a high-rise building in the Holossiyiv district caught fire.

The mayor of Mykolaiv in the south of the country, Oleksandr Senkevich, said a man had died from serious injuries after the attack ripped off roofs from 20 houses and damaged gas and water pipes. Explosions also occurred in Kharkiv, the Lviv region and the Cherkasy region.

In its war of aggression that has been going on for almost two years, Russia has repeatedly attacked Ukraine with drone and missile attacks. Ukraine is defending itself against these attacks with Western military help. Germany in particular had contributed particularly to strengthening the country's air defense system. Ukraine has called for significantly more Western help for air defense in order to be able to protect its cities even better.

Zelensky forms his own drone force

Ukraine is breaking new ground in warfare and, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, has created an independent military branch called “unmanned systems”. He had already written the relevant decree, Zelenskyj reported on Tuesday in his evening video address. The new drone forces are "not a question of the future, but rather something that should lead to a very concrete result in the near future." Drones have proven effective in combat on the ground, in the air and at sea.

“Thanks to drones, Ukraine has really changed the security situation in the Black Sea,” said Zelensky. Through the use of so-called maritime drones - unmanned boats with large explosive loads - the Russian Black Sea Fleet has been pushed out of both the southern Ukrainian coast and the area around the Crimean peninsula. Drones were also often used in the fighting along the fronts to inflict heavy losses on the Russian military.

"The list of tasks is now clear: special staff units for working with drones, special units, effective training, systematization of experience, constant scaling of production and bringing together the best ideas and the best specialists in this area," said Zelensky, listing the next steps on. This is now a task for the army, the Ministry of Defense and the government as a whole.

Both Russia and Ukraine have used drones in historic wars. In land warfare, the military relies on small drones for both reconnaissance and attacks on targeted targets. These unmanned aircraft are inexpensive to produce. In the future, larger drones will also be mass-produced in the country. Russia, on the other hand, initially used so-called kamikaze drones made in Iran to attack Ukraine's civil infrastructure and has now switched to smaller aircraft for use on the fronts.

According to Kiev, Russia is losing a third of the Black Sea Fleet

According to Kiev's assessment, the Russian Black Sea Fleet has lost almost a third of its combat ships. "According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, our military has so far withdrawn 24 Russian ships and one submarine," the high command said on Telegram on Tuesday. At the start of the war two years ago, the Russian Black Sea Fleet had 74 combat ships. According to assessments by the British Ministry of Defense, Moscow now has to rethink its naval presence around the Crimean peninsula.

Ukraine increases exports by sea

Ukraine exported almost 20 million tons of cargo across the Black Sea in six months after the Russian fleet was pushed back. “70 percent of this freight is agricultural products from our farmers,” wrote Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal on Telegram on Tuesday. In total, over 660 freighters with destinations in 32 countries left the port in this six-month period. In January, the monthly pre-war level for export volumes by sea was even reached. Of the exports worth the equivalent of a good 2.8 billion euros in January, a good 60 percent were exported by sea.

Ukraine has been resisting a Russian invasion for almost two years. For a long time, the Russian Black Sea Fleet tried to hinder Ukrainian exports by sea. An agreement brokered by the UN and Turkey on Russian security guarantees for agricultural exports was also in effect for almost a year. Since it was phased out last summer, Kiev has established a maritime corridor that has been designated as safe. The Ukrainian armed forces had previously recaptured an island in the Black Sea - the so-called Snake Island - and sank several Russian ships, including the flagship "Moskva".

Heavy fighting in the east

According to their own statements, the Ukrainian troops recently repelled numerous Russian attacks along the fronts in the east of the country. According to the General Staff in Kiev, the focus of the Russian attacks was near Kupyansk, Bakhmut and Avdiivka. Several attempted advances by the Russian military were also reported south of Bakhmut in the central section of the front lines. Kiev's daily updated list of Russian military casualties put the number of Russian soldiers out of action on Tuesday at 390,580. The information cannot be independently verified. Ukraine does not mention its own losses.

aka/Reuters/AFP/dpa