War in Ukraine
Russia attacks Kyiv again – Ukraine aims at Moscow
Updated August 16, 2026 – 5:42 p.mReading time: 3 minutes
The violence in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine continues to escalate – also because the weapons are getting faster and reaching further. Both warring parties report severe damage and civilian casualties.
Russia and Ukraine have launched destructive airstrikes on each other, killing several civilians. In Ukraine, the capital Kiev and the industrial cities of Kremenchuk and Kryvyi Rih reported ballistic missile attacks. In Russia, the authorities reported one of the most serious attacks in recent times by Ukrainian drones on the capital Moscow and the surrounding area. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin spoke of an attack with 600 Ukrainian drones.
In the Ukraine There were at least three dead, like President Volodymyr Zelensky announced. More than 20 people were also injured. In Kyiv The fires were quickly extinguished, he said. A book market was also hit in the capital. “Everywhere the Russians reach with their missiles, they attack civilian infrastructure,” the president said.
In contrast, the Russian Defense Ministry again claimed to have attacked military targets. The ministry said a factory producing Ukrainian Flamingo cruise missiles and a drone factory were attacked in Kiev. An oil refinery in Kremenchuk, a steelworks used for weapons production in Kryvyi Rih and a freighter carrying military supplies in the Black Sea port of Odessa were also targets. The information provided by the warring parties could not initially be independently verified.
Zelenskyj is again demanding anti-aircraft missiles from the West
According to Zelensky, Russia fired more than 1,550 drones, almost 1,560 bombs and 62 rockets and cruise missiles into the country this week. Zelensky again called on Ukraine’s allies to provide the country with anti-aircraft defense rates.
“If North Korean missiles destroy the infrastructure here in Europe and claim human lives, we cannot allow European interceptor missiles to simply remain in storage,” said Zelensky. He recently accused Russia of… North Korea to use delivered rockets. “Russia must be stopped.”
Because the Ukrainian armed forces lack missile defense ammunition after four and a half years of war, Russia has recently increased its ballistic missile attacks on Kiev and other cities. The most effective defense against ballistic missiles, which are particularly difficult to intercept due to their high speed, are those of USA produced Patriot systems. The Ukrainian army has several of them, but not enough interceptor missiles to use them effectively.
