Ukraine war: Moscow spent $1.3bn in one day of strikes as fresh attack hits Ukraine

Ukrainian forces have destroyed 60 out of 74 Russian attack drones and two out of three missiles launched overnight, Ukraine‘s Air Force have said.

“Aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Air Force and Defence Forces were involved in repelling the air attack,” it said on the Telegram messaging app.

Debris from intercepted drones damaged civilian infrastructure in Kyiv this morning, as overnight Russian strikes continued for the third day in a week.

Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed the damage to buildings in the capital as several explosions were heard in Kyiv and surrounding areas.

Debris from drones fell in at least three districts of the capital, causing a fire in one of the areas. Firefighters responded to the affected areas.

This was the third large scale aerial attack by Russian forces on the capital in the past four days.

The Ukrainian military today claimed that it had attacked the “Atlas” oil storage facility in Russia’s Rostov region on Wednesday.

The depot near the Kamensk-Shakhtinsky town lies roughly 15km east of the border with Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine’s Luhansk Oblast and around 170km (over 100 miles) from the frontline.

The military said in the same message on Telegram that it attacked the “Zenit” oil depot in Russia’s Kirov region and a field artillery depot in Russia’s Voronezh region.

The Atlas facility specialises in producing petroleum products for the Russian Armed Forces and belongs to Russia’s Federal Agency for State Reserves.

Ukrainian air defence downed more than 10 Russian drones during the third attack on the Ukrainian capital in four days, Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said today.

In recent days, Vladimir Putin’s forces launched their biggest air attack on Ukraine since the war began as more than 200 missiles and drones struck towns and cities across the country.

Ukraine has successfully negotiated debt relief of more than $20bn from private international bondholders, bolstering Kyiv’s efforts to finance its escalating war against Russia.

Ukraine’s finance ministry said that all Ukraine’s bondholders voted in favour of the deal that will reduce the face value of their debt by more than a third.

It will unlock $11bn for the country’s finances over the next three years by lowering interest payments.

“This is an important step on Ukraine’s path to restoring long-term economic stability and will enable our swifter re-entry to international markets once the security situation improves,” Sergii Marchenko, the Ukrainian finance minister, said on Wednesday.

Ukraine’s first lady wants her country’s children to view themselves not as a generation enduring a grinding war but rather as “a generation of winners.”

On the sidelines of a day spent at a rehabilitation camp for Ukrainian children in the relatively safe western city of Uzhhorod, Olena Zelenska said on Tuesday that working with the next generation was a moral obligation and a “strategic priority” for Ukraine’s future.

Many of the children will return to front-line cities after spending a few weeks at the camp created by Voices of the Children charity, barely enough time to overcome the trauma they face over and over.

“This issue needs to be addressed immediately, as soon as it arises, before it grows into something more,” Ms Zelenska told The Associated Press in a brief interview at the camp, which is sponsored by the foundation that bears her name.

A study by the Olena Zelenska Foundation, funded entirely by foreign donations, and the Kyiv School of Economics this year found that 44 per cent of Ukrainian children show signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.

“To ensure our children do not become a lost generation, we as adults must take quick action,” Ms Zelenska said. “It’s difficult with the ongoing defense of the country. However, I am confident that political will combined with international cooperation can work wonders.”