Ukraine’s capital was the target of a strong missile attack in the early hours of Thursday, in the first offensive against Kiev in six weeks, just hours after US national security adviser Jake Sullivan was visiting the city.
More than 25,000 people took refuge in the city’s metro stations while the attack was taking place, with videos and images shared on social media showing crowds huddled underground, in images reminiscent of the first days of the war.
According to authorities, Russia fired two ballistic missiles and 29 cruise missiles against the Kiev region – all of them, according to Ukrainian officials, were shot down. The tests will confirm exactly what types of missiles were fired, but an air force statement suggests it is possible the ballistic missiles were of North Korean origin.
According to authorities, about a dozen people were injured due to falling debris; there is no record of fatalities.
Valentyna Ivanivna, an 80-year-old woman who lives in the Podil district, in the center of Kiev, tells CNN that she was woken up at 5 am by a strong explosion that broke her windows.
“I don’t know if it was a missile or what, but now I have holes instead of windows. I’m fine, but my kitchen and living room are now windowless. I was sleeping in the bedroom, which is behind another wall, which saved me from the shrapnel”, he explains.
Nearby, Anastasia Shulha shows CNN the inside of her flower shop, whose main window was also blown out and the front door was damaged.
“In fact, this is the second time that my store has suffered an attack. The last time was at the end of spring last year”, he says.
Pointing to the damaged store door, he adds that “everything is open and anyone can come in. I’ll have to stay here until the window and door are replaced.”
Ruslan Kravchenko, head of the military administration of the Kiev region, guarantees that there were no attacks on critical infrastructure or residential buildings – although the images suggest that there was at least one incident at close range.
Videos and images show a large crater just meters from tall residential buildings. An image shows nearby cars covered in dirt thrown up by the impact.
Attack left a large crater in one of the city’s areas (Vadim Ghirda/AP)
More than 25,000 people, including 3,000 children, took shelter in the city’s metro stations until shortly after 6 a.m., when the air raid warning was lifted, Kiev City Council said.
Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky said the latest attack was a reminder of why he is asking for more military support from allies.
“Russian terrorists do not have missiles that can bypass the PATRIOTs’ defense [fabricados nos EUA] and other world-leading systems. Now this protection is needed here in Ukraine […] This is perfectly possible if our partners have enough political will,” he wrote on social media.
An air force statement suggested that the ballistic missiles were either the KN-23 type, an Iskander-M class missile manufactured in North Korea, or the Russian-made Kh-47M2 type, better known as the Kinzhal. Last month, a Ukrainian official claimed that North Korean missiles had been used by Russia on dozens of occasions to attack Ukraine.
North Korea supports Russia
U.S. and South Korean officials have accused North Korea of supplying Russia with missiles and other military equipment in recent months.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told a White House meeting in early January that Russia had fired North Korean-made missiles at Ukraine on December 30 and January 2.
Kirby and analysts who spoke to CNN explained that the introduction of North Korean weapons into the war in Ukraine will ripple 7,500 kilometers (4,600 miles) east of the Korean Peninsula. “This is a significant and concerning escalation in the DPRK’s support for Russia,” Kirby said.
On February 26, South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik said that North Korean ammunition factories that produce weapons and projectiles for Russia are “operating at full capacity.” In return, Russia is providing North Korea with food and other necessities, he added.
On Wednesday, Sullivan told journalists in Kiev that he remained confident that the US House of Representatives would eventually approve additional military aid to Ukraine, despite it having been blocked – in various versions – in Congress for months.
Last month, the US Senate approved a supplemental bill that would have unlocked $60 billion (about €55 billion) in military aid, but House Speaker Mike Johnson refused to take it to a vote. Current discussions on Capitol Hill are reportedly focusing on trying to approve at least some of the aid in the form of a loan, which could secure the support of House Republicans.
“We are confident that we will get a strong bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives for an assistance package for Ukraine and that we will get this money released […] It’s taken too long […] I’m not going to make predictions about when this will be done,” Sullivan said on Wednesday, in what was the first visit by a senior White House official to Ukraine in six months.
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