Russia Strikes Kyiv with Drones as Zelenskiy Warns UN of Tough Winter Ahead
Drone Strikes and Escalating Tensions in Ukraine
By Daniel Flynn and Pavel Polityuk
Intensified Attacks on Kyiv
KYIV, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Russia pounded Kyiv with drone strikes on Wednesday, hitting railway infrastructure, warehouses and fuel stations as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned the UN General Assembly a hard winter lay ahead.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said two people were killed and 45 were injured, two of them in serious condition. The attack lasted from morning into the evening in one of the heaviest strikes since Russia began hitting Kyiv and nearby areas with faster and high-flying jet drones that are harder to intercept.
Klitschko said a drone hit a nine-storey non-residential building, as well as a business centre and warehouses.
Several explosions were heard and smoke billowed above the centre of the Ukrainian capital and other areas.
Use of Advanced Drones
Zelenskiy said Russia had deployed many drones against the city, with a large number of them jet-powered.
"Russia continues to turn civilian and critical infrastructure into targets: pharmaceutical facilities, gas stations, railways, communications infrastructure, and shopping malls," he said on X.
Frontline Attacks and Civilian Impact
In eastern Ukraine, on the frontline of the 4-1/2-year-old war, a Russian aerial bomb attack killed five people and injured six in the village of Oleksandrivka, Regional Governor Vadym Filashkin said. He said seven people were trapped beneath rubble.
The village is near Kramatorsk, one of Ukraine's "fortress cities" that Russia is seeking to capture.
Zelenskiy's Warning to the UN
Zelenskiy, who discussed the prospects for a settlement with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, told the UN General Assembly that Ukraine would strike back and make the coming winter deeply painful for Russia if the two sides cannot agree a truce on energy attacks before the cold sets in.
He said it was important to keep up sanctions pressure on Moscow, including on Russian oligarchs.
Talks with the United States
In his meeting with Trump, Zelenskiy discussed a potential bilateral ceasefire on energy-related targets and asked for increased supplies of US Patriot air defence missiles to defend against an expected Russian winter campaign against Ukraine's electricity infrastructure. No agreements were reached, he said.
Zelenskiy said he was ready for "any format" of an energy ceasefire with Moscow, as long as Russia halted its own attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure.
Russian Response to Peace Talks
On Wednesday, the Kremlin said the grounds for future peace talks with Ukraine were still not in place.
After talks between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in New York, a Russian Foreign Ministry statement said Moscow "reaffirmed its unconditional commitment to achieving the objectives of its special military operation," as Russia describes its war in Ukraine.
Damage to Infrastructure and Civilian Life
Petrol Stations and Railways Targeted
Impact on Local Residents
PETROL STATIONS HIT
"This is the view from the windows of the EU Delegation (in Kyiv) today. Buildings nearby are burning," Katarina Mathernova, the EU ambassador to Ukraine, said in a social media post.
The attacks largely targeted the neighbourhood near the main railway station, which Ukrainian railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia said had not been damaged.
Ukrzaliznytsia's head Oleksandr Pertsovskyi said rail infrastructure came under attack. One worker had been injured.
Ukrainian oil company Ukrnafta said Russia hit one of its petrol stations in the capital, the sixth such facility attacked in recent weeks.
In total, two petrol stations came under attack, authorities said. Reuters TV footage showed one of the heavily damaged stations on a busy highway.
Reporting and Editorial Credits
(Reporting by Daniel Flynn and Pavel Polityuk in Kyiv, and Anna Pruchnicka in Gdansk; writing by Anna Pruchnicka; editing by Andrew Cawthorne, Gareth Jones and Ron Popeski)
