War in Ukraine: After new Russian attacks, Zelensky again calls for air defense systems

The request is not new. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky this Saturday repeated his call for his Western allies to provide Kyiv with more air defense systems. According to Kyiv, the request came after a new overnight attack by Russian troops that killed at least six people.

Attacks on the Black Sea port city of Odessa on Friday night killed four people, including a small child, and destroyed a nine-story building, Ukrainian officials said. According to Ukrainian rescuers, eight people were injured as a result of the attack. Photos posted on social media showed several floors of the building had completely collapsed.

At the same time, the explosions killed a 76-year-old man in the Kharkiv region, near the Russian border, and another person in the southern Kherson region, regional authorities said.

“Russia continues to attack civilians,” President Zelensky complained on social networks. “We need more air defense capabilities from our partners. We must strengthen Ukraine’s air shield to better protect our people from Russian terrorism. More air defense systems and more air defense missiles save lives,” he insisted.

A building was damaged in St. Petersburg

After more than two years of war, the Ukrainian leader has in recent days repeatedly called on his Western allies to deliver military aid faster, calling in particular for ammunition, more air defense systems and combat aircraft. But American aid remains blocked in Congress by Republicans and Democrats, and Europeans, whose production capacity is limited, have been slow to deliver the munitions promised in recent months.

VIDEO. Sending Western troops to Ukraine: Macron’s words cause a reaction

Victory over Russia “depends on you,” Vladimir Zelensky warned a few days ago. According to Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, half of the Western weapons promised to Kyiv are delivered late. The problem is adding to the fatigue of soldiers fighting at a front marked by two years of grueling war in the face of a larger Russian army.

For their part, Kiev forces reportedly carried out their own drone attack overnight between Friday and Saturday, damaging a residential building in St. Petersburg, Russia’s second-largest city, located about 1,000 km from the border with Ukraine. The Russian National Guard indicated that the “probable” cause of the incident was a “drone crash,” which led to the evacuation of “about a hundred people.” Municipal authorities previously assured that no casualties had been recorded.

Videos posted on Russian social media showed a drone falling from the sky onto a building and causing an explosion, with residents reporting broken windows and small fires caused by the drone. According to Ukrainian media, Russian air defense shot down a drone that was aiming at an oil depot less than a kilometer away.

In recent months, the Ukrainian army has struck several Russian oil depots using explosive drones, depriving Moscow’s forces of significant resources. At the front, Russian troops have advanced in recent days, capturing several small villages in the Donbass (east) and forcing the Ukrainians to reorganize their defense lines in the area. “The situation at the front remains difficult, but controllable,” assessed Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky on Saturday after visiting the troops deployed at the front.