A residential building damaged by Russian strike in Kyiv (Pic credit: AP)
A massive Russian missile and drone attack struck on Kyiv early Thursday, killing at least 14 people, including three children, and caused extensive damage to the European Union’s diplomatic mission in the Ukrainian capital. European Council president Antonio Costa condemned the strikes, calling them a “deliberate Russian attack” that damaged the EU delegation’s offices. “The EU will not be intimidated. Russia’s aggression only strengthens our resolve to stand with Ukraine and its people,” Costa wrote on X, sharing an image of a wrecked office with shattered windows, a collapsed ceiling and debris strewn across the floor. EU ambassador to Ukraine Katarina Mathernova confirmed that the delegation building had been “severely damaged by the shock wave” of the explosions, though no staff members were injured. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas described the strike as “a deliberate choice to escalate and mock peace efforts.”Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denounced the assault as “a horrific and deliberate killing of civilians,” warning that Russia was choosing “ballistics instead of the negotiating table.” Calling out world leaders, Zelenskyy said, “We expect a response from everyone who once demanded peace but now too often chooses silence instead of principled action.” Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha accused Moscow of breaching the Vienna Convention by targeting diplomatic facilities. City officials said nearly 100 buildings, including a central shopping mall, were damaged across seven districts of Kyiv. Thousands of windows were blown out, and at least 20 sites recorded direct impacts. Rescue workers continued pulling survivors from the rubble as the death toll was expected to rise.Among the dead were children aged 2, 14 and 17, local officials said. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces launched decoy drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles in what officials described as the second-largest bombardment of the war. Ukrainian defences claimed to have intercepted 563 drones and 26 missiles nationwide.
