Russia attacked Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, early Tuesday, killing at least six people in a large-scale barrage of missiles and drones, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, hours after Ukrainian and U.S. delegations finished two days of talks in Geneva on a proposal to end the war.
Loud explosions were heard across the city, and the local authorities said air defenses were being deployed against cruise and hypersonic ballistic missiles, as well as drones. They urged people to stay in shelters.
In a video address released on Monday, hours before the attack, Mr. Zelensky had urged Ukrainians to “be cognizant that Russia will not ease its pressure on us, on Ukraine, on our people.”
Since Wednesday, when a missile strike killed at least 39 people in the city of Ternopil, there had been a relative lull in Russian attacks on Ukraine beyond the front lines. As the high-level diplomatic talks were underway in Geneva, many Ukrainians seemed to be holding their breaths, bracing for another large-scale attack.
Mediators from Ukraine and the United States emerged from the Geneva talks with a peace framework that left a number of contentious issues unresolved. Russia has yet to respond to the proposal, which had changed significantly from an earlier draft that was widely seen as much more favorable to Moscow.
Mr. Zelensky said on Tuesday morning that the attack on Kyiv, which also injured at least 13 people, had causing extensive damage to residential buildings across the city.
Officials posted photos and videos on social media that showed rescuers trying to extinguish flames pouring from a multistory building. Power outages were reported in the capital after the explosions.
Strikes also hit the regions of Odesa, Dnipro, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Cherkasy.
“The primary targets were the energy sector and everything that keeps normal life going,” Mr. Zelensky said in a statement.
“Energy workers will begin assessing the consequences and carrying out restoration work as soon as the security situation allows,” Ukraine’s energy ministry said earlier in a statement on Telegram.
People were still being evacuated from damaged homes and an air-raid alarm sounded into the late morning. At least one residential buildings in Kyiv was still on fire. Several Russian Shahed drones were flying over the capital during the morning commute.
Mr. Zelensky, in his statement on Tuesday morning, called on Ukraine’s allies to help the country defend itself against Russia.
“Weapons and air defense are important, just as important is the sanction pressure on the aggressor. There can be no pauses in assistance,” he wrote on social media. “The key now is for all partners to move together, with joint efforts, towards diplomacy. Pressure on Russia must definitely work.”
In Kyiv, faced with the overnight bombardment, some were skeptical that the diplomacy would go anywhere.
“It doesn’t look like they are agreeing on anything,” said Dariy Svitlyi, 22, a driver, while drinking coffee outside a coffee shop. “I feel very sorry for all the guys who died on the battlefield, and just as sorry for all those who are now fighting and risking their lives.”
Maria Varenikova covers Ukraine and its war with Russia.
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