Topline
Kyiv on Monday was hit by a series of Russian drone strikes in the second major attack on the Ukrainian capital in the past week, as Moscow steps up its usage of cheaper, Iranian-made suicide drones to target civilian infrastructure across Ukraine amid concerns about its depleting stocks of precision-guided missiles.
Firefighters work after a drone fired on buildings in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Key Facts
According to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko, most of the drone attacks struck the city center, causing damage to multiple residential buildings and a fire in one non-residential structure.
The exact number of casualties is currently unknown, but Klitschko noted that 18 people have been rescued from one the damaged buildings while at least two other remain stuck under the rubble.
The Ukrainian capital appears to have been targeted by Iranian-made Shahed suicide drones tipped with an explosive warhead.
According to the New York Times, the attacks took place just as the city’s residents were set to begin their work weeks and children were heading to school—which have resumed in-person classes this fall.
Ukraine’s air defenses shot down a total of fifteen Shahed drones and three cruise missiles on Monday morning, the Ukrainian military’s General Staff said in a Facebook post.
Crucial Quote
In a statement on Telegram, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said: “The enemy can attack our cities, but it won’t be able to break us. The occupiers will get only fair punishment and condemnation of future generations. And we will get victory.”
News Peg
Last week, Russian missiles struck Kyiv and several other cities across Ukraine, resulting in at least 19 deaths and injuries to more than 100 people. The attacks were hailed by Putin’s close allies and hardliners in Moscow who demanded more such attacks. However, observers questioned the long-term viability of this strategy, noting that Russia was wasting its “dwindling precision weapons” by attacking civilian targets.
Key Background
Replacing these precision-guided weapons would be a major challenge for Russia, whose industrial sector has been hit by severe international sanctions since the start of the war. Russia has increasingly appeared to rely on Iranian kamikaze drones to target Ukrainian cities in recent weeks. The small, low-flying drones are much harder to intercept and may be available to Russian forces in much larger quantities than expensive and complex guided missiles. The drones can also loiter over their targets for some time before slamming into them, making them more flexible than missiles. Despite this, Ukrainian air defenses appear to have developed tactics against these drones and claim to have shot down 26 of them since Sunday. Iran’s decision to provide Russia with drones has resulted in diplomatic tensions between Kyiv and Tehran. Last month, Ukraine downgraded its relationship with Iran and revoked the accreditation of the Iranian ambassador after the drones first showed up on the battlefield.
Further Reading
Putin Allies Demand More Attacks On Ukraine—But Russia May Not Have Enough Missiles (Forbes)
A week after a round of strikes, Kyiv’s people take cover again (New York Times)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2022/10/17/russia-strikes-kyiv-using-iranian-kamikaze-drones-amid-reports-about-moscows-dwindling-missile-stocks/