At least three people were injured in Kyiv early Tuesday after Ukraine’s air defence systems shot down unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other flying objects, CNN reported citing mayor Vitaliy Klitschko.
“A vast majority of Russian targets in Kyiv’s airspace were destroyed after the capital was hit by an ‘exceptional’ air attack with UAVs, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, said a Ukrainian military official. A senior Ukrainian general on Telegram said that Ukraine’s Air Force shot down 18 missiles launched by Russia at the country overnight, according to CNN.
“At about 03:30 on May 16, 2023, the Russian occupiers attacked Ukraine from the north, south, and east with 18 various types of air, sea, and land-based missiles,” said General Valeri Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
He also said that Ukraine too shot down drones launched by Russia overnight.
Zaluzhnyi said in the statement, “The enemy attacked with Shahed-136/131 attack drones and conducted aerial reconnaissance with three operational and tactical level drones. All of them were destroyed.”
The “unexceptional” air attack, as claimed by Kyiv, was launched by Russia a day after UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak assured support to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy on Monday arrived in United Kingdom and held discussions with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The two leaders discussed how to ensure that support is not just for today but for the future.
In a tweet, the UK PM’s office stated, “United in action. Last year the UK provided Ukraine with more military support than any country except the US. Today, @RishiSunak and @ZelenskyyUa discussed how we ensure that support is not just here for today, but into the future as well.”
Sunak has assured Zelenskyy that the UK continues to stand with Ukraine. “The United Kingdom stands side by side with Ukraine,” he tweeted.
Notably, the UK has been offering military assistance to Ukraine ever since the conflict between Kyiv and Moscow started in February last year.
On Sunday, France too promised to deliver many additional light tanks and armoured vehicles to Ukraine amid its ongoing conflict with Russia and also to train Ukrainian forces how to operate them, Al Jazeera reported.
This came right after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew into France late on Sunday and joined French President Emmanuel Macron for a working dinner at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
“In the coming weeks, France will train and equip several battalions with tens of armoured vehicles and light tanks including AMX-10RC,” the two leaders announced following almost three hours of talks in a joint statement on Monday, according to Al Jazeera.
The trip to Paris was part of Zelenskyy’s weekend-long whirlwind tour of several major European allies, ahead of an expected major Ukrainian counteroffensive against Russia.
Zelenskyy stated in Berlin on Sunday that Kyiv and its allies might make a Russian defeat “irreversible” as early as this year after getting a new USD3 billion military package from Germany, according to Al Jazeera.
In Paris, Macron reiterated that France will continue to support Ukraine with political, monetary, humanitarian, and military aid for as long as it is required.
Apparently, French AMX-10RCs vehicles can move quickly across the battlefield and switch positions due to their fast speed and mobility.