The revenge carousel between Russia and Ukraine led to another barrage of missiles on Tuesday. In Ukraine, the cities of Kiev and Kharkiv suffered heavily.
The Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses have to work overtime these days. On Tuesday, Russia fired another crossfire of missiles, mainly targeting major cities Kiev and Kharkiv. Ukraine’s Interior Minister shared images of destroyed houses, cars and other civilian infrastructure on social media.
Kira Rudik, a lawmaker from Ukraine’s liberal Holos party, also posted photos of her destroyed home. “My house is partly in ruins,” she wrote. “I no longer have any windows on one side. I have minor injuries, but I’m alive. The fire is everywhere. Russia, you will pay for this.”
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According to the Ukrainian authorities, the Russians fired 99 rockets of all kinds at various cities in the country. Of these, 72 were said to have been shot out of the air. “I am grateful to all our partners who are helping us to strengthen our air shield,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X. “Day and night, this helps save hundreds of lives.” But about twenty rockets did hit their target. At least five people are said to have died and 92 others were injured.
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The large-scale attack comes as no surprise as Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to take revenge for the rocket attack on the Russian border town of Belgorod last Saturday. However, this attack, which according to Russia was carried out by Ukraine, was never claimed by Kiev. According to the Russians, at least 25 people were killed, including five children. Another 110 others are said to have been injured. “No crime against civilians will go unpunished, that much is certain,” Putin said on Monday during a visit to a military hospital.
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For example, Russia and Ukraine have been stuck in a carousel of revenge and air strikes for some time. A lot has to do with the complete standstill of the front. Both sides have little choice but to fight the war through the air. But the air strikes only really increased in strength and scale since the Ukrainian army sank a Russian warship last week in the port city of Feodosia, in occupied Crimea.
Largest missile attack
Russia immediately responded with the largest missile attack since the outbreak of war. At least 41 Ukrainian citizens were killed last Friday. Tuesday’s attack was similar to last week’s, according to the Ukrainian army. On Tuesday, Ukraine also fired rockets towards Belgorod, where one man was killed.
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The escalation of air strikes is causing concern among nearby NATO countries. Poland deployed four F-16 fighter jets to secure its own airspace in the face of Russia’s “long-range air activity.” Last Friday, Poland said that an unidentified object, possibly a Russian missile, entered Polish airspace for several minutes before returning towards Ukraine.
Putin exudes self-confidence, especially since Kiev’s summer offensive failed. In addition, there is a lot of uncertainty about two aid packages that Zelensky would receive from the EU and the US, together worth almost 100 billion euros. According to Putin, Russia now has the “strategic initiative” in the war. Zelensky, on the other hand, insists that the Russians are suffering heavy losses.