Russia has warned it plans to carry out "a series of systematic strikes" on defense industry facilities in Kyiv and called on foreign nationals to leave the Ukrainian capital. In a statement Monday, the Russian Defense Ministry said the strikes were in response to a Ukrainian drone attack last week on a student dormitory in Starobilsk, in Russian-controlled Luhansk region, which killed at least 18 people.
Ukraine has stepped up its drone warfare capabilities in recent months, scoring numerous successes in striking Russian targets, particularly energy infrastructure. Moscow, which launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor four years ago and claims sovereignty over four eastern Ukrainian regions, labels those attacks "terrorism" and responds with large-scale missile and drone barrages.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said the Starobilsk attack was "the last straw" and that Russia would carry out a series of systematic strikes on "specific sites where drones are designed, produced, programmed and prepared for use." The statement noted that such facilities are "dispersed across Kyiv" and warned "foreign citizens, including personnel of diplomatic missions and international organizations, to leave the city as soon as possible." It also urged Kyiv residents to stay away from "military and administrative infrastructure."
The drone strike on Starobilsk, which occurred overnight Thursday into Friday, was one of Ukraine's deadliest in months, wounding 42 people. Russia's Foreign Ministry called it "a flagrant disregard for international humanitarian law" and "yet another blatant demonstration of the fascist and terrorist nature of the Kyiv regime, deliberately attacking civilians and cold-bloodedly killing children." The Ukrainian military denied responsibility for the dormitory attack, saying it had struck an elite drone command unit.
Commenting on Moscow's threat and the call for foreigners to leave Kyiv, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha urged allies not to succumb to "Russian blackmail." More than 70 foreign diplomats on Monday paid tribute to victims of attacks in Kyiv, visiting a heavily damaged neighborhood. French Ambassador Gael Veyssiere noted that ordinary people had returned to work Monday and resumed their daily lives. "This is a way to demonstrate resilience and I think it is extremely important that we, around the world, support that," Veyssiere told Reuters.
But the threat was unlikely to be empty. Russia has heavily targeted Kyiv and surrounding areas with large-scale missile and drone attacks since the Starobilsk strike. According to Ukrainian authorities, at least four people were killed and over 60 wounded in attacks on the capital and its suburbs overnight. Russia confirmed Sunday it had used the Oreshnik hypersonic missile. This was the third time the nuclear-capable weapon has been used in Moscow's four-year war. On Monday, Ukrainian officials reported attacks killed more people in the eastern Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Earlier this month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy insisted that strikes on Russia's oil industry and military production facilities were "absolutely justified" after a Russian attack razed an apartment building in Kyiv, killing at least 24 people.
