Kyiv's air defense systems shot down 10 Russian drones on Wednesday, the city's mayor said, while the United States is close to finalizing plans to send its Patriot air defense system to Ukraine in a potentially pivotal move in the conflict.
Ukrainian authorities reported explosions in the capital, Kyiv, saying two administrative buildings were hit in drone strikes in a downtown district that is home to many government offices.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote in a post on Telegram that municipal teams were in place after the blasts, and officials said the attack involved Iranian-made Shahed drones like those that Ukrainian authorities say have been involved in other Russian strikes in the country.
Shrapnel from one drone damaged two administrative buildings in the central Shevchenkyvskyi district, the Kyiv city administration said on its Telegram channel. It was not immediately clear whether there were any casualties, The Associated Press reported.
Regional Governor Oleksii Kuleba said Ukrainian forces had shot down 10 self-explosive drones over Kyiv and the region on Wednesday.
Ukraine’s Air Defense Forces wrote on their Telegram channel they had shot down 10 Shaheds launched from the eastern coast of the Azov Sea and that “combat work is still ongoing.”
The capital remained largely calm after the attack, which occurred around daybreak and before the start of the business day, and any destruction appeared to be very limited. The reported explosions went largely unnoticed even in the central district.
But Kyrylo Tymoshenko, a top official in the office of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, cautioned “the danger is not over yet” on the social media channel. He wrote that a private home in the southwestern suburb of Vyshneve had been hit.
The reported attacks come as Ukraine has faced a barrage of Russian air strikes across the country, largely targeting infrastructure, in recent weeks as well as continued fighting along the front lines in the eastern and southern regions.
Ukrainian authorities said that during the latest round of volleys on Dec. 5, more than 60 of 70 strikes were intercepted by air defense systems, including nine out of 10 targeting the capital and its region.
US officials said Tuesday the United States was poised to approve sending a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine, agreeing to an urgent request from Ukrainian leaders desperate for more robust weapons to shoot down incoming Russian missiles.
Zelenskyy pressed Western leaders as recently as Monday to provide more advanced weapons to help his country in its war with Russia. The Patriot would be the most advanced surface-to-air missile system the West has provided to Ukraine to help repel Russian aerial attacks in the war between the countries that erupted with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24.
US officials also said last week that Moscow has been looking to Iran to resupply the Russian military with drones and surface-to-surface missiles.
