Russia kills 22 in Kyiv attack

Russia pounded Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities with one of its largest aerial barrages of the war on June 2, killing at least 22 people and wounding more than 130, according to Ukrainian officials. The attack began overnight and continued into the day, with missiles and drones striking the capital, Dnipro and other cities, as rescue crews searched damaged apartment blocks for survivors. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia could launch another large-scale assault the same night and renewed his appeal for more Western air defense support. The strikes came as diplomacy remained stalled and after reports that Ukraine had struck a Baltic Fleet warship near St. Petersburg. ### How large was the June 2 assault? Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 73 missiles and 656 drones during the overnight attack, making it one of the heaviest bombardments in recent weeks. Ukrainian defenses destroyed or suppressed 40 missiles and 602 drones, according to figures cited by Reuters and the Associated Press. The main targets included Kyiv, Dnipro, Poltava, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia. (internazionale.it) Reuters reported that Russia deployed more than 70 missiles and 650 drones overnight, and Zelenskiy said Russian forces sent another 100 drones during the day on June 2. The assault stretched past dawn, with explosions heard across several cities. ### Where were the deadliest strikes? Dnipro suffered the highest reported death toll. (internazionale.it) Ukrainian officials said 16 people were killed there, including a 3-year-old child, a woman and her 8-year-old son whose bodies were pulled from the rubble of apartment buildings. Kyiv officials reported six deaths in the capital. Kyiv also reported heavy injuries and broad damage. Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said at least 81 people were wounded in the capital, according to the Associated Press account carried by PBS. Residents sheltered in metro stations and bathrooms as blasts shattered windows and sent debris into homes. (pbs.org) ### Why had Kyiv been expecting a major strike? Russia had warned publicly in the previous week that “systematic” strikes on Kyiv were coming and urged foreigners to leave the city, Reuters reported. Residents in the capital had been on edge for days, though no embassies immediately reported damage after the June 2 attack. (pbs.org) Reuters said the warning followed what Moscow described as a Ukrainian drone attack on a dormitory in the Russian-held Luhansk region. Kyiv denied targeting the dormitory. The Kremlin said the war had entered “a new paradigm” after what it called “inhumane acts of terror” by Ukraine’s military against civilians. (internazionale.it) ### What did Zelenskiy say after the strikes? Zelenskiy said on June 2 that the attack showed Ukraine still lacked enough air defense weapons to intercept a significant share of incoming missiles. In a nightly video address, he warned that intelligence indicated another large-scale Russian attack could come that night and urged Ukrainians to heed air raid alerts. (internazionale.it) In a separate appeal, Zelenskiy asked Washington for additional Patriot missile interceptors. He said the barrage was “an absolutely clear statement from Russia” that such attacks would continue if Ukraine was not better protected from ballistic and other missile strikes. ### How does this fit with the wider war? (internazionale.it) June 2 marked the third heavy assault on Kyiv in under a month, Reuters reported, while Russia has continued long-range attacks on Ukrainian cities since its full-scale invasion in 2022. Reuters also said U.S.-brokered talks had stalled as Washington focused on Iran and battlefield momentum remained contested. (internazionale.it) The attack also landed as reports circulated that Ukraine had struck a Baltic Fleet warship near St. Petersburg, according to the source briefing provided for this story. That combination of long-range attacks by both sides added to pressure on already faltering contacts over a possible ceasefire. (internazionale.it) June 2 is also the date Zelenskiy said he had written to U.S. President Donald Trump and Congress seeking more air defense systems, and Reuters reported that, as of Monday, he had not received a response. The next immediate marker is whether Washington answers that request and whether Russian forces follow through on Zelenskiy’s warning of another large-scale strike. (internazionale.it)