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11-02-2023
KYIV/ MOSCOW: Russia’s latest aerial attack on Ukraine saw missiles cross Moldovan airspace, Ukrainian and Moldovan officials have said.
Kyiv’s top general said two missiles fired from the Black Sea flew above the neighboring country, something confirmed in Chisinau.
The general also said the missiles crossed NATO member, Romania – something Romania disputes.
A Russian government spokesperson deflected questions about the incident.
During a regular call with journalists, Dmitry Peskov told media it was a matter for the defence ministry, which is yet to comment.
Moldova has summoned the Russian ambassador having done the same following a similar incident in October.
Ukraine said Friday morning’s “massive” attacks had caused more blackouts, after energy facilities were hit in six regions.
In the aftermath, a presidential aide reiterated a call for the West to provide fighter jets.
Russia had been hitting Ukraine “all night and morning”, Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted. He criticized “political hesitation” over the provision of new arms to his country.
On Thursday, President Volodymyr Zelensky met EU leaders to appeal for jets following another visit to the UK, for the same purpose.
Detailing Friday morning’s barrage, the Ukrainian air force said that up to 35 S-300 missiles which are difficult to intercept – were fired on the Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions.
It said it shot down five rockets of a different variety, along with five of the Iranian-made drones which Moscow has been using during the conflict.
Explosions were heard in Kyiv, where residents were urged to take shelter in the metro system. School lessons were held in one station, the Reuters news agency reported.
Air defences were engaged in the capital and other cities. The governor of the southern Mykolaiv region described at least three “waves” of missiles.
The state-owned power company said its infrastructure had been hit in eastern, western and southern regions in Friday’s fresh bombardment.
Some 150,000 homes were without electricity in the Kharkiv region alone, and seven people were injured, officials said. Nobody was hurt in Kyiv, according to the city’s mayor.
Moscow has repeatedly targeted Ukraine’s energy facilities over the winter. This has been described by some analysts as a war crime, although Russia denies intentionally harming civilians.
Energy workers in the country have increasingly dangerous jobs – and 98 of them lost their lives while performing their duties last year, an official recently told Latvian media.
On Friday, the boss of Ukraine’s state-owned rail network tweeted a defiant message as the aerial attacks began.
Alexander Kamyshin wrote: “Trains will start delaying, but none will be cancelled. Promise. We are determined.”
Ukraine’s leader has called on EU leaders to provide fighter jets and arms for the war against Russia, on his second trip abroad since the war began.
“We have to enhance the dynamics of our co-operation, we have to do it faster than the aggressor,” said Volodymyr Zelensky.
He was earlier given a standing ovation at the European Parliament in Brussels.
Several EU leaders have already stressed that a decision on warplanes would be a collective move. (Int’l News Desk)
