As the Kremlin expands its threats towards the west Ukraine’s leader warns Russia is using oil tankers as massive attack platforms from where troops can launch drone attacks against European targets
Russia is using oil tankers as massive maritime platforms from where troops can launch drone attacks against European countries, Kyiv has warned. It comes as Ukraine reacted to Russia ’s latest attacks on Kyiv as relaunching “the child death counter” after a 12 year-old girl was killed.
President Zelensky said: “It is especially important that sanctions painfully hit Russia’s trade in energy resources, the entire infrastructure of Russia’s tanker fleet. Now there is intelligence information that Russians are using these very tankers to launch and control drones that they send against European countries.” Zelensky argued that the latest findings underscore the need for Europe to bar Russian vessels from regional waters.
Unidentified drones have been reported flying over or near military facilities and critical infrastructure in Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Poland and other countries, prompting investigations and warnings of possible “hybrid” operations linked to Russia. It is believed the Kremlin could unleash dozens of drones from oil tankers, forming swarms that would be challenging for European air defences.
The warning comes amid heightened fears Russia is becoming increasingly aggressive towards eastern European countries and could launch an attack. Danish police said “one or two drones” were spotted on Friday around 8:15 pm near and over the Karup military base, the country’s biggest base which houses all of the armed forces ’ helicopters, airspace surveillance, flight school and support functions.
Zelensky’s warning comes after at least four people were killed when Russia unleashed a barrage of drones and missiles on Ukraine at the weekend, with the capital Kyiv suffering the heaviest assault. It was the first major bombardment since an air attack on Kyiv killed at least 21 people last month.
US vice president JD Vance said America was considering selling Ukraine Tomahawk cruise missiles. Russia fired a total of 595 exploding drones and decoys and 48 missiles, Ukraine’s air force said after the overnight attack on Sunday.
Of these, air defences shot down or jammed 566 drones and 45 missiles. The bombardment targeted the regions of Zaporizhzhia, Khmelnytskyi, Sumy, Mykolaiv, Chernihiv, and Odesa. At least 70 people were wounded across the country. Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Administration, confirmed Sunday’s casualties via Telegram
A 12-year-old girl was among the dead. Thick black smoke could be seen rising from a blast near the city center. He wrote: “The Russians have restarted the child death counter.” Zaporizhzhia’s regional head, Ivan Fedorov, said that three children were among the 27 wounded in the region, adding that more than two dozen buildings were damaged in the capital of the same name.
Zelensky said at the time: “This vile attack came virtually (at) the close of U.N. General Assembly week, and this is exactly how Russia declares its true position. Moscow wants to keep fighting and killing, and it deserves the toughest pressure from the world. Vance said the U.S. administration was reviewing a request by the Ukrainian president for Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Tomahawks have a range of around 1,000 miles which would put Moscow within the range of Ukraine’s forces. He said: “It’s something that the president is going to make the final determination on. I know that we’re reviewing that request. We’re also reviewing a number of other requests.”
In Kyiv one local woman who only gave her name as Erika, said of the latest attacks on the capital: “The sky has turned black again. It’s happening a lot.” Ilona Kovalenko, a 38-year-old resident of a five-story building struck in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi district, told The Associated Press that she woke up because of the explosion, which shattered windows.
“A neighbor kept knocking on our door. She was completely covered in blood and shouting, `help, save my daughter,'” said Kovalenko, who fled the building with her grandmother after the strike. Oleksandra, the neighbor’s daughter, was the 12-year-old killed in the attack.
“Sadly, she died on the spot,” Kovalenko said. “We are in shock, to be honest.” The Kremlin has repeatedly claimed that Russia’s military only strikes military targets. Russian officials didn’t immediately comment on the latest attacks. The assault also triggered military responses in neighboring Poland, where fighter jets were deployed early Sunday as Russia struck targets in western Ukraine, according to the Polish armed forces. Polish military officials characterized these defensive measures as “preventive.”