"Renewed Drone Attacks Target Kyiv, Ukrainian Forces Repel All Drones"

New Air Strikes on Kyiv

Russia has launched a new drone attack on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, after a nearly two-week pause. According to Ukrainian officials, all drones were successfully repelled. The Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Kuleba, considers Russian air supremacy particularly problematic.

After a twelve-day hiatus, Russia conducted a new drone attack on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv during the night. The Chief of Military Administration in Kyiv, Serhiy Popko, announced on Telegram that the air defense system had successfully intercepted all targets. "Another attack on Kyiv," wrote Popko. "Currently, there is no information about possible casualties or damages." These reports cannot be independently verified.

According to Reuters, explosions were heard, resembling the sound of objects being shot down by air defense systems. Air raid warnings were issued for Kyiv, its surrounding areas, and several regions in central and eastern Ukraine for approximately one hour during the night. Russia has not commented on the incident.

Previously, Russia conducted air attacks on several cities in Ukraine, including Kyiv and Lviv, located approximately 70 kilometers from the Polish border, during the night of June 20. According to initial reports, the air defense system successfully shot down 28 out of 30 drones.

Kuleba: Minefields and Russian air supremacy pose the biggest problem

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba sees Russian air supremacy and minefields as the biggest challenges for Ukrainian troops during their counteroffensive. Kuleba stated in an interview with "Bild," "Die Welt," and "Politico" in Kyiv that Ukrainian soldiers sometimes have to crawl 200 or 300 meters through minefields, risking their lives to clear the area for advancing troops.

The fortified structures of the Russians, reinforced with concrete, steel, and other materials, are difficult to destroy. Additionally, the Ukrainian forces suffer greatly from the lack of ground-based anti-aircraft, anti-helicopter, and anti-aircraft weapons," Kuleba added. With the use of attack helicopters and fighter aircraft, the Russians have been able to "target our counteroffensive forces."

Selenskyj laments delays in pilot training

From the Ukrainian perspective, the training of Ukrainian pilots on US-produced fighter aircraft is not progressing quickly enough. "I think some of our partners are dragging their feet on this matter," said President Volodymyr Zelensky during a visit by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to Kyiv. There are still no fixed dates for the start of training or schedules for pilot training.

In May, several European countries announced the formation of a fighter jet coalition for Ukraine. The United States paved the way by granting permission for the training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.