Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Says Russia Chose ‘Terror’ Over Peace After Kyiv Strike
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned Russia’s latest overnight missile and drone attack on Kyiv, saying the strikes during a major summit in Beijing showed Moscow remains a threat to global security.
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Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned Russia’s latest large-scale overnight attack on Ukraine, saying the barrage of drones and missiles launched at Kyiv while world leaders gathered in Beijing demonstrated that Moscow remains “a global threat to international security.”
“Right at the time when the leaders of the most powerful countries meet in Beijing and the world hopes for peace, predictability, and cooperation, Putin launched hundreds of drones, ballistic and cruise missiles, at the capital of Ukraine,” Sybiha said in a statement posted on social media.
According to Sybiha, the attack damaged entire residential blocks in Kyiv and killed and injured civilians. He added that other Ukrainian cities and communities also came under Russian strikes.
Calling the assault “barbaric,” Sybiha said the timing of the attack during a major international summit underscored Moscow’s continued pursuit of “aggression and terror” instead of peace and development.
Sybiha said Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted the war to continue “in order to prolong his control and rule over Russia,” adding that “only pressure on Moscow can force him to stop.”
The number of civilians injured in Kyiv following Russia’s missile and drone attack has risen to 17:
The Ukrainian minister also said he believed the leaders of the United States and China had enough leverage over Moscow to push Putin toward ending the war, describing such a step as “the greatest positive development.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin replaced the governors of Belgorod and Bryansk, two Russian regions bordering Ukraine that have faced repeated cross-border attacks during the war. The new appointments include a Russian army general who fought in Ukraine and a former official linked to Russian occupation authorities in eastern Ukraine.
In the early morning of Thursday, May 14, Russian missile and drone attack damaged a residential building in Kyiv’s Darnytskyi district, causing part of it to collapse. Officials said people may have been trapped under the rubble, while Ukraine’s State Emergency Service later reported that rescuers had pulled 10 people from the debris.
Presidential communications adviser Dmytro Lytvyn said trains were halted and passengers evacuated in advance, preventing casualties among travelers.
“As a result of the attack, we have 23 hits on railway facilities. No injuries/deaths of passengers were [sustained]. The trains were stopped by the monitoring team, evacuated ahead of time,” Lytvyn said.
However, civilians were killed in a related incident. According to Lytvyn, two railway workers who were off duty died in the city of Zdolbuniv, while another person was injured.
The strikes caused extensive damage to infrastructure, including three locomotives, seven suburban cars, eight freight wagons, five traction substations, five depots, and two bridges, he said.
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