Ukraine announces damage after Russia retaliates against Kiev

(Dan Tri) - At least one person was killed and several embassies in the capital Kiev were damaged after Russia retaliated against Ukraine on December 20.

Buildings in Kiev were damaged after Russia's December 20 attack (Photo: Reuters).

Kiev's military government confirmed on Telegram that at least one person was killed and 12 others were injured after Russia fired five ballistic missiles at the Ukrainian capital at around 7 a.m. on December 20.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia carried out the attack using five Iskander-M or KN-23 ballistic missiles made by North Korea along with at least 60 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Ukraine claims to have shot down all missiles and most of the UAVs. However, debris caused damage on the ground.

In addition to causing 13 casualties, the attack also damaged 630 houses and 16 medical facilities. Several embassies in Kiev were also damaged.

"These are the embassies of Albania, Argentina, Palestine, North Macedonia, Portugal and Montenegro. Windows and doors in the premises were broken," said Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi.

On the Russian side, the country's Defense Ministry said it launched long-range missiles at Ukrainian military targets on December 20 in response to Ukraine's previous attack with 10 Western long-range missiles on Russian territory.

"In response to Kiev's actions, this morning we carried out a strike with long-range precision weapons on the headquarters of the Security Service of Ukraine in Kiev, the Kyiv Luch design bureau, which designs and produces the Neptune missile system, the Olkha ground-based cruise missile, and the location of the Patriot air defense missile system," the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that the attack achieved its objectives.

A day earlier, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army said that the Navy and the Security Service of Ukraine had coordinated an attack on the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in Russia’s Rostov region. This is a refinery with an output of up to 7.5 million tons/year, located about 10km from the Russia-Ukraine border.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukraine used six US-made ATACMS missiles and six air-launched Storm Shadow cruise missiles for the attack.

The West has begun allowing Kiev to use its long-range weapons to strike deep into Russian territory. Moscow sees this as an escalation and warns that the West is directly involved in the war.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials said that in recent months, Russia has increased missile and UAV attacks on different regions of Ukraine.

On December 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed "testing" Western air defense systems by launching Russia's new generation Oreshnik medium-range hypersonic missile at Kiev.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticized the idea, calling on Western allies to provide Ukraine with more modern air defense systems to deter Russia from attacking critical infrastructure.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/ukraine-cong-bo-thiet-hai-sau-khi-nga-tan-cong-tra-dua-vao-kiev-20241221071137414.htm