AFP, Thursday 18 May 2023

Russia said Thursday its forces hit all targets in a series of strikes on Ukraine overnight, despite Kyiv saying it downed all but one of 30 missiles.

10-year-old Maksym Mudrak (L) and 6-year-old Valentyn (R) play a war game in the village of Stoyanka, in Kyiv region, which was occupied by Russian troops during the beginning of the Russian invasion last year, on May 11, 2023 AFP

“All assigned targets have been destroyed,” the Russian defence ministry said, adding that its forces hit “a significant stock of weapons and ammunition of the Ukrainian armed forces.”

Russia did not specify which targets had been hit, only saying it aimed at “large depots of foreign weapons and equipment as well as enemy reserves.”

Ukraine said that Russian forces had launched 30 cruise missiles from land, sea and air, targeting several regions and killing one person in the southern port city of Odesa.

Russian strikes on Kyiv have reached an intensity not seen since a wave of attacks started last autumn.

This article was originally published by Agence France-Presse.