Russia Strikes Kyiv Overnight as War About to Enter Fifth Year

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(Bloomberg) — Russian forces attacked Ukraine’s capital and other targets with missiles and drones overnight, days before the Kremlin’s full-scale war on its neighbor enters a fifth year.

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Moscow delivered another large air strike on Kyiv, wounding at least two civilians, including a child, local authorities said on Sunday. One man was killed in Kyiv region, according to the governor. Moscow fired ballistic missiles and drones, knocking out power in some areas as temperature plunged to -11 C (12F). 

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Separately, Russia on Saturday used ballistic missiles to destroy a factory of the US food and beverage company Mondelez International that produces Oreo biscuits in northern Ukrainian city of Trostianets, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X. 

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“This is not a military target but a factory that has operated since the 1990s, producing globally known brands, employing Ukrainians, contributing to our and American economy,” Sybiha said. 

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“When Russian missiles hit such sites, they are not only targeting Ukraine. They are targeting American business interests in Europe.”

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The strikes follow trilateral talks between Russia, Ukraine and the US in Geneva last week, held in an effort to make progress toward a peace deal. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine will enter a fifth year on Tuesday. Major unresolved issues continue to divide the warring parties, including Russia’s demand to be granted full control over parts of Ukraine’s east that it hasn’t captured in fighting that goes back to 2014. 

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Russia has attacked Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure throughout the winter with cruise and ballistic missiles along with explosive-laden drones, leaving millions of people without power and heating in sub-zero temperatures. Ukraine has retaliated with attacks on Russian fuel producing facilities, oil terminals, ports and parts of the power grid in southern and border regions.

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The Zaporizhzhia region in Ukraine’s southeast, which Russia illegally annexed in 2022 but doesn’t fully control, was partially left without electricity on Sunday as a result of a Ukrainian strike, according to Yevgeny Balitsky, the Moscow-installed head of the region.

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Separately, explosions were heard overnight in the major western city of Lviv, close to Ukraine’s border with European Union member Poland. Blasts happened after police arrived to a shop downtown following a call about a robbery, Lviv region governor Maksym Kozytskyi said on Telegram. 

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One policeman was killed and 23 people were wounded in a “terrorist attack,” he said.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Saturday that Ukraine’s security forces had “neutralized Russian mercenaries preparing assassination attempts against our citizens.” 

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Zelenskiy said the targets of the foiled attacks had been “rather high-profile names,” without providing more detail. 

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