War events and political developments: attacks in Kyiv, missile stocks and peace debates

Anna Kipnis

Air raid in Kyiv during Merz's visit – bridge hit

During Chancellor Friedrich Merz's visit to Kiev, the city was the target of a Russian air raid. The carriageway of the northern bridge over the Dnipro River was hit, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram.

Videos of the alleged attack are circulating on social networks. The Financial Times' chief Ukraine correspondent, Christopher Miller, shared a video on "X" showing the explosion on the bridge. German journalist Paul Ronzheimer also shared a picture of smoke over Kiev.

The bridge over the Dnipro River was hit in an air strike on Saturday. The increasing attacks are severely disrupting the lives of Kiev's three million residents as the winter months approach. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that Ukraine was paying the price for its own attacks on Russia. This will continue as Moscow troops systematically attack various targets.

Marc Renner

Marc Renner

US think tank: Putin hallucinates – loss of territory in Ukraine

Russia lost more ground in Ukraine than it gained in September, according to an analysis by the US Institute for War Studies (ISW). The institute announced on the X platform that the loss was around 81 square kilometers. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin's claims about Russian gains in territory on the front in September are so far from reality "that they seem like hallucinations."

The ISW could not judge whether Putin knew that the figures he presented were wrong, it said. It could also be that he provides “fictitious information about the situation at the front”. The “culture of lying” is deeply rooted in the Russian military leadership. Putin claimed that Russian forces had conquered more than 1,300 square kilometers in September.

A few days ago, Putin announced the complete conquest of the Ukrainian Donbas region in less than a year and a half. He assumes that this will happen much sooner given the advance of Russian troops. However, the front line has remained largely unchanged in many sections for several months.

In recent weeks, the Russian military has increased attacks against Ukrainian cities. The Russian Air Force is particularly targeting large urban centers such as Kiev, Kharkiv and Odessa and are attacking them with combat drones or ballistic missiles.

Marc Renner

Zelensky announces increased attacks on Russian oil refineries

Ukraine wants to step up its attacks on oil refineries in Russia, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky. This is a response to a new Russian tactic to encourage residents of Kiev and other cities to flee, Zelensky told Reuters in an interview published on Saturday. “To their attacks on our energy, we must respond to their energy,” Zelensky said. “Especially on oil refineries: That’s what makes them money for this war.”

Zelensky said Ukrainian secret services had documents about a “new doctrine” from Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We have seen documents and we know that they allow attacks on infrastructure (...) roads, schools, hospitals to pressure people to leave the capital and other cities,” Zelensky said.

Most recently, Russia attacked the bridges over the Dnipro River in Kiev for the first time. The Russian Foreign Ministry has urged foreigners to leave Kiev. Ukrainian officials have said Russia has stockpiled hundreds of ballistic missiles to target Ukraine's electricity and water supplies next winter.

Zelensky said that Ukraine, unlike Russia, would not attack civilian targets. Russia also denies targeting civilian targets.

Sarah Sendner

Russia announces attacks on Kyiv – foreigners asked to leave

Russia has announced further targeted retaliatory attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. Foreigners and diplomats were asked to leave the capital. In response to “terrorist acts” by the Ukrainian armed forces against the civilian population and civilian infrastructure, the Russian army is continuing its systematic attacks on military facilities, the Foreign Ministry in Moscow said on Saturday.

The ministry warned foreign citizens and diplomatic personnel not to stay in or travel to Ukraine. “Responsibility for any adverse consequences lies entirely with those who ignore this warning,” the statement said.

Russia had recently increased its attacks on the infrastructure in the Ukrainian capital. A bridge over the Dnipro River was hit in an airstrike on Saturday. The increasing attacks are severely disrupting the lives of Kiev's three million residents as the winter months approach. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that Ukraine was paying the price for its own attacks on Russia. This will continue as Moscow troops systematically attack various targets.

Eva Glaser

Moldova reports impacts

According to official information, Russian drones have landed on Moldovan territory. “Five Russian airstrikes, including Banderol missiles and drones, violated our airspace and exploded on our soil,” wrote Moldovan President Maia Sandu on the X platform.

According to the army, explosions were heard in towns in the southeastern part of Moldova. There was no information about possible victims or damage. However, there was no air alert in the neighboring southern Ukrainian city of Odessa at the times mentioned.

Daniel Klager

Vilnius airport closed after drone alarm – NATO jets alerted

The airport in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius was closed on Saturday after a possible drone sighting. Jets from the NATO air surveillance mission in the Baltics were alerted after reports that a suspected drone was flying from Belarus towards Lithuania, the National Center for Crisis Management said. Authorities advised residents in the area to prepare to seek shelter if necessary, it said.

Eva Glaser

Ukrainian Minister: Russia has stockpiles of ballistic missiles

According to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Russia has stockpiled ballistic missiles in the war of aggression against Ukraine. Ukraine is requesting around 300 Patriot missiles from partner countries because the secret services assume that Russia has 600 ballistic missiles in stock and can produce up to 140 more per month, said Minister Andriy Sybiha. The US-made Patriot air defense systems can effectively stop fast-moving ballistic missiles, but there is a shortage of the systems because of the Iran war.

Eva Glaser

EU pays Ukraine billions more

Ukraine will receive additional financial aid from the EU totaling around 2.9 billion euros. “With today’s disbursement, we are helping to secure Ukraine’s financial stability and supporting investments that will lay the foundation for its future reconstruction,” said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The country continues to implement comprehensive reforms despite the ongoing Russian war of aggression.

Most recently, statements from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky caused a stir in Brussels that there was a new financing gap in Ukraine this year amounting to 27 billion US dollars (24 billion euros). However, after discussions, the EU announced this Thursday together with Ukraine that funds had been identified to cover the country's budget and defense needs for 2026. In addition to the EU, other partners must also meet their financial obligations and increase their efforts.

Eva Glaser

Ukraine: Received four proposals for partial ceasefire with Russia

According to Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, four countries have made proposals to Ukraine for a partial ceasefire with Russia. These came from the USA, India, Turkey and Egypt and provide for a stop to attacks on energy infrastructure and on the transport of goods by ship in the Black Sea, as Sybiha announced.

Sybiha said the Ukrainian government was ready to commit to a ceasefire that would include a halt to Russian attacks on Ukraine's power grid and a halt to Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries, as well as a halt to attacks on cargo ships carrying grain exports in the Black Sea. “We are ready for an energy and Black Sea ceasefire, but only in this combination,” Sybiha told reporters on Thursday in statements that could not be made public until Friday. “Energy and a ceasefire in the Black Sea.”

Luke Bay

Lithuania is testing Ukrainian drone protection system

Lithuania is testing an air surveillance system developed in Ukraine to protect against drones. The “Sky Fortress” system is used to detect low-flying objects. "Aerial threats are changing rapidly, so we are adapting our solutions accordingly. Instead of developing everything from scratch, we are adapting systems that are already in use in Ukraine," said Defense Minister Robertas Kaunas. Ukraine, in its fifth year of repelling a Russian invasion, is considered a world leader in drone combat.

According to Lithuanian information, “Sky Fortress” uses artificial intelligence to detect and track low-flying drones and cruise missiles based on their acoustic or electromagnetic signatures. The system can classify detected objects in real time, according to a statement from the Defense Ministry of the Baltic EU and NATO country in Vilnius.

Miriam Braun

Russia: Ukraine attacks industrial facilities in Volgograd

According to Russian information, Ukraine is attacking industrial facilities in the city of Volgograd with drones. A fire broke out in a residential building and one person was injured, said Governor Andrei Bocharov on the short message service Telegram. The fire has now been extinguished. The governor left it open which facilities were exactly the target of the attack. There is a large oil refinery in Volgograd.

Sarah Sendner

Ukraine is trying to resolve the dispute with South Korea

According to Ukrainian media reports, Ukraine is working on resolving a diplomatic dispute with South Korea. The trigger for the disagreements between the countries was the public announcement by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of the handover of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea. The South Korean presidential office is demanding an apology and insisting on the agreed secrecy of the action. "I don't want to call this an incident. Let's say it's a diplomatic misunderstanding," said Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, according to a report by the news portal nv.ua. He hoped that the situation would be resolved in the near future. North Korea supports Russia in the war against Ukraine with thousands of soldiers.

Miriam Braun

Jet-powered drones put Ukrainian defenses under pressure

Russia's new jet-powered drones whiz across Kiev's night sky at hundreds of kilometers per hour. The Ukrainian air defense only had a few moments to intercept them. Most of the time there is not enough time. Defense companies are now working hard to develop a new generation of interceptor drones to counter this deadly threat. They are developing their own jet-powered systems and training artificial intelligence to help control them during pursuit.

They have to hurry because Russia has been increasingly using drones in recent weeks in a new tactic that primarily targets the infrastructure that keeps the Ukrainian economy running. Recent targets include energy systems, major industrial sectors, railways, post offices, shopping centers, telecommunications networks, gas stations and grain exports.

Marc Renner

Miriam Braun

Putin: We were actually ready for peace talks

According to Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, Ukraine made the path to resuming peace talks more difficult with drone attacks during the Russian State Duma election. Moscow was ready to resume negotiations on Ukraine on September 21, one day after the State Duma elections, Putin told international experts in Moscow at the Valdai political discussion forum.

Nevertheless, Russia remains ready to begin negotiations and conclude them as quickly as possible. “But of course on conditions that are also acceptable for the Russian Federation, for our people and for the Russian people.” However, Kiev, its Western allies and observers strongly doubt that Moscow is genuinely willing to talk.

Tom Körkemeier

Putin wants to conquer Donbass in less than a year and a half

Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin has announced the complete conquest of Ukraine's Donbas region in less than a year and a half. At the same time, he assumes that “given the advance of our troops, this will happen much sooner,” Putin said at the international Valdai discussion forum in Moscow. Accordingly, around eleven percent of the region currently remains under Ukrainian control.

He also accused Kiev of senselessly sacrificing people in the fight for Ukrainian territory. “If the loss of these territories is inevitable, does it make sense to hold on to it and sacrifice people, their safety and their lives?” the president asked.

Eva Glaser

Putin does not rule out nationalization of Western assets

Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin wants to hand over the Russian business of Western trading groups, which he recently placed under external management, back to the owners if the situation improves. There are no plans to nationalize these companies, Putin told international experts at the Valdai political discussion forum in Moscow. But the external administration also creates the opportunity to react “in a mirror image” to the theft of Russian company assets in the West, he said.

The president recently placed the subsidiaries of the trading groups Metro and Auchan and the food giant Nestle under receivership.