Ukraine and Russia have launched fresh overnight attacks against each other, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accusing Moscow of using North Korean missiles in strikes on Ukrainian territory.
At least six people were killed and 19 others injured in attacks on Zaporizhzhia, according to Ukrainian officials. Zelensky said ballistic missiles supplied by North Korea were among the weapons used by Russian forces.
The latest attacks came a day after Ukrainian drones struck Russia’s Tatarstan region, killing at least 13 people, including a child, and injuring dozens more.
Zelensky Warns of North Korean Support
In a video address on Monday evening, Zelensky said Russia was increasingly dependent on military support from North Korea.
He claimed that Russian forces were using North Korean missiles in Ukraine and warned that the involvement of North Korean personnel and weapons could have consequences beyond the current war.
Zelensky said the more North Korean missiles and soldiers were used by Russia, the more opportunities North Korea would have to identify weaknesses in its military capabilities.
The Ukrainian president has previously accused Pyongyang of providing military assistance to Moscow. Over the weekend, he warned that as many as 50,000 North Korean soldiers could be sent to support Russian forces.
Zaporizhzhia Hit by Russian Strikes
Ivan Fedorov, governor of the Zaporizhzhia region, said Russian forces attacked the city with missiles and guided bombs.
Photos released by Fedorov showed vehicles and buildings on fire. He said industrial facilities, infrastructure and non-residential buildings were among the sites damaged.
At least six people were killed and 19 others injured in the attack.
Ukrainian officials said Russia launched about 120 drones overnight along with several types of missiles. However, the Ukrainian Air Force did not provide figures for the number of missiles launched or intercepted.
The omission came after the Air Force urged Ukrainian media not to publish sensational headlines or spread pessimism about shortages of air-defence interceptors.
Kyiv and Other Ukrainian Regions Targeted
One person was injured in a separate attack on Kyiv, where air-raid sirens sounded twice overnight.
Explosions were reported around the outskirts of the capital, with fires breaking out following the strikes. A hospital was damaged, although officials said patients and medical workers had been sheltering safely.
Russian attacks also damaged power substations in Kherson and Kharkiv, causing electricity outages.
In Sumy, two women aged 52 and 66 were injured in a Russian drone attack, according to Sergiy Kryvosheenko, head of the city’s military administration.
He said both women received medical treatment at the scene and that civilian vehicles, warehouses and infrastructure facilities were damaged.
Wildberries Facility Hit in Russia
Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces struck targets inside Russia, including a logistics facility belonging to Wildberries, one of Russia’s largest online retailers.
Reports said explosions and a fire occurred at a Wildberries logistics centre in the Voronezh region, which borders Ukraine.
Wildberries said its facilities in the region had been evacuated but had not confirmed that the site was directly hit by Ukrainian forces.
The company has previously faced disruption after Ukrainian drone strikes hit several of its warehouses in July. Kyiv said those attacks targeted logistics facilities that it believed were being used to supply Russian military operations.
Ukraine Targets Russian Energy Facilities
Zelensky also described a Ukrainian strike on a Russian petrochemical facility in western Siberia as a significant success for his country’s military.
He said Ukraine would continue carrying out long-range attacks against Russian targets, arguing that such strikes were intended to demonstrate the need for Moscow to pursue peace.
The latest exchange of attacks follows one of the deadliest recent Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory.
A Ukrainian drone attack on Tatarstan killed at least 13 people, including a child, while another 75 people were injured. Ukraine’s Armed Forces said the attack hit the Tanevo oil refinery in the region.
The Uzbek consulate in Tatarstan said seven of those killed were Uzbek citizens.
The continuing strikes demonstrate the expanding range of attacks carried out by both sides as the Russia-Ukraine war enters another period of intensified aerial warfare.