At least 10 people have been killed in Russian ballistic missile strikes on a drone technology exhibition near Kyiv, according to BBC News, as Ukraine reported further deaths from attacks elsewhere in the country.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said around 100 people were injured in the daytime strike on the exhibition, which was attended by prominent figures from the defence sector.
Five people were also killed by Russian glide bombs in Sloviansk, in eastern Ukraine. Military officials later confirmed that two men had died in the northern city of Sumy early on Saturday.
Yuri Ihnat, a spokesman for Ukraine’s air force, told Ukrainian television that three ballistic missiles were used in the attack near Kyiv and that only one was intercepted.
Russia confirmed it had carried out the strike. Its Defence Ministry said long-range precision weapons had targeted a site where drones intended for use against civil sites in Russia were being displayed. It said drone producers, members of Ukraine’s drone forces and security service representatives involved in planning and carrying out strikes on Russian territory were present.
BBC News reported concern after the attack for Defence Ministry adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov, also known as Flash, and Lyuba Shypovych, who has worked on technology for Ukraine’s army. Both later said on social media that they were unharmed, while Beskrestnov said he had avoided the event because of security concerns.
The attack has prompted questions in Ukraine about why the event was held and apparently widely publicised. Zelensky said the incident was under investigation, while Ukraine’s prosecutor-general said officials were seeking to establish who authorised the event and what safety measures were in place.
The Russian attack followed Ukrainian strikes on targets inside Russia. A Ukrainian strike on Friday killed six people and wounded 26 in the city of Kirov, more than 1,000km from the front line. Zelensky said a major military facility there supplying components for aircraft and missile equipment used against Ukraine had been hit.
Ukraine also attacked warehouses operated by Wildberries, Russia’s largest online retailer, in the St Petersburg area. Kyiv says such logistics hubs can be used to purchase military equipment and that attacks on them are intended to disrupt supplies to the Russian army.
Zelensky is expected to travel to the United States next week and is due to meet President Donald Trump on Tuesday, a White House official said, as Washington seeks to revive peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.
Separately, Romanian President Nicusor Dan said a Romanian F-16 fighter jet shot down a Russian drone that breached the country’s airspace on Friday, after alerts were issued across eastern and south-eastern areas of Romania.
