Ukraine hits Moscow with large drone attack
Ukraine's strike was the biggest drone attack on the Russian capital to date
What happened
Ukraine sent waves of drones at the Moscow region and other areas of Russia early Tuesday, in its "biggest drone attack so far," Reuters said. Russia said it shot down 144 drones, including at least 20 in the Moscow region. A 46-year-old woman was reported killed when a drone struck an apartment building, marking the "first death in the Moscow region from a Ukrainian drone attack since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine," The Washington Post said.
Who said what
Ukraine's strike was the "latest in a series of increasingly large-scale attacks that have involved dozens of drones hitting military air bases, oil refineries and ammunition stores," as "Kyiv has been taking the war deep inside Moscow's territory," The Wall Street Journal said. Russia has also "recently ramped up its use of nighttime bombardments that often strike civilians," killing thousands over the course of its invasion and destroying much of Ukraine's power and water infrastructure.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Ukraine's "night strikes on residential areas cannot be associated with military operations." Russian President Vladimir Putin has "sought to insulate Moscow from the grinding rigors of the war," Reuters said, and vowed a response to what he called "terrorism."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who visits Ukraine this week along with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, said Iran has sent Russia short-range ballistic missiles to use in Ukraine, sparking U.S. and European sanctions.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.
-
Political cartoons for December 21Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include Christmas movies, AI sermons, and more
-
A luxury walking tour in Western AustraliaThe Week Recommends Walk through an ‘ancient forest’ and listen to the ‘gentle hushing’ of the upper canopy
-
What Nick Fuentes and the Groypers wantThe Explainer White supremacism has a new face in the US: a clean-cut 27-year-old with a vast social media following
-
Who is paying for Europe’s €90bn Ukraine loan?Today’s Big Question Kyiv secures crucial funding but the EU ‘blinked’ at the chance to strike a bold blow against Russia
-
Will there be peace before Christmas in Ukraine?Today's Big Question Discussions over the weekend could see a unified set of proposals from EU, UK and US to present to Moscow
-
Moscow cheers Trump’s new ‘America First’ strategyspeed read The president’s national security strategy seeks ‘strategic stability’ with Russia
-
Is a Putin-Modi love-in a worry for the West?Today’s Big Question The Indian leader is walking a ‘tightrope’ between Russia and the United States
-
Canada joins EU’s $170B SAFE defense fundspeed read This makes it the first non-European Union country in the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative
-
Ukraine and Rubio rewrite Russia’s peace planFeature The only explanation for this confusing series of events is that ‘rival factions’ within the White House fought over the peace plan ‘and made a mess of it’
-
Andriy Yermak: how weak is Zelenskyy without his right-hand man?Today's Big Question Resignation of Ukrainian president’s closest ally marks his ‘most politically perilous moment yet’
-
Trump’s Ukraine peace talks advance amid leaked callSpeed Read Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff is set to visit Russia next week
