A Russian missile and drone strike on Ukraine killed at least five people and injured 47 others in the eastern city of Dnipro on Wednesday, as Nato states reportedly agreed to provide Kyiv with €40 billion in funding for military hardware next year.
Footage showed fiery explosions over Dnipro and shards of metal shrapnel scattering over a busy area of the city, where local officials said a shopping centre, schools and a hospital had been damaged, along with many cars.
“Only two things can stop this Russian terror – modern air defence systems and the long-range capabilities of our weapons,” said Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy. “The world can protect lives, and it requires the determination of leaders. Determination that can and must make protection from terror the norm again.”
Ukraine’s air force said it shot down five missiles and six drones in the attack on Wednesday morning. Russian air strikes also hit the eastern city of Kharkiv, where officials said six people were hurt in a residential district.
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Nato will unveil plans to provide €40 billion in military funding for Ukraine next year when leaders of member states meet for a summit in Washington next week, Reuters reported. Nato is expected to play a bigger role in co-ordinating and supplying arms and ammunition to Kyiv, as the alliance attempts to reduce Donald Trump’s potential influence on the issue if he returns to the US presidency later this year.
Mr Trump has said he could end the Russian-Ukraine war in a day if he was in the White House, without revealing details of what settlement he would propose.
[ Kremlin-friendly Hungary urges Ukraine to seek ceasefire with RussiaOpens in new window ]
On a visit to Washington, Mr Zelenskiy’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, said Ukraine wanted a “just peace” and would not “compromise for the very important things and values… independence, freedom, democracy, territorial integrity, sovereignty”.
Mr Trump has expressed admiration for autocratic Russian president Vladimir Putin and, when asked how the populist US tycoon might address the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine, Mr Yermak said: “Honest answer: I don’t know. Let’s see.”
After meeting Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov at the Pentagon, US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said Washington would soon provide Kyiv with an additional $2.3 billion (€2.1 billion) in military aid.
“Make no mistake, Ukraine is not alone, and the United States will never waver in our support,” Mr Austin said. “Alongside some 50 allies and partners, we’ll continue to provide critical capabilities that Ukraine needs to push back Russian aggression today and to deter Russian aggression tomorrow.”
Moscow-installed officials in occupied southeastern Ukraine said eight workers were injured when three Ukrainian drones hit an electricity substation near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station – the biggest in Europe – which Russian forces have controlled since 2022.
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