Russia on Saturday hit the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and the southern port city of Odesa with fresh attacks. 

A combination of ballistic and cruise missiles along with drones injured 11 people in Kyiv, Ukrainian authorities said. A Russian missile attack later in the morning in Odesa killed two people and injured one other. 

A separate Russian attack in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv left seven people wounded.  

In a post on X, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said civilian infrastructure in Kyiv "was hit even before the air raid alert was issued."

"Emergency crews are working at the sites of the strikes — apartment buildings, offices, and a theological seminary were damaged in the capital," Zelenskyy said. "Recovery efforts are also ongoing in the Odesa, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions." 

The attacks come as Ukraine's supply of munitions, needed to defend itself against Russia's ballistic missiles, is dwindling.

Zelenskyy urges NATO members to keep to their word  

Zelenskyy urged NATO members to deliver on their promises made during a summit in the Turkish capital of Ankara this week. 

In a declaration from the summit, NATO members pledged €70 billion (almost $80 billion) "in military equipment, assistance and training for Ukraine and affirm their sovereign commitments to sustaining at least equivalent levels in 2027."

NATO members, such as the US under President Donald Trump, also expressed support for the Ukrainians to produce their own Patriot missiles.  

Ukraine's targeted drone attacks provoke violent Russian response

The fighting between Ukraine and Russia has escalated in recent months.

Ukraine has boosted its drone production and increasingly struck Russian energy infrastructure such as oil refineries, causing a disruption not only to Russian production but also to daily life.

The Ukrainian military said it attacked 21 Russian oil tankers in the Sea of Azov on Saturday, in what could be the largest Ukrainian drone attack on Russian ships since the start of the war. Russian authorities say at least one person died on one of the vessels.   

Ukraine has also increased its drone attacks on the Crimean Peninsula, a Ukrainian territory annexed by Russia in 2014 which the Kremlin uses as a logistic hub for its invasion of Ukraine.      

In response, Russia has unleashed a fresh onslaught of attacks on Ukraine, with a massive drone and missile attack earlier this month in Kyiv leaving at least 30 people dead.    

Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. 

Edited by: Karl Sexton 

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