Russian Missile and Drone Barrage Strains Ukraine's Air Defences

Overview

• Saturday's overnight attack used ballistic missiles and a large drone salvo and killed civilians in Pukhivka, including a three-year-old boy, and at least one person in Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said.
• Ukrainian leaders and the Air Force say current air-defence capacity is the weakest since the war began and that recent ballistic missiles were not intercepted.
• President Zelensky said Kyiv has an agreement with the United States for monthly Patriot interceptor deliveries but that the 2026 volumes will be lower than in 2025 and are insufficient to meet needs.
• Reporting cites U.S. stockpile shortfalls for PAC-3 interceptor missiles transferred in 2022 and a Financial Times account that President Trump declined a request for additional interceptors in a recent Oval Office meeting.
• Zelensky urged partners to deploy interceptor systems inside Ukraine and to impose tougher sanctions to curb missile production, saying forward deployment saves lives by protecting populated areas rather than keeping weapons in distant warehouses.