Portugal, Albania, Argentina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Palestinian Authority: six embassies in kyiv for as many targets of Russian revenge. This Friday, December 20 in the morning, a Russian strike injured around ten people and killed one, in what Moscow described as a “response” to a Ukrainian strike with Western missiles against a Russian chemical factory, a few days after the death of a senior Russian official.
The latest report from the military administration of the Ukrainian capital, Friday afternoon, showed twelve people injured, including five hospitalized. Ukrainian diplomacy seems to have few doubts about what it describes as a “barbaric attack”: it is a building in which six diplomatic missions are located which was targeted and damaged.
ALSO READ Zelensky rejects any idea of ceasefire in Ukraine without guaranteesDebris fell on three districts of the Ukrainian capital. Several places (health establishments, schools, etc.) were without heating for several hours and charred carcasses were found.
Vladimir Putin's promise of retaliation
The attack was carried out with five “Iskander-M/KN-23” type ballistic missiles, all of which were shot down, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. The success of this attack is surprising, because kyiv, the Ukrainian capital regularly targeted by missiles, is relatively unlikely to suffer significant damage, because the city is well protected by anti-aircraft defense.
“All the missiles were successfully intercepted, but one of the warheads could not be destroyed, exploding near the office building,” said a Ukrainian analysis center, Defense Express. Ukraine used the powerful American Patriot system to shoot down the projectiles, according to a Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson.
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Kangaroo of the day
Answer
“A new heinous attack on kyiv. This time against a building housing the Portuguese embassy and other diplomatic services,” denounced the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on X. The Portuguese government also condemned the attack “vehemently” in a press release and summoned the Russian charge d'affaires.
“A group strike was carried out […] against the control center [des services spéciaux ukrainiens] SBU, the Lutch design office, based in kyiv, which designs and manufactures Neptune missile systems,” the Russian army said in a statement. Vladimir Putin (who is reaching out to Donald Trump) had promised that any Ukrainian attack on Russian soil with Western missiles would lead to a response from him. Which, obviously, act. Will the hoped-for armistice fade away?
