Russia Maintains Attacks on U 05/26 06:42

   Russia fired more than 100 drones and two ballistic missiles at Ukraine 
overnight, the Ukrainian air force said Tuesday, as the country's foreign 
ministry noted that Moscow's recent threat to hit Kyiv especially hard from the 
air brought nothing new.

   KYIV, Ukraine (AP) -- Russia fired more than 100 drones and two ballistic 
missiles at Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian air force said Tuesday, as the 
country's foreign ministry noted that Moscow's recent threat to hit Kyiv 
especially hard from the air brought nothing new.

   Russia on Monday urged foreign citizens, including members of diplomatic 
missions, to leave the Ukrainian capital as quickly as possible and told 
residents to steer clear of military and government facilities. It said that 
"systemic strikes" on Kyiv were being prepared.

   Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State Marco 
Rubio by phone Monday that the U.S. should evacuate its diplomatic staff from 
Kyiv, a foreign ministry statement said. Rubio didn't say whether the State 
Department would take that step, but expressed concern during a trip to India 
that the "terrible" war in Ukraine could escalate further.

   The Trump administration has tried for more than a year to stop the fighting 
that broke out after Russia's February 2022 invasion. But its efforts yielded 
no significant breakthrough and are now on ice as Washington focuses on the 
Iran war.

   No diplomats say they are leaving Kyiv

   There were no announcements of diplomatic departures from Kyiv. The European 
Union, French and Polish delegations publicly said that they would not leave.

   The level of security threats posed by Russia to Kyiv and other Ukrainian 
cities "remains the same as in previous years and months," Ukraine's foreign 
ministry said in a statement late Monday.

   Russia has continuously launched missile and drone attacks on the capital 
for more than four years, it pointed out, adding that Ukraine was prepared to 
assist diplomatic missions seeking additional security measures.

   Russia said its biggest missile attack of the year last weekend was a 
response to Friday's deadly Ukrainian drone strike on what Moscow said was a 
college dormitory in Starobilsk, a city in Ukraine's Russia-occupied Luhansk 
region.

   But the Ukrainian General Staff said that its strike in Starobilsk hit the 
local headquarters of the Russian military's special drone unit.

   Ukraine remains short of air defense missiles

   Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that sophisticated 
American-made air defense systems that Ukraine needs to stop Russian ballistic 
missiles are in short supply due to the Iran war.

   "Unfortunately, there has been no progress for a long time with America on 
expanding the production of anti-ballistic capabilities," Zelenskyy said on 
social media late Monday, adding that Kyiv is working with Europe to improve 
its own anti-ballistic capabilities in sufficient quantities.

   He noted that Ukrainian battlefield gains in recent months have enabled it 
to "stabilize" the 1,250-kilometer (780-mile) front line in eastern and 
southern Ukraine, suggesting that Kyiv's forces are holding their own against 
Russia's bigger army.

   Russia's spring offensive is floundering as Ukraine's midrange drone strikes 
disrupt its rear supply lines, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

   Moscow's warning of major strikes aims to distract public attention from its 
"poor battlefield performance" and an economic pinch caused by war costs and 
international sanctions, the Washington-based think tank said late Monday.