Russian Drone Strikes On Ukraine Hit All-Time Record In July

Russian drone strikes on Ukraine have hit an all-time high, an AFP analysis showed Friday, as Kyiv held a day of mourning after one of the deadliest attacks on the capital left 31 dead.

The large-scale aerial assault during the early hours of July 31 capped a month that saw Russia launch more drones at Ukraine than in any month since it launched its 2022 invasion.

Moscow has been intensifying its deadly bombardment of Ukraine as peace talks stall, and increased its long-range drone attacks in July by nearly 16 per cent, an AFP analysis showed.

AFP journalists at the scene on Friday of the Kyiv strike saw rescue workers pulling bodies of killed civilians from the debris of a nine-storey residential building that was destroyed in the attack.

"This despicable attack by Russia shows that additional pressure and sanctions on Moscow are necessary," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday, announcing rescue operations had ended.

"This can only be stopped together: America, Europe, and other global actors," he added, noting that five children were among the dead.

'Depraved' Attacks

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas described the Russian attacks as "depraved" on Friday and posted a picture of the bloc's flag at half mast.

"More weapons for Ukraine and tougher sanctions on Russia are the fastest way to end the war. Getting more air defences to Ukraine fast is our priority," she added in a post.

Zelensky has been appealing to allies for more air defence systems, and on Friday, Germany said it would soon start delivering two more US-made Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine.

Germany has already delivered three Patriot systems to Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Russia launched aerial attacks on Ukraine every night last month, triggering air raid sirens and sending civilians scrambling for shelter.

The Kremlin has consistently rejected a ceasefire in Ukraine, saying in July it saw no immediate diplomatic way out of its nearly three-and-a-half-year invasion.

Three rounds of direct negotiation between Moscow and Kyiv since May have failed to yield a peace deal.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday blasted Russia's actions in Ukraine, suggesting that new sanctions against Moscow were coming.

"Russia -- I think it's disgusting what they're doing. I think it's disgusting," Trump told journalists.

On Monday, the US leader issued a "10 or 12" day ultimatum for Moscow to halt its invasion, now in its fourth year, or face sanctions.

Russia's escalation of drone and missile attacks on Ukraine led to a three-year high in the number of civilians killed or wounded in June, the United Nations said last month.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)