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French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Saturday that France would deliver new interceptor missiles to Kyiv following a major Russian attack on a shopping centre in Kryvyi Rih in central Ukraine.
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Ukrainian authorities said Russia launched two waves of drone attacks on the city on Friday, killing at least 16 people and injuring 130 others, including 23 children.
The attack on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s hometown has prompted condemnation from leading figures across Europe, with Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat, calling it “terror by design.”
In a post on X, Macron said he had spoken with Zelenskyy following the daylight “double strike” on Kryvyi Rih and that he had expressed his “horror” and “deep concern” over the incident.
“It is crucial to provide Ukraine with all the necessary means to defend its airspace and thwart this aggression,” he wrote, adding that he had informed Zelenskyy of Paris’ “increased support, including the deployment of interceptors.”
“We must also continue to increase the pressure on Russia as long as it chooses to refuse to halt the fighting and make peace,” he added.
Zelenskyy said in a separate post that the pair had spoken for close to two hours, touching on Ukraine’s air defence needs, funding, and communications with Washington, among other things.
“We agreed to accelerate the delivery of the latest French equipment and missiles. Thank you for confirming your readiness to provide licenses for the production of missiles,” Zelenskyy wrote.
Kyiv has long been pleading with allies for more interceptor missiles as it continues to fend off Russian missile and drone attacks.
Ukraine strikes back
Ukraine launched its own strikes against Russia over the last 24 hours, hitting the Novokuybyshevsk oil refinery, a logistics hub in the Samara region, and targets in the Black Sea, per Zelenskyy.
Kyiv has been ramping up its so-called “long-range sanctions” on Russia in recent months as it seeks to hamper the Russian economy and grind down Vladimir Putin’s war machine.
It has particularly targeted energy infrastructure sites such as oil refineries, depots, and terminals as part of this strategy.
