Ukrainian service personnel employ searchlights to scan the skies over the city during a Russian drone strike in Kyiv on Sunday, as reported by REUTERS.

On Tuesday, Kyiv announced that Russia had launched a record 188 drones at Ukraine overnight, amidst escalating international tensions following Russia's firing of a nuclear-capable missile capable of reaching European cities. The Kremlin, however, declined to confirm whether Ukrainian forces had once again deployed US-supplied long-range ATACMS against Russia this week, but nonetheless accused Washington of escalating the conflict.

Both Moscow and Kyiv have intensified their drone and missile attacks, with Ukraine recently firing US long-range missiles at Russia, prompting the Kremlin to retaliate with an experimental hypersonic missile. This barrage occurred as ambassadors from Ukraine and NATO's 32 members prepared to meet in Brussels to discuss Russia's firing of an intermediate-range missile on the city of Dnipro last week.

The air force stated on Tuesday that during the night attack, the enemy had launched a record number of Shahed strike unmanned aerial vehicles and unidentified drones, totaling 188. Out of these, 76 were shot down in 17 regions, while another 95 were either lost from radar or downed by electronic jamming defensive systems. The fate of the remaining drones was not specified.

Moscow also fired four Iskander-M ballistic missiles, according to the air force. Unfortunately, critical infrastructure facilities were hit, and private and apartment buildings were damaged in several regions, as per a statement.

AFP journalists reported hearing explosions in the capital, while Kyiv city officials stated that the air alert had lasted five hours, during which 10 Russian drones were shot down. In the western Ternopil region, authorities reported that a critical infrastructure facility had been damaged by drones, leading to disrupted electricity in Ternopil and surrounding towns, with engineers working to stabilize supplies.

Putin had previously stated that the new missile attack last week was in response to Ukraine firing weapons supplied by the United States and Britain into Russia. The Kremlin leader warned that Moscow felt it had the right to target military facilities in countries that allow Ukraine to use their weapons against Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the strike as 'the latest bout of Russian madness' and appealed for updated air-defense systems to counter the new threat. Kyiv hopes to achieve 'concrete and meaningful outcomes' from the meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, although NATO diplomats and officials have downplayed expectations for any major results from the consultations at the alliance's Brussels headquarters.

The most anticipated outcome is a reiteration of NATO's earlier stance that Moscow's deployment of new weaponry will not deter NATO allies from supporting Ukraine. The meeting will provide an opportunity to discuss the current security situation in Ukraine, with briefings from Ukrainian officials via video link, according to a NATO official.

The Kremlin dismissed the meeting, stating that it was unlikely any significant decisions would be taken. On the battlefield, Ukraine's fatigued troops are struggling to halt advances by Russian forces in the east of the country. Russia announced on Tuesday that its troops had captured another village in the Kharkiv region, in an area where the front line had been relatively stable until recently.

The defense ministry stated that its units had 'liberated' the settlement of Kopanky, a village near the Ukrainian-held city of Kupiansk that was previously captured by Russian forces at the start of the 2022 offensive before being re-taken by Ukraine later that year. Moscow also confirmed on Tuesday that it had detained a British man captured fighting for Ukraine in Kyiv's offensive into Russia's western Kursk region.

A court in the region ordered James Scott Rhys Anderson to be remanded in custody, alleging he had 'participated in armed hostilities on the territory of the Kursk region'.

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