(TargetDailyNews.com) – Russia released a barrage of artillery against Ukraine on December 29th, launching 122 missiles and dozens of drones against multiple targets. Reports indicate at least 30 civilians are dead, and 144 were wounded, in what may be the largest aerial attack yet in the Russia-Ukraine war.
The attack was aimed at the capital city of Kyiv, portions of which were strewn with broken glass and exploded cars as air raid sirens sounded. A missile strike near her caused 72-year-old Kateryna Ivaniva to dive to the ground. She said, “There was an explosion, then flames,” as she took cover and made a break for a subway station as soon as she thought she could make it.
According to Western military officials, the huge strike was no surprise to them as they had been warning that Russia was going easy on cruise missile strikes to save up artillery for just such a barrage. The officials said Russia had been planning such a strike for months and hoped to demoralize Ukraine with the wintertime attack.
This was the biggest attack since Russia invaded Ukraine in February of 2022, said Air Force commander Mykola Oleshchuk, writing on his Telegram channel. Before December 29’s attack, the biggest strike had occurred in November of 2022. At that time, the former Soviet Union sent 96 missiles toward Ukraine, topping their previous record of 81 missiles in a March 9th, 2022, strike.
Ukraine has been fairly begging the United States and other Western nations for more money and artillery to defend itself against air strikes. But the U.S. has already sent more than $75 billion to the country for its defense effort, and U.S. politicians are wearying of the drain on America’s treasury.
President Joe Biden has been a consistent advocate of the U.S. supporting the Ukrainian side in this conflict, however. After the recent air strike, he said Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has to be stopped, but it is up to Congress to take “urgent action.” Without congressional approval, he said, the U.S. will not be able to “continue sending weapons and vital air defense systems” to Ukraine.
It is difficult to know precisely how many Ukrainian and Russian military members and citizens have been killed, but most estimates place the total at around 500,000. According to Reuters, U.S. intelligence organizations say at least 315,000 Russian soldiers have died.
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