A Pantsir S-1 missile system (NATO reporting name: SA 22 Greyhound) is seen on the roof of the main building of the Russian Defense Ministry on March 1, 2023, in Moscow, Russia. (Contributor/Getty Images)
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Dec. 19 that air defenses near the Russian capital had shot down a drone as it approached the city.
He claimed that there were no casualties or damage as a result.
Earlier in the day, Russian media reported that three drones had been shot down over Kaluga Oblast and another in the skies above Bryansk Oblast.
Three airports that serve Moscow – Domododovo, Vnukovo, and Zhukovsky – were temporarily closed for security reasons.
Russia's Defense Ministry said that the drones were Ukrainian.
Kyiv has repeatedly targeted military infrastructure in Russia and Russian-occupied territories. It does not typically comment on claims of drone strikes within Russia immediately.
Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Witkoff — a real estate mogul with no previous diplomatic experience — reportedly went to the meeting with Putin without a U.S. State Department notetaker.
"This Ukrainian film deserves greater international recognition, as it speaks on behalf of those who defend freedom and the right to live every single day," the Ukrainian Oscar Committee said.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto described the strike as "an attack on Hungary’s sovereignty," saying it "endangered our energy security and nearly (forced) the use of our strategic reserves."
Russia launched 598 drones overnight, including Shahed attack drones and decoys, as well as 31 missiles, among them two Kh-47 Kinzhal ballistic missiles, nine Iskander-M or North Korean KN-23 ballistic missiles, and 20 Kh-101 cruise missiles, Ukraine’s Air Force reported.
"Efforts to address the aftermath of the attack are ongoing. The majority of the crew are safe, and the search for several missing sailors continues," Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk told the Kyiv Independent.
Carl Bildt
