Ukraine war latest: Ukrainian-made ballistic missiles could hit Russia in the fall, Zelensky says
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Key developments on Aug. 8-9:
- Ukrainian-made ballistic missiles could hit Russia in the fall, Zelensky says
- Another overnight Russian attack on Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast kills 4, including 3-year-old child
- Kyiv strikes Russian missile system used in attack the previous day, Madyar says
- Ukraine buys 70 ATACMS missiles, other US weapons from Turkey in major defense package
- Ukraine says it struck 12 Russian shadow fleet vessels in Black Sea and Sea of Azov
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed earlier reports that ballistic missiles being developed by Ukrainian company Fire Point could be combat-ready in the space of 2-3 months, in an interview with Ukraine's state-run telethon on the evening of Aug. 8.
Fire Point told Reuters on Aug. 4 that its FP7 ballistic missile is being certified by Ukraine's defense ministry, a process expected to be complete within the month. They also said they expect their larger FP9 missile, ostensibly capable of reaching Moscow, to be ready by late fall.
"As for their large-scale use, I can't say, because some things do not depend on Ukraine. It is the same with Russian ballistic missiles: they contain components from other countries. The same applies to our ballistic missiles — there are few such components, but some do come from other countries," Zelensky said.
Despite sanctions, EU materials and equipment continue to find their way into the production of Russian military hardware.
A variant of Fire Point's FP7 ballistic missile is being fashioned into an anti-ballistic missile akin to the U.S. Patriot system, in collaboration with nine European partner countries under the Freya program.
The company aims to carry out its first successful ballistic missile interception by mid-2027, its CEO Iryna Terekh told Reuters.
Fire Point is primarily known for its middle- and deep-strike drones FP-1 and FP-2, which have been described as crucial to Ukraine's war effort. Since last year, however, the company has become embroiled in several controversies, including Ukraine's largest wartime corruption scandal, prompting questions about possible preferential treatment in the awarding of state contracts.
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Another overnight Russian attack on Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast kills 4, including 3-year-old child
Russia launched an attack against Kyiv and the surrounding region overnight on Aug. 8, killing four people, including a three-year-old child, and injuring eight others, President Volodymyr Zelensky and the local authorities reported.
Zelensky said that the three people killed in Kyiv Oblast's Brovary district on Aug. 8 were a grandmother, grandfather, and their three-year-old grandson. The child's parents and his 15-year-old brother were among the four wounded in the village of Pukhivka, as well as a neighbor who had come to help them, according to the president. The injured victims were hospitalized, he added.
"Europe, the U.S., and Ukraine have long wanted to end the war," Zelensky said in his Facebook post.
"Only (Russian President Vladimir) Putin doesn't want to, and is clinging to his ballistic missiles and drones to keep the war going."
The rest of the injury count came from Kyiv, where the city's military administration said a person was killed and four others were wounded in the overnight attack.
Kyiv's surrounding region has been battered by aerial assaults throughout spring and summer, as a critical air defense shortage leaves the capital exposed to Russian ballistic missiles.
The attack damaged a residential building, cars, and outbuildings in the Brovary district, and a fire also broke out at a non-residential building, according to Kyiv Oblast Governor Tymyr Tkachenko. Emergency crews are continuing to work at the affected sites.
The latest strike on Brovary, a suburb east of Kyiv, comes as the community is still reeling from a mass Russian attack that killed eight people on a train platform. The attack marked one of the most intense Russian bombardments in Brovary since the start of the war.
In Kyiv, fires broke out in two separate garages and a commercial building in the Holosiivskyi district, the State Emergency Service (DSNS) reported.
Another fire was extinguished "on the territory of an enterprise" in the Obolonskyi district, DSNS wrote.
Ukraine strikes Russian missile system used in attack the previous day, Madyar says
Ukrainian drones struck an S-400 "Triumph" anti-aircraft missile launch pad in Russia's Krasnodar region on the night of Aug. 8, hours after it had fired missiles at Ukraine, the Unmanned Systems Forces announced on Telegram.
The system had launched six missiles on the morning of Aug. 8, according to USF Commander Robert Brovdi, known by the call sign "Madyar."
"The S-400 position in Gelendzhik ... was ablaze and sputtering for three hours," Madyar wrote.
Russia's S-400 system was originally designed for air defense. With Ukraine low on interceptor missiles for its own air defenses, Moscow is increasingly repurposing the technology for offensive operations.
Madyar also highlighted that his drone forces had recently destroyed several other air defense systems in Russia's Krasnodar Krai and Rostov Oblast, as well as two radar stations in the Rostov region.
Systematically targeting Russian air defense systems helps reduce Moscow’s ability to control airspace, which allows Ukraine to successfully attack other military and logistics targets across the country.
Ukraine buys 70 ATACMS missiles, other US weapons from Turkey in major defense package
Ukraine has purchased a significant package of U.S.-made defense equipment from Turkey, including 70 long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS), according to U.S. congressional records.
The weapons transfer has been approved by the U.S. State Department and is expected to be initiated in late August, following mandatory congressional review.
The package includes 70 M39 ATACMS missiles, 12 M270 multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS), over 2,000 cluster munitions, and 47,000 howitzer rounds, according to a notice from the State Department recorded in congressional minutes on Aug. 6.
ATACMS are long-range surface-to-surface ballistic missiles produced by U.S. manufacturer Lockheed Martin. The M39 version represents an earlier model, with a range of approximately 165 kilometers (103 miles).
The upcoming transfer will be facilitated through a number of private companies, including Turkey's MKE, ASFAT, and ARCA Savunma, Bulgaria's VTIC International, and the U.S. firms Pansophico and Patriot Defense Group.
According to the State Department, Turkey aims to "reduce its inventory of older defense articles to focus its financial resources on modernization and sustainment of existing systems."
Ukraine, meanwhile, is looking to "bolster its offensive and defense fire support capabilities as it resists the Russian invasion." The State Department also noted that the transaction is "consistent with U.S. security assistance objectives."
Ukraine received its first batch of the shorter-range M39 ATACMS in the fall of 2023 from former U.S. President Joe Biden, after a long lobbying campaign from Kyiv.
In the spring of 2024, the U.S. began supplying upgraded models that could fly up to 300 kilometers (186 miles). At the time, Kyiv was only permitted to deploy these missiles against targets in occupied Ukrainian territory. In November 2024, Ukraine was finally permitted to launch ATACMS at targets within Russia.
In the past year, Ukraine has only used ATACMS a handful of times, as its stocks are understood to be severely depleted.
Ukraine says it struck 12 Russian shadow fleet vessels in Black Sea and Sea of Azov
Ukrainian long-range drones have hit 12 Russian shadow fleet vessels in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov over the past week, Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces said on Aug. 8.
The strikes come after Ukraine launched Operation Molochka in July, a campaign targeting Russia’s shadow fleet in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov in an effort to tighten the noose around Russian-occupied Crimea peninsula.
Since the start of the operation on July 6, Ukrainian drones have struck 218 Russian shadow fleet vessels, including 134 in the Sea of Azov and 84 in the Black Sea, according to the Unmanned Systems Forces.
The attacks that struck 12 Russian shadow fleet vessels in August were conducted by the Madyar's Birds Brigade, led by Unmanned Systems Forces Commander Brovdi, K-2 Brigade, and Raid Regiment, according to the report.
The Kyiv Independent couldn't independently verify the claim. Moscow had not commented as of publication time. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Aug. 8 that it had downed 83 Ukrainian drones overnight, including over the Azov Sea.
"Molochka Operation continues," the Unmanned Systems Forces said in its Telegram post.
The report comes as Ukraine ramps up its long-range drone strikes on occupied Crimea and across the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov to isolate the peninsula and disrupt key military routes.
