Russia's overnight attack on Kyiv drew widespread condemnation on Thursday, including from European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellog.
Ms. Von der Leyen, who had telephone conversations on Thursday with both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and President Trump, noted that the "massive strike on Kyiv" also hit the EU offices in the Ukrainian capital.
"Putin must come to the negotiating table," she wrote on X. "We must secure a just and lasting peace for Ukraine with firm and credible security guarantees that will turn the country into a steel porcupine."'
"Europe will fully play its part," she added. "Our defence instrument SAFE, for example, will be important to strengthening the brave Ukrainian armed forces."
Her comments hours after Russia's massive attack, during which 598 drones and 31 missiles were launched into Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian Air Force, which said 563 drones and 26 missiles were shot down or suppressed.
The strikes claimed the lives of 19 people, including four children, Ukrainian sources reported.
Donald Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine also came out against the recent attacks, calling them a threat to US peace efforts.
The strikes have jeopardised the mediation efforts led by the US president, Kellogg said in a post on X. They threaten the peace that the US President is striving for, he added.
The US Envoy emphasised that the strikes had killed innocent civilians and caused damage to facilities representing both the European Union and the United Kingdom in the Ukrainian capital.
