Russian raid on Kyiv leaves 7 dead. Trump: ‘Russia at the G20? We get on well with everyone’

Overnight in Kyiv, seven people were killed following a Russian ballistic missile attack on a railway depot and other railway infrastructure; six of them were railway workers. Another railway worker is in hospital with injuries. According to Ukrinform, the announcement was made on Facebook by Oleksandr Pertsovsky, chairman of the board of directors of Ukrzaliznytsia, the Ukrainian railways.

Also during the night, AFP journalists reported hearing a dozen loud explosions in Kyiv, after the Ukrainian Air Force had issued a warning about the risk of a Russian ballistic missile attack on the capital. At present, Kyiv is facing a massive campaign of Russian attacks, which have triggered repeated alerts, disrupted commercial activities and led to the introduction of stricter security protocols ahead of the new school year.

The air force had previously warned that the threat of “ballistic weapons and other means of attack against Kyiv and the region remains”, and had urged residents to “stay in shelters”. Ukrainian children are returning to school today after the summer holidays. The military authorities in Kyiv have stated that no large-scale events should be organised in high-risk areas.

On the other side of the front line, the port area of Ust-Luga, in the Russian region of Leningrad, sustained damage following a drone attack, according to the regional governor, Alexander Drozdenko.

On the diplomatic front, US President Donald Trump’s gesture of openness towards Russia yesterday regarding Moscow’s representative at the G20 Finance Ministers’ Meeting in North Carolina was significant. ‘We like getting on well with everyone. One of the reasons I’m so successful is that I get on well with everyone,” said Trump from the Oval Office, responding to questions about the Russians’ presence at the G20 Finance Ministers’ meeting in Asheville.