Volodymyr Zelenskyy: Increasing Ukraine’s domestic drone production a priority

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday said ramping up the production of locally-made drones and missiles is a top priority for his government, even as Russian forces were capturing four villages in the country’s northeastern Sumy region.

Mr. Zelenskyy met with Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s military. They talked about planning future actions and responding to Russian threats and strikes.

He said Ukrainians are fully mobilizing their entrepreneurial capacity to increase weapons production.

“Hundreds of Ukrainian companies are already producing results for Ukraine’s Defense Forces with more to follow – I’m certain of that,” Mr. Zelenskyy said Tuesday on his Telegram social media page. “First and foremost, this means the production of unmanned systems and long-range capabilities – everything that allows us to maintain control on the front lines, protect the lives of our warriors, and operate at significant distances.”

He said Ukraine can’t publicly disclose its military plans and capabilities, but said their objective is to respond “symmetrically” to all Russian threats and challenges.

“They in Russia must clearly feel the consequences of what they are doing against Ukraine — and they will,” Mr. Zelenskyy said. “Attack drones, interceptors, cruise missiles, Ukrainian ballistic systems — these are the key elements. We must manufacture all of them.”

Drones and long-range missiles have become the weapon of choice for both sides in the war, now in its third year.  On Monday, Russia launched its biggest drone attack against Ukraine in a steadily escalating bombing campaign that has fractured hopes for a negotiated settlement to end the fighting.

The large-scale Russian drone attacks have pummeled Ukrainian cities for three consecutive nights in what analysts said was an attempt to erode the morale of the local populace.

“Ukrainian drones have targeted infrastructure and military sites deep into Russia’s territory,” the independent Moscow Times newspaper reported.

Russia launched 355 Shahed-type drones and nine cruise missiles at targets in Ukraine between Sunday night and early Monday. An attack on Sunday killed 13 civilians, including three children from the same family, in the central city of Zhytomyr, Ukrainian officials said.

The Kremlin’s expanded air and ground campaign against Ukraine came after Kyiv accepted an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. Moscow has effectively rejected the proposal brokered by United States negotiators. Even President Trump accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of “going crazy” for stepping up the air attacks.

Russian officials denied that they were striking civilian targets in their attacks on Ukraine. They claimed to have targeted a military airfield, ammunition depots, and an S-300 surface-to-air missile battalion.

“The Russian Armed Forces will continue delivering massive and combined strikes in retaliation for any of the Kyiv regime’s terrorist attacks and provocations,” Tass, the official Russian news agency, reported Tuesday, citing the country’s defense ministry. “The strikes will target solely military sites and enterprises of Ukraine’s military-industrial sector.

Russia wants to build a buffer zone between Russia and Ukraine and has chosen the country’s Sumy region for the project. Governor Oleh Hyrhorov confirmed that four villages were now in Russian hands — Novenke, Basivka, Veselivka, and Zhuravka. He said the residents had long been moved to safety.