ODESA, Ukraine (Reuters) - Russia pounded Ukraine's Black Sea city of Odesa late on Thursday with one of its biggest drone attacks, injuring three teenagers and sparking fires as the Czech president visited, Ukrainian officials said. The attack comes as the United States is pushing for a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, aiming to agree on a partial ceasefire that would halt strikes on energy infrastructure by both sides.
Czech President Petr Pavel, a vocal backer of Kyiv who has led an effort to source more than one million artillery shells for Ukraine's war effort, was in the port city for talks with regional officials at the time of the strikes. "Significantly, it was during our meeting that the enemy once again massively attacked the Odesa region," said Governor Oleh Kiper through the Telegram messaging app.
The long-range drones buzzed into the city in several waves, damaging infrastructure, residential houses, and commercial buildings, and causing multiple fires, the interior ministry reported. Around 25 cars had been set ablaze at a car repair shop. "We could not do anything. We were just standing and watching as everything was on fire. I am in total shock," stated Inna, the shop's owner.
Military analyst Oleksandr Kovalenko noted that Russia employed new tactics during this attack, having its drones descend from a higher altitude than usual and at high speeds to make it harder for Ukraine's air defenses to engage them effectively. He emphasized that this was one of the most massive attacks on Odesa since Russia's invasion began in February 2022, labeling it as "intimidation. Terror against the civilian population."
In a separate development on Friday, Russia and Ukraine traded accusations over attacks on a significant Russian gas pumping and measuring station situated in the Kursk region, which Moscow's forces had recently recaptured from Ukraine. Moscow alleged that Ukraine had blown up the facility, calling it an act of terrorism, while Kyiv accused Russian artillery of shelling the site in what it termed a provocation, firmly denying any involvement.
Both Russia and Ukraine have evidently agreed, during separate talks with U.S. officials, to a moratorium on strikes targeting energy infrastructure. However, Moscow has rejected a more comprehensive 30-day ceasefire agreement. Ukrainian, U.S., and Russian delegations are set to meet in Saudi Arabia separately on Monday, March 24, 2025, to further discuss the details of their negotiations.
As Russia launched a total of 214 drones at Ukraine overnight, the air force reported that it successfully shot down 114 of them, while an additional 81 drones were classified as "lost", a term used to describe those neutralized through electronic warfare defenses. Meanwhile, Ukraine has continued to utilize drones effectively, striking targets within Russia, including oil infrastructure and a strategic bomber base in recent days.
