(Dan Tri) – President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia has launched at least 500 missiles and drones into Ukraine in the past 5 days.

Big fire after Russia’s raid on Kiev, Ukraine on January 2 (Photo: Reuters).

In a phone call on January 2, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that Russia had launched at least 500 missiles and drones (UAVs) into Ukraine in the past 5 days.

Mr Zelensky briefed Mr Sunak on Russia’s recent large-scale attacks and expressed appreciation for Britain’s `significant and comprehensive` efforts to strengthen its air defense capabilities.

The two leaders also discussed defense cooperation, with particular emphasis on `air defense and long-range weapons capabilities` as well as progress on bilateral agreement on UK security commitments.

In an online speech on the evening of January 2, President Zelensky also confirmed that Russia had deployed nearly 300 missiles and more than 200 drones in attacks on Ukraine in the past 3 days.

`The (attack) trajectory was specially calculated by the enemy to cause as much damage as possible. No country has yet repelled similar attacks using drones and missiles combined

Chief of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army Valery Zaluzhny said that Russia launched at least 99 missiles of all types targeting Ukraine on the night of January 1 and early morning of January 2.

Mr. Zaluzhny said gas pipelines were damaged in Kiev’s Pecherskyi district, and electricity and water were cut off in several districts.

`There is no reason to believe that the enemy will stop here. Therefore, we need more weapons and ammunition systems,` Mr. Zaluzhny called.

The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed that it used long-range precision weapons and UAVs to attack Ukraine’s defense industrial infrastructure.

Ukraine confirmed that Russia attacked Ukraine’s two largest cities in a fierce airstrike on January 2, killing at least 5 civilians.

According to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, 135 people were injured in the latest missile and drone attack, including 61 in and around Kharkiv and 17 in and around the capital Kiev.

A few days earlier, in the largest unprecedented air strike on Ukraine on December 29, Russia used 158 missiles and UAVs to attack targets throughout Ukraine.

Russia’s attacks on Ukraine came after President Vladimir Putin warned that Moscow would take action in response to Kiev’s repeated attacks on Russia’s Belgorod border region.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said that Russian air defense forces in the Belgorod region shot down 9 missiles launched from Ukraine on the evening of January 2, including the Tochka-U tactical ballistic missile.

Previously, Ukrainian artillery attacked the town square of Belgorod city on December 30, injuring more than 100 civilians and killing 25 people, including children.

In the past 3 days, Russia accused Ukraine of conducting several more attacks on the city of Belgorod and surrounding areas, using long-range missiles and drones.