Odesa Hit With Deadly Drone Strike as Top EU Diplomat Arrives in Kyiv

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KYIV, Ukraine (AP) – One person died and 13 people were wounded by a Russian drone in a residential area in the Ukrainian port city of Odesa overnight, local officials said Saturday, as EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell arrived in Kyiv to discuss European support for Ukraine.

Odesa regional Gov. Oleh Kiper said high-rise residential buildings, private houses and warehouses were damaged by the “fall” of a drone. He did not specify whether the drone had been shot down by air defenses.

A further 32 Russian drones were shot down over 10 Ukrainian regions, while 18 were “lost,” according to Ukraine´s Air Force, likely having been electronically jammed.

A Russian aerial bomb struck a busy highway overnight in the northeastern Kharkiv province, Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekohov said. No casualties were reported.

Russia is mounting an intensified aerial campaign that Ukrainian officials say they need more Western help to counter. However, doubts are deepening over what Kyiv can expect from a new U.S. administration. President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly taken issue with U.S. aid to Ukraine, made vague vows to end the war and has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Borrell, however, reassured Ukraine of European support as he arrived in Kyiv on Saturday.

“EU support to Ukraine has been my personal priority during my mandate and will remain on top of the EU’s agenda,” he wrote on X.

In Russia, the Defense Ministry said 50 Ukrainian drones were destroyed over seven Russian regions – more than half over the Bryansk region, bordering Ukraine.