KYIV: Russia launched its largest aerial assault of the Ukraine war overnight into Sunday, deploying more than 800 drones and striking a Kyiv government building for the first time, CNN reported.

An infant was among at least two people killed during drone strikes on several residential buildings in the Ukraine capital, which was under an air-raid siren for 11 hours.

Russia launched a total of 810 drones, four ballistic missiles and nine cruise missiles, the Ukrainian Air Force said. While most were shot down by air defences, 54 drones and nine missiles hit targets across Ukraine, it said.

The latest assault surpasses the size of a July attack that was previously the largest of the war, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbour in February 2022. It also comes after recent attempts by Kyiv’s Western allies to broker a peace deal, as per CNN.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the attack as “vile,” saying that “such killings now, when real diplomacy could have started a long time ago, are a deliberate crime and a prolongation of the war.”

“The world can make the Kremlin’s criminals stop killing, all we need is political will,” Zelenskyy said.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko called it a “massive attack,” saying the cities of Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro, Kremenchuk, and Odesa all came under fire, as well as Kyiv.

In the capital, the building that houses the prime minister’s office, as well as some government ministries, was struck in the assault, she said, CNN reported.

“For the first time, the Government building, its roof, and upper floors were damaged by the enemy attacks. Rescuers are extinguishing the fire. I thank them for their work,” Svyrydenko said.

Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said any Western troops in Ukraine would be considered “legitimate targets for defeat,” a day after it was announced that dozens of Western countries have pledged to contribute to a potential peacekeeping force there if a ceasefire deal is agreed. (ANI)