Ukrainian Strike Causes Fires Near Russia's Novolipetsk Steel Plant as Kyiv Reports More Than 100 Russian Ballistic Missiles in Two Weeks

Drones and jet-powered projectiles attacked the Russian city of Lipetsk late on Tuesday, and a fire broke out near the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant (NLMK), Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform reported, citing preliminary information from social media. The fire started after Russian air defenses engaged targets, according to the Ukrainian monitoring channel Exilenova Plus, cited by the Kyiv Independent. Russian-language reporting by Ukrainska Pravda said the attack began around 11 p.m. and also mentioned reports of a fire near Lipetsk's military airfield. Russian officials had not confirmed damage at the plant in the reports reviewed by this desk. NLMK is one of Russia's largest steel producers.

Russia has concentrated ballistic missiles on Kyiv. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia launched more than 100 ballistic missiles against the capital in the past two weeks, the Kyiv Independent reported. The previous day's strike hit a university campus, a major bridge, an administrative building and medical facilities, killing one person and injuring 15.

The capital is preparing for further damage to its transport links. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said Kyiv will allocate 1 billion hryvnias for water crossings over the Dnipro River, and that engineers are developing additional measures to preserve the structural integrity of the city's bridges, Ukrinform reported.

Each side presents its strikes as aimed at military capacity and the other side's strikes as attacks on civilians. Both sides' battlefield claims are hard to verify in wartime.