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Ukrainian drones strike Moscow hours before leaders arrive for WW2 parade Russia: 60,000 air passengers stranded over massive Ukrainian drone attack
(about 9 hours later)
Footage of large crowds at Moscow's airports was shared on Russian social media
At least 60,000 passengers have been stranded at airports across Russia because of a massive Ukrainian drone attack, local officials say.
Russia's Association of tour operators (Ator) says 350 flights have been affected since Tuesday evening in Moscow, St Petersburg, Sochi and several other cities.
The Russian defence ministry says 524 Ukrainian drones were destroyed in the past 24 hours - a record number if confirmed. No casualties were reported.
Ukraine says an overnight Russian drone and missile attack killed two people in Kyiv.
The barrage of strikes came as a self-declared Russian three-day ceasefire was set to begin on Wednesday night, ahead of a World War Two victory parade in Moscow on 9 May.
Kyiv has repeatedly rejected the truce idea as "theatrical play", reiterating its call for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, which is also supported by Ukraine's allies in Europe and the US.
Russia has issued a set of tough pre-conditions for any possible settlement - a move described by Ukraine and many European politicians as an attempt to prolong the fighting and eventually force Kyiv to capitulate.
On Wednesday, US Vice-President JD Vance said "we think they [Russians] are asking for too much", in an apparent hardening of his stance towards Moscow.
"It's very important for the Russians and the Ukrainians to start talking to one another," Vance added.
He also took a far less strident tone towards Europe than he has in recent months, saying "I do still very much think the US and Europe are on the same team".
Three airports serving Moscow - Vnukovo, Sheremetyevo and Domodedovo - suffered disruption, according to Russia's tour operators association, which added that 110 flights had been cancelled in the capital.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 19 drones had been shot down near the city since Tuesday evening.
In St Petersburg, Russia's second largest city, 55 flights were either cancelled or delayed.
At the city's Pulkovo airport, footage emerged of a queue of planes stuck on the runway on arrival. Passengers reportedly waited for hours to leave.
Airports at several other cities including Sochi, Kazan, Kirov and Nizhnekamsk also reported flight disruption.
Russia's air traffic problems came as Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Moscow for Friday's military parade in Red Square commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany.
A plane carrying Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to Moscow had to make a brief emergency stop in Baku in Azerbaijan, because of drone attacks across Russia, according to local reports.
Vucic later resumed his flight, eventually landing in Moscow. Two Baltic republics, Lithuania and Latvia, had reportedly refused to allow him permission to cross their airspace.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, thought to be the only European Union leader planning to attend, complained that Estonia's government had refused to allow him to fly over its airspace, which he said was extremely disruptive to his schedule.
Russian troops take part in a rehearsal of a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in World War IIRussian troops take part in a rehearsal of a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in World War II
Russia and Ukraine exchanged a barrage of strikes overnight on Tuesday, less than a day before Russia's proposed ceasefire is set to begin. The government in Tallinn said it had no intention of supporting the Moscow parade and had stressed to EU colleagues that taking part in Russian "propaganda events should be ruled out".
Most of Moscow's airports were forced to close in response to the strikes, just as Chinese President Xi Jinping and other world leaders are due to arrive in the Russian capital for a World War Two victory parade. Russia says 27 world leaders are travelling to Moscow. Brazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have already arrived.
Vladimir Putin has called for a three-day ceasefire to coincide with the event, beginning on 8 May. Kyiv rejected the idea as "theatrical play", reiterating its call for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. A three-day ceasefire proposed by Putin last month was due to start at midnight Moscow time on Wednesday (21:00 GMT), to coincide with World War Two victory commemorations across Russia.
At least two people were killed in Kyiv on Tuesday night, officials said, as Volodymyr Zelensky called for "significantly intensified pressure on Russia". Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, including the southern Crimea peninsula illegally annexed in 2014.
Falling debris from destroyed drones sparked fires in apartments and buildings across three of Kyiv's districts on Tuesday night, killing a woman and her son in the Shevchenkivskyi district and injuring a further seven. US Vice-President JD Vance told an audience in Washington on Wednesday that he was not yet pessimistic that the Russians did not want an end to the war.
Zelensky said Russia had launched four ballistic missiles and 142 drones at Ukraine overnight. Emergency services have been deployed across the country, including in the Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Zhytomyr, Kherson and Dnipro regions. "We would like both the Russians and the Ukrainians to actually agree on some basic guidelines for sitting down and talking to one another," he said.
The Ukrainian President called for "stronger sanctions" against Russia in a statement on X, saying it "must be held accountable for its actions". President Donald Trump's administration has been accused of trying to push Ukraine into making painful concessions in a bid to reach a ceasefire, while exerting far less pressure on Moscow.
Moscow's Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that Russian air defence units had destroyed at least 14 Ukrainian drones. No damage has been reported. Two people were killed and several injured in Kyiv in the overnight Russian drone attack, Ukrainian officials say
It is the third consecutive night that Ukrainian drone strikes have targeted Moscow, and the second night in a row that the city's key airports have been forced to close for several hours. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a "significant increase in pressure on Russia", after an attack on Kyiv killed a woman and her son.
At least 350 flights have been delayed or cancelled in Russia, AFP news agency reported. Emergency services were deployed across Ukraine, including in the Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Zhytomyr, Kherson and Dnipro regions.
It comes hours before a ceasefire proposed by Putin last month is scheduled to begin, at 00:00 local time on 8 May (22:00 BST on 7 May). It is planned to coincide with a massive military parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of World War Two. Earlier this month, Zelensky warned that Ukraine could not guarantee the safety of anyone travelling to Moscow for the parade.
A host of world leaders are set to attend the event in Moscow's Red Square, including Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Vietnam's President To Lam and Venezuela's president Nicholas Maduro. "We cannot be held responsible for what happens on the territory of the Russian Federation," he said.
Russia announced that Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic is among the 29 leaders due to attend. Brussels has issued a warning to Vucic that attendance would damage Serbia's EU membership negotiations. He indicated the Kremlin might organise provocations during the Victory Day commemorations in Russia to discredit Ukraine.
29 world leaders are due to attend the parade in Moscow's Red Square on Friday
Earlier this month, Zelesnky warned that Ukraine could not guarantee the safety of anyone travelling to Moscow for the parade. "We cannot be held responsible for what happens on the territory of the Russian Federation," Ukrainian news agency Interfax reported him as saying.
He called Putin's ceasefire proposal a "manipulation" and a "game" designed to protect the ceremony.
Ukraine's foreign ministry has warned against the participation of any foreign troops, calling it "unacceptable" and helping Moscow to "whitewash its war crimes".Ukraine's foreign ministry has warned against the participation of any foreign troops, calling it "unacceptable" and helping Moscow to "whitewash its war crimes".
China has sent 102 soldiers - the largest foreign military contingent among the 13 participating nations - to take part. On the eve of President Xi's arrival in Moscow, the Chinese leader hailed the "resilient" relationship between China and Russia.
Xi Jinping will be the guest of honour at the celebrations. The Chinese President hailed the "resilient" relationship between Russia and China in an article for Russia's Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper on Wednesday, on the eve of his expected visit. China has sent 102 soldiers - the largest foreign military contingent among the 13 participating nations - to take part in Friday's annual 9 May parade.
"The two sides should jointly resist any attempt to interfere with and undermine the China-Russia friendship and mutual trust," he wrote. Victory Day celebrates Nazi Germany's 1945 surrender to the Soviet Union during World War Two, remembered as "The Great Patriotic War" in Russia.
The two nations are expected to sign numerous agreements to strengthen their "no limits" partnership during Jinping's four-day visit. China and Russia have grown closer since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, signified by deepening military and trade ties. It is Russia's most important public holiday, and Putin has repeatedly sought to draw parallels with the full-scale war he launched against democratic Ukraine.
On Tuesday, the Kremlin praised China-Russia relations as a "genuine example" of cooperation, adding that they were "at their highest point". His narrative has been rejected by Kyiv and Europe. "These people are not liberators of Europe, they are occupiers and war criminals," Ukraine's foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
The 9 May Victory Parade celebrates Nazi Germany's 1945 surrender to the Soviet Union during World War Two, remembered as "The Great Patriotic War" in Russia. Europe and Ukraine mark Victory in Europe Day on Thursday.
It is Russia's most important public holiday, and Putin has repeatedly invoked the victory to unite Russian society in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine, drawing parallels between its offensive and the fight against the Nazis.
Kyiv and Europe have rejected Putin's narrative and the glorification of Russia's role in defeating Nazi Germany.
"These people are not liberators of Europe, they are occupiers and war criminals," Ukraine's foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
Yuriy Savchuk, director of Ukraine's War Museum, told AFP that World War I and II and "today's war" are all "conflicts we fought for the right to national existence, for the right of Ukrainians to establish themselves as a people".
Europe and Ukraine will mark VE Day on 8 May.
A previous 30-hour ceasefire over Easter repeatedly broke down, with both Russia and Ukraine accusing each other of multiple breaches.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, and currently controls about 20% of Ukraine's territory, including the southern Crimea peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014.