Volodymyr Zelenskiy to EL PAÍS, on the new Russian offensive against Kyiv: ‘Putin isn’t afraid of Europeans’

What does Russia’s “new offensive against Kyiv” involve, and how is it being carried out?

Russia’s renewed offensive against Kyiv means a sustained aerial campaign against the capital. Zelenskiy says Moscow wants to force residents to leave and weaken Ukraine’s ability to function. The goal is broader than capturing territory immediately. It is to create fear, disruption, and chaos.

The attacks come day and night. A drone hit a school, damaging its facade, while another struck a bridge over the Dnipro as a subway train crossed. Air-raid sirens and cellphone warnings sound repeatedly. Russian strikes also target logistics, food, hospital supplies, agriculture, and educational institutions, according to Zelenskiy.

Kyiv remains operating, but daily life is under pressure. Students are moved into bunkers, and people may avoid work, school, or daycare. Zelenskiy says Russia is escalating partly to project strength internationally, especially toward the United States. The article presents the offensive as an attempt to undermine civilian resilience rather than a conventional battlefield assault.

Which places in Kyiv have been attacked, and why does Zelenskiy say they are not conventional military targets?

The attacks described in the article reach deep into Kyiv’s civilian life. A school was struck by a drone, and another drone hit a bridge over the Dnipro River while a subway train crossed. Zelenskiy also identifies logistics, food supplies, hospitals, agriculture, and educational institutions as targets or vulnerable systems.

He says these places are not conventional military targets because they do not directly represent front-line combat forces. The school held classes, and the bridge carried public transport. The attack damaged the school’s facade and caused a fire and shock wave, while students were moved to a bunker. No casualties were reported there.

Zelenskiy argues that the pattern is deliberate: Russia seeks to stop people from reaching school or work and to restrict essential supplies. That approach can weaken a city without occupying it. It turns ordinary infrastructure into pressure points and makes civilian life itself part of the conflict’s impact.

How frequently are Kyiv being hit by air attacks, and how effective are ballistic missiles once they are launched?

The article describes Kyiv’s air attacks as nearly continuous. Moscow has increased strikes in recent weeks, bombing the city “day and night.” Cellphone alerts and air-raid sirens sound incessantly, and residents hear explosions from local air defenses. However, the article does not identify how many attacks used ballistic missiles or provide a success rate for intercepting them.

In general, a ballistic missile is launched at high speed and follows a high, arcing path before descending rapidly toward its target. That leaves defenders little time to detect, identify, track, and engage it. Modern air-defense systems can sometimes intercept such missiles, but success depends on the system, distance, missile type, and attack conditions.

The reported strikes show that defenses do not prevent every impact. A drone hit the school, and another hit a bridge. The immediate reality is continuing danger and disruption. The article supports no precise conclusion about ballistic-missile effectiveness, so any numerical claim would go beyond its evidence.

What happens to a city when attacks disrupt schools, workplaces, transport, food supplies, and hospitals?

Attacks on everyday systems can make a city function poorly and leave residents unable to live normally. The damage is not limited to buildings. It affects education, employment, transport, food distribution, medical care, and people’s sense of safety. Zelenskiy says the broader aim is to destroy people’s ability to live.

The article offers a clear example. A drone hit a school, forcing students into a bunker, while another drone struck a bridge as a subway train crossed. Zelenskiy says attacks can prevent people from reaching work or school because children cannot attend classes or daycare. He also names food and hospital supplies as logistical targets.

The immediate result is disruption and demoralization. Over time, pressure on services may encourage residents to leave, which Zelenskiy says is one of Russia’s objectives. Yet the school’s classes had begun, and no casualties were reported there, showing that Kyiv continues operating despite the danger.

Why might Russia intensify its attacks around the U.S. elections, and what does the Kremlin hope to communicate by doing so?

Zelenskiy links possible intensification to the approaching U.S. midterm elections. He predicts Putin will escalate more as the vote nears. The reason, in his view, is political signaling. Russia wants the conflict, and its own strength, to remain central to American calculations while support for Ukraine is being judged.

The president says the Kremlin directs its messages primarily at the United States. He warns that massive attacks could affect civilians after the election and says he gave that warning to Trump’s negotiating team. The attacks on Kyiv therefore serve two purposes: pressuring Ukrainians and communicating resolve abroad.

Zelenskiy says Russia is not afraid of Europeans and is not sufficiently affected by sanctions. By escalating, Moscow could try to show that military pressure continues despite international opposition. The article does not establish whether this strategy will succeed. It does show that Kyiv expects election periods to bring greater danger and intensified diplomatic pressure.

How are countries such as China, India, and Iran alleged to help Russia continue the war despite sanctions?

Zelenskiy argues that Russia’s war effort is supported by outside partners. He names China, India, and other countries as helping Moscow circumvent sanctions. In his account, this support reduces the economic pressure that sanctions are intended to create and helps Russia maintain access to needed resources.

He also says these countries provide military equipment. Iran, he adds, contributes military expertise with drones. The article therefore describes two mechanisms: economic channels that keep sanctioned trade moving, and technical or material assistance that strengthens Russia’s weapons capacity. These are allegations presented by Zelenskiy in the interview.

The broader implication is that sanctions may be less effective when outside governments or networks keep supplying goods, equipment, or expertise. Zelenskiy says Russia is not afraid of Europeans and is not sufficiently affected by sanctions. The article does not detail specific shipments or quantify each country’s contribution, so it supports no more precise assessment.

What are ballistic missiles and air-defense systems, and why is stopping a fast-moving missile technically difficult?

A ballistic missile is a weapon that receives most of its speed from an initial powered launch, then travels along a high, curved trajectory before descending toward its target. An air-defense system is a network of radars, sensors, command centers, and interceptor weapons designed to detect, track, and destroy incoming threats.

The technical challenge is time. Defenders must identify the object, predict its path, choose a response, launch an interceptor, and hit the missile before impact. Ballistic missiles can move extremely fast and may descend steeply. Their flight path and speed can leave only a short engagement window. Different missile types also require different defenses.

Modern systems can intercept some ballistic missiles, but protection is never absolute. The article reports air-defense explosions and continuing impacts in Kyiv, including drone strikes on a school and bridge. It does not provide technical details about those weapons or any interception rate. Thus, the general explanation comes from established military knowledge, not a statistic in the article.

Key Facts:

📌 Russia is attacking Kyiv from the air day and night.

📌 A drone struck a school and another hit a Dnipro bridge.

📌 Zelenskiy says Moscow wants residents to leave the capital.

📌 A Kyiv school was hit while classes were underway.

📌 A drone struck a Dnipro bridge as a subway crossed.

📌 Zelenskiy says the targets are civilian, not front-line military sites.

📌 Russia has increased aerial attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks.