Today, Kyiv is mourning its dead.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a nice way around this, it’s grim news we have all become accustomed to, and we shouldn’t be.
Sixteen people were killed in one of the most intense Russian aerial attacks on the Ukrainian capital since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, while dozens more were wounded. Residential buildings were also hit, along with a school and a children’s medical facility.
But beyond the terrible human cost, the weapons Russia used should concentrate minds across Europe, and I am finding the silence surrounding this deeply uncomfortable, perhaps even more so than the attack itself, but I'll comeback to that shortly.
According to Ukraine’s Air Force, Russia launched 168 attack drones and 46 cruise or air-launched missiles, alongside an undisclosed number of ballistic and hypersonic weapons. The attack included Kalibr cruise missiles, Kinzhal and Zircon hypersonic weapons, Iskander ballistic missiles and North Korean KN-23 ballistic missiles.
Ukraine’s air defences performed extraordinarily well against the weapons they could realistically engage.
Of the 168 drones, 145 were intercepted or neutralised — around 86%.
Of the 46 cruise missiles, 41 were intercepted — around 89%.
That means 186 of the 214 drones and cruise missiles publicly accounted for were stopped, an interception rate of almost 87%.
Yet that figure hides the most worrying statistic of the night, not one of the high-speed ballistic missiles was reported intercepted.
That is where the danger now lies, particularly with cluster munitions already being used in attacks on Ukrainian cities, with authorities documenting thousands of cases of Russian cluster-munition use during the war, while cluster warheads continue to appear in attacks on civilian areas, including in Kyiv this month, where Human Rights Watch reported that Russia apparently used a cluster-munition warhead carried by a ballistic missile during the 5 August attack, describing it as a potential war crime.
Here in the clip above — allegedly showing Russian Kalibr cruise missiles launched from the Novorossiysk area towards Ukraine — is part of an arsenal the Kremlin has consistently demonstrated no hesitation in using against densely populated areas.
Unfortunately the grim irony here is a weapon being launched from a densely populated area, towards densely populated Ukrainian cities.
So when weapons with wide-area effects are used against urban areas, blast and fragmentation dramatically increase the danger to everyone nearby, including children, families and ordinary civilians simply trying to survive, caught up in the carnage, while if Russia is indeed positioning or launching these weapons from built-up areas, there is another obvious danger: any Ukrainian response against those military targets risks exposing Russian civilians to the very same consequences.
This is not a recent development, Russia has used incendiary weapons and cluster munitions in and around populated areas throughout this war, including during the siege of Mariupol, I witnessed it myself, in addition, civilian and commercial infrastructure have repeatedly been struck and the now well documented “Kherson Safari” continues.
The United Nations has warned that Russia’s increasing use of ballistic missiles and other long-range weapons against populated areas is driving civilian casualties sharply upwards, towards levels not seen since 2022.
It is an important warning, but without meaningful action to back it up, it is about as useful as a chocolate fireguard.
Ukraine does not need another institution documenting the escalation while the missiles continue to fall, after 4 years, it needs the means to stop them, but that is the whole point. Shrapnel, destruction and mass casualties are not simply unfortunate by-products when these weapons are fired into cities, they are entirely foreseeable consequences, and for years, what’s really been done?
Aidan Stretch@aidan_stretch
The aftermath in Kyiv following Russia’s overnight attack that involved 168 drones and more than 40 missiles according to Ukraine’s Air Force.
11:09 AM · Aug 20, 2026 · 18K Views
11 Replies · 93 Reposts · 324 Likes
Russia increasingly appears intent on making normal civilian life as difficult as possible, it’s part of their strategy, hitting homes, energy infrastructure, warehouses, businesses, hospitals, transport networks and the systems that allow cities to function. As winter approaches, that becomes even more dangerous, because Russia isn’t only attacking Ukraine’s military capacity; it is attacking the country’s ability to function, and in early August too.
That tells me they’re getting their ducks in a row
The objective increasingly looks like something broader, to make Ukrainian cities, and ultimately Ukraine itself, increasingly difficult to live in before something bigger comes along.
Because ballistic missiles carrying cluster warheads combined with Ukraine’s shortage of the Patriot interceptors capable of stopping those missiles, the potential for mass casualties becomes considerably greater. Ukraine can intercept the overwhelming majority of drones and cruise missiles in some attacks, but it only takes a handful of ballistic weapons penetrating those defences to turn a successful night for Ukrainian air defence into a day of mourning.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy summed it up clearly this week, “without sufficient anti-ballistic defence, Moscow has little incentive to take peace seriously”
He is absolutely right. Vladimir Putin has shown little indication that he intends to pursue a meaningful peace, particularly while Russia retains the ability to strike Ukrainian cities with ballistic weapons Ukraine cannot consistently intercept.
Acyn@Acyn
Reporter: Who say that you are prioritizing the interests of adversaries in North Korea over our longtime partners. Trump: Kim Jong-un has always treated me with great respect… I’m making things safer.
6:07 PM · Aug 17, 2026 · 452K Views
190 Replies · 137 Reposts · 538 Likes
That becomes even more concerning as Donald Trump appears increasingly willing to accommodate Kim Jong Un and Pyongyang, at precisely the moment North Korea is accelerating its missile development and deepening its involvement in Russia’s war. Whatever Washington believes engagement with Kim might achieve, the uncomfortable reality is that North Korean weapons are now being used to attack a European country, while Pyongyang gains invaluable battlefield data and experience from their use.
North Korea, whether the Trump administration accepts it or not, is now taking an active role in Putin’s war against Ukraine. North Korean troops, ballistic missiles and now missile units are directly supporting Russia’s war machine.
And while that escalates, the Trump administration is making concessions to Pyongyang and weakening support while Ukraine, South Korea and Europe have all been firmly kicked in the nuts.
The KN-23 has also moved from being an exotic addition to Russia’s arsenal to becoming part of its strike capability against European cities. Analysis of North Korea’s KN-23 programme shows that the missile has been used operationally in Ukraine, providing Pyongyang with something extraordinarily valuable, real-world combat experience for its ballistic missile programme.
Ukrainian intelligence is now also tracking North Korean KN-23, KN-24 and heavier KN-30 systems connected to Russia, potentially threatening multiple Ukrainian regions.
So without doubt, the character of this war has inherently changed, and yet, as I alluded to earlier, there has been a remarkable lack of political urgency surrounding what North Korea’s involvement now actually represents.
Jürgen Nauditt 🇩🇪🇺🇦@jurgen_nauditt
North Korean missile launchers are located just 900 km from the nearest NATO country. Russia is preparing launch systems for North Korean missiles in the Voronezh region; seven Ukrainian regions are at risk – ISW. The missiles involved are the KN-23, KN-24, and the modernized
8:28 AM · Aug 21, 2026 · 6.58K Views
32 Replies · 166 Reposts · 358 Likes
I said I’ll be back here later, so here we are, and to be clear, Europe has condemned Pyongyang’s involvement, the European Union has also previously condemned North Korean ballistic-missile transfers to Russia “in the strongest possible terms”, while the EU and South Korea have condemned North Korea’s military support, troop deployments and what they describe as illegal military cooperation with Moscow. But condemnation is not the same as recognising the scale of what is now happening.
Among friends, we often joke about Europe’s seemingly endless supply of “strongly worded condemnations” whenever Russia escalates, but, my God, if we are still not at the “strongly worded condemnation” phase while North Korean ballistic missiles are being fired at Kyiv and killing civilians, then it has gone well beyond a joke.
Think about how extraordinary that is, while now, at precisely the moment Pyongyang is deepening its involvement in Russia’s war against Ukraine, Donald Trump is offering concessions without receiving anything tangible in return. He has ordered a substantial reduction in US participation in joint military exercises with South Korea, repeatedly praised his personal relationship with Kim Jong Un, and is openly seeking another meeting with him.
What has Kim offered in return?
Well, I’ll tell you: nothing. Absolutely diddly……….
North Korea continues to develop its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, has strengthened its strategic relationship with Vladimir Putin, and its ballistic missiles are being supplied to Russia for attacks against Ukraine. Ukrainian intelligence says a North Korean missile unit has deployed to Russia, while Pyongyang’s KN-23 and KN-24 systems are increasingly important to Russia precisely because Ukraine lacks sufficient Patriot interceptors to reliably stop ballistic attacks.
Even after Washington is potentially scaling back exercises, North Korea responded with another ballistic-missile barrage, while demanding much bigger changes from the United States.
So Washington made concessions, Pyongyang clearly pockets it, and the missiles keep flying. North Korea responded to the scaled-back exercises with a barrage of around 10 short-range ballistic missiles, while signalling that it expects considerably more from Washington before serious talks resume.
“The Art of the Deal”, Seriously?
Phillips P. OBrien@PhillipsPOBrien
Man, that amazing "pivot" that Trump made towards Ukraine in July was about as real as his easy victory over Iran.
kyivpost.com
Trump Rejects Push to Give Ukraine Starlink for Long-Range Strikes on Russia – FT
7:24 PM · Aug 21, 2026 · 27K Views
10 Replies · 152 Reposts · 628 Likes
Meanwhile, North Korea is gaining something potentially far more valuable: real-world battlefield experience against Western air-defence systems in the largest European war since 1945.
Perhaps there is a grand strategy here that has yet to reveal itself, but let’s be honest, it’s not looking good, and if Iran is anything to go by, we could be watching one of the biggest geopolitical clusterfucks since the Cuban Missile Crisis, except this time, the road towards a wider war is being paved with concessions, escalation and an extraordinary lack of consequences.
But looking at it from Ukraine, where North Korean ballistic missiles are now part of the threat facing our cities, the question becomes increasingly difficult to avoid:
Suspicious yet?
This should have triggered political alarm bells across Europe. Instead, the response increasingly feels like another statement, another condemnation and another escalation gradually absorbed into the background noise of a war the continent has become dangerously accustomed to.
This should be regarded as a major international escalation, not simply another development to disappear into the daily statistics of the war, because North Korea is no longer merely supplying Russia’s invasion from afar. It is becoming an increasingly active participant in it.
Meanwhile, winter is approaching.
The political argument surrounding Mykhailo Fedorov has effectively reached its conclusion, I hope, although perhaps that’s wishful thinking. Parliament has confirmed Yevhenii Khmara as Defence Minister, and whatever legitimate questions remain surrounding Fedorov’s dismissal, Ukraine simply cannot afford to spend the coming months permanently looking inward while the threat outside its borders continues to grow.
The problems ahead are simply too serious, and frankly I am tired of it.
Russia continues producing more than 200 missiles every month, according to Ukrainian intelligence estimates, while maintaining significant stockpiles of Iskanders, Kalibrs, Kh-101s, Kinzhals and other weapons.
Then there is manpower.
Russia’s UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya insisted this week that another mass mobilisation is neither planned nor expected “as far as I know” — before adding the rather important qualification: “But let’s see what happens.”
Forgive Ukrainians for treating Russian assurances with some scepticism, this is, after all, a state that once explicitly recognised the country it is now attempting to destroy.
In 1994, Russia signed the Budapest Memorandum, reaffirming its commitment to respect Ukraine’s “independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine.”
The 1997 Russia-Ukraine Friendship Treaty went further, committing both countries to respect each other’s territorial integrity and the inviolability of their existing borders.
Even Vladimir Putin himself once spoke very differently.
In 2002, discussing Ukraine’s relationship with NATO, Putin said:
“Ukraine is an independent, sovereign state and will choose its own path to peace and security.”
As late as 2013, Putin acknowledged:
“Ukraine, without a doubt, is an independent state.” He went on to say that choosing its priorities and allies was the sovereign right of the Ukrainian people and their legitimate government.
Then came Crimea in 2014, then Donbas, and then, the full-scale invasion in 2022.
By 2021, Putin was writing that Russians and Ukrainians were “one people – a single whole,” while arguing that Ukraine’s sovereignty was only genuinely possible in partnership with Russia.
Then came 2022, and suddenly we were all supposedly “Nazis” who needed to be “denazified.” The invasion became about “protecting Russian speakers,” and somewhere along the way the Kremlin managed to slot alleged American “bio labs” into the justification too.
The story kept changing because the justification was never the point.
By then, the writing was already on the wall.
So Ukraine has heard these assurances before, and today Kyiv mourns sixteen people killed while sleeping, sheltering and simply trying to live their lives, probaly in there are some Russian speakers too, the irony.
As for tomorrow, the larger problem remains.
Winter is coming, Russia is stockpiling and manufacturing missiles while Ukraine’s ballistic interception gap is painfully visible, and North Korea is becoming an increasingly active participant in Putin’s war.
The political argument over who should run Ukraine’s Defence Ministry has been decided.
Now attention needs to return to the enemy actually attacking Ukraine, because Russia is preparing for what comes next, and Ukraine and its allies must do the same.
There will be a time for elections, political campaigns and arguments over who should lead Ukraine next.
That time is not while ballistic missiles are falling on Kyiv and North Korea fills in Russian gaps.
Right now, the priority is considerably more immediate, surviving what Putin is preparing for Ukraine this winter, and making sure Ukraine has the weapons and the personel to stop him.
I just wanted to say a genuine thank you.
Last month, Voices from the Front passed 3,000 subscribers, became a Substack Bestseller, and has regularly ranked in the Top 50 for World Politics/News. Across all platforms, this community has now grown to more than 250,000 people.
My aim remains exactly the same: honest, independent reporting from Ukraine, grounded in firsthand experience rather than headlines and soundbites. I also remain committed to keeping the vast majority of my work free to read. Those who choose to subscribe make that possible for everyone.
There has also been an important development in something deeply personal to me. We have now submitted the papers in my case against the Russian Federation to the European Court of Human Rights, seeking accountability for my captivity, torture and treatment as a prisoner of war. Very shortly, papers will also be submitted to the UK courts.
Many of you have followed this journey since Mariupol, through Russian captivity, the death sentence, my return to Ukraine and now this new chapter of reporting and writing. Your support has allowed me to keep telling Ukraine’s story from the ground — and to continue pursuing accountability for what Russia did.
Thank you for reading, sharing, subscribing and supporting my work.
There is much more to come. We’re only just getting started.
Shaun
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