Since last night, emergency services and repair crews have been working to address the aftermath of the Russian strike. It was a difficult attack – nearly 190 attack drones, as well as ballistic missiles. And the main target was energy infrastructure in the capital and the Kyiv region. Residential buildings were also damaged. Work is ongoing to restore electricity and water supplies everywhere they are currently unavailable. In the morning, a drone struck a grocery supermarket in Ivankovychi. First responders are extinguishing the fire. Kyiv is also under drone attack. A warehouse building was hit, and one person was killed. There were strikes on critical infrastructure in the Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv, Kirovohrad, and Rivne regions. There was also damage in the Odesa, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Cherkasy regions. As of now, fourteen people have been injured across the country as a result of all these strikes. Tragically, five people have been killed, including a child. My condolences to their families and loved ones. Our defenders managed to shoot down some of the ballistic missiles. But unfortunately, there were also hits. In recent days, there have been new air defense support packages – I thank our partners for the missiles, and everyone who honors our agreements and strengthens the protection of our skies. This is exactly how we must continue to work. Every interceptor missile truly saves lives. And the closer we get to winter, the more of this protection we need. We must do everything to ensure that Russia’s bet on ballistic missile and drone terror does not pay off. Thank you to everyone who stands with Ukraine.

Today, on the eve of Pokrova – the Day of Defenders of Ukraine – it is an honor for me to be here, to present you with state awards and, of course, to thank all of you for defending our country and protecting it, for holding the front firmly, and for carrying out our active operations. In the fifth year of the full-scale war, Russia looks very different on the front from what it wanted to look – and this is solely thanks to you, thanks to the determination of our troops, the training of our warriors, and the well-planned operations of our army – of Ukraine’s Defense and Security Forces. We are doing everything to defend our state. We strike back at the aggressor. We are developing new weapons and fighting for new support from our partners. But all of this holds because the front is strong, because it has not been broken, because our corps and brigades are active and strong, and because our people are fighting for Ukraine. I want to thank you for your courage, for your skill. Thank you for Ukraine. And, of course, we always honor the fallen heroes of our state, whose courage and bravery gave us the chance to live and preserved our state.