Russian air defences shot down four Ukrainian drones en route to Moscow yesterday, the city’s mayor said.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said emergency services were working at the scene of the intercepted drones, downed over a period of about three hours.
Moscow’s two largest airports, Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo, stopped all air traffic for a time, before later reopening, Russia’s aviation watchdog said.
Spain, meanwhile, pledged 817 million euros ($946m) in military and other aid for Ukraine during President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s visit as he aims to bolster Kyiv’s air defences against Russia’s invasion.
The bulk of the aid, in which defence equipment will amount to 300m euros, is part of a 10-year bilateral security and defence agreement signed in May 2024 that envisages an annual one billion euros.
As part of the package, Spain will purchase US military equipment worth 100m euros under Nato’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told a joint news conference.
It also includes 200m euros in credit for companies investing in the reconstruction of Ukraine, with a particular focus on energy, transport and water management.
“First, for the Ukrainian army to protect the territorial integrity of Ukraine from the invader, secondly to protect the civilian population, and finally to give an impulse to reconstruction,” Sanchez said about the package.
He also reiterated Spain’s support for using frozen Russian assets in Europe for reconstruction.
Zelenskiy earlier visited the headquarters of radar and anti-drone specialist Indra, part-owned by the Spanish state, along with other defence firms and Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles.
The Ukrainian leader’s European trip comes amid a surge of Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks.
While underlining the importance of advanced radars, drone technologies and air defence systems and ammunition he has sought from Spain and Europe, Zelenskiy said that Ukraine will try to ‘reactivate’ the diplomatic process to end his country’s war with Russia.
“It’s important, as this is going on, to feel constant support behind one’s back,” Zelenskiy said.
His visit to Spain follows a trip to Greece and France, where he signed an agreement to buy up to 100 French-made Rafale warplanes over the next 10 years.
He will travel to Türkiye tomorrow where he is expected to coincide with US special envoy Steve Witkoff for talks about reviving hopes of a potential peace deal with Russia.
Spain has come under fire from Nato allies for rejecting calls by US President Donald Trump for European members to increase their defence spending to five per cent of their gross domestic product, though it has been vocal in its support for Ukraine and is participating in new Nato eastern flank defence missions.
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