Russia, Ukraine trade drone strikes as Zelenskyy urges air defense aid

Russian strikes left hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians without power on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, ‌while Russian authorities reported major damage to an industrial site following Ukrainian drone attacks on the Nizhny Novgorod region.

Zelenskyy said Russia had hit power infrastructure in four Ukrainian regions ​overnight, cutting electricity to hundreds of thousands of households.

"The intensity of the strikes is very ⁠high, and the Russians are seeking to maximally exploit the deficit of ballistic missile interceptors," he said on Telegram, urging the United States and European countries to speed up deliveries of air defense systems to Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy ​said Ukraine had hit the Kamensky plant in Russia's Rostov region, which he said was involved in manufacturing Russian missiles.

Moscow did not comment on the reported attack in Rostov. 

In the Nizhny Novgorod region, Governor Gleb Nikitin said a large-scale overnight Ukrainian drone attack caused "significant damage" to an industrial facility. He did not identify the site that was hit. The region is home to ​the NORSI oil refinery, one of Russia's largest.

Kyiv did not immediately claim responsibility for the Nizhny Novgorod attack.

Overall, Russia's Defense Ministry said its forces had downed 235 Ukrainian drones ​over Russian regions overnight. Ukraine's air force said it had shot down 371 of 433 long-range drones launched by Russia since Saturday ‌evening.

On Friday, Russia said ​Ukraine had resumed strikes on its oil refineries and accused Kyiv of ignoring a request ​from US President ⁠Donald Trump to stop such attacks.

Ukraine says it supports a full ceasefire on energy targets, including its own battered power grid, but that Moscow is unwilling ⁠to ​agree to this.

(With input from Reuters)