Budanov Calls for Strikes on Russian Defense Industry After 19 Killed

Russian strikes across three Ukrainian cities on October 29 killed 19 people, including two 15-year-old girls in Chernihiv, a 10-month-old baby was among the injured. In Dnipro, a jet-powered drone struck the platform at the railway station where a train bound for Zaporizhzhia stood nearby, killing 14 and injuring 14 others. Six of those injured, including an 11-year-old boy, were listed in serious condition.

In Kremenchuk, a drone hit an apartment building in Poltava Oblast, killing three and injuring 15, three of them children. Chernihiv's central district was struck the same day, leaving 23 injured, among them four children.

Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the President's Office, addressed the attacks on X, writing that Ukraine and its partners must respond with force. "For every victim in Ukraine, Russian defence industry facilities must burn, and Moscow's very ability to wage aggression must be destroyed," Budanov said. He added that only the military strength of Ukraine and its partners can stop the daily loss of life caused by bombs, drones, and missiles.

Budanov called on Ukraine's partners to give Russia a response to what he described as daily terror. His post framed the strikes as Russia's negotiating position, stating that the deliberate killing of civilians on streets and in residential buildings represented Russia's arguments in peace talks.