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Russian forces conducted a large series of missile and drone strikes against Ukraine overnight on April 14 and 15. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces launched three Iskander-M ballistic missiles from unspecified areas of Rostov Oblast and 324 Shahed-type, Italmas-type, and other drones, of which roughly 250 were Shahed-type drones, from the directions of Kursk and Oryol cities, Millerovo, Rostov Oblast; Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Krasnodar Krai; Shatalovo, Smolensk Oblast; and occupied Hvardiiske and Cape Chauda, Crimea. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Ukrainian air defenses downed 309 drones – a drone interception rate of roughly 95 percent. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that ballistic missiles and 13 drones struck nine locations and that drone debris impacted territory in the north, south, east, and center of Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russian forces struck Dnipro, Cherkasy, Kharkiv, Kryvyi Rih, and Chernihiv cities and Donetsk and Zaporizhia oblasts during the April 14 to 15 strikes. Zelensky reported that the strikes killed five people in Dnipro City, a child in Cherkasy City, and a person in Zaporizhia Oblast. Ukrainian officials reported that the strikes inflicted two injuries and caused moderate damage in Chernihiv Oblast; damaged residential infrastructure and injured 12 in Cherkasy Oblast; damaged an administrative building and residential infrastructure in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast; damaged residential and civilian infrastructure in Kharkiv Oblast; a production facility in Kyiv Oblast; port and residential infrastructure in Odesa Oblast, and infrastructure in Zaporizhia Oblast in addition to the reported deaths. ISW continues to assess that Western assistance in bolstering Ukraine’s ability to defend against Russian ballistic missiles, such as through the donation of systems like the high-end US-made Patriot air defense systems, is of vital importance in defending against Russia’s increasingly large and diverse strike packages.
Ukraine’s Western allies continue to provide military capabilities to support Ukraine. The United Kingdom (UK) reported on April 15 that it will deliver its largest-ever drone package for Ukraine in 2026, consisting of at least 120,000 drones, including thousands of long-range strike drones, intelligence and reconnaissance drones, logistics drones, and “maritime capabilities.” The UK noted that deliveries of new drones to Ukraine began in April 2026.
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