Ukrainian drones struck energy and military targets in Saint Petersburg on Wednesday morning, as an important economic forum began in this Russian city.
About 20,000 guests from 130 countries are expected to participate in the annual three-day Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, which starts on Wednesday and was once called the “Russian Davos”.
“This clearly also shows panic on the Russian side – they are intensifying terrorist attacks in Ukraine because they do not know what to do with these matters,” K. Kallas said in an interview with AFP.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called these strikes a justified response to Russian bombings in Ukraine and threatened to carry out even more strikes.
“Ukraine has indeed intensified deep strikes on oil facilities, because it is oil that finances the war in Ukraine,” K. Kallas said.
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“At the same time, we see that (Vladimir) Putin is losing money, soldiers, and momentum, so he is intensifying attacks against civilians,” said the EU foreign policy chief.
The Russian leader has launched a series of brutal drone and missile strikes against Ukraine in recent days, killing at least 23 people on Tuesday alone.
“He is clearly terrorizing more actively to cause fear, and because on the battlefield he is in an unfavorable position,” K. Kallas said.
“But I think they have so far failed to break Ukrainian resistance, and I doubt they will succeed with these strikes,” she added.
