Russia launched nearly 50 missiles and 297 drones across Ukraine in a sweeping assault just two days before the fourth anniversary of its full-scale invasion.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a significant proportion of the projectiles were intercepted but confirmed strikes on residential and critical infrastructure, including a private home in Kyiv’s Sofiivska Borshchahivka suburb.

Targets extended beyond energy facilities to logistics hubs, railways, and municipal water systems, reinforcing Zelenskyy’s assertion that Moscow continues to favor military escalation over diplomacy.

He renewed urgent appeals for enhanced Western air defense support.

The bombardment compounded severe hardship for civilians already grappling with widespread power outages after sustained attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid.

More than half a million residents in Kyiv have been affected, while cities such as Odesa and Kharkiv endure repeated strikes amid sub-zero winter temperatures.

The latest wave left at least one person dead and a dozen injured, including four children.

Separately, in Lviv, a late-night explosion on a central shopping street killed a 23-year-old police officer and injured 25 others.

Local authorities, including Mayor Andriy Sadovyi, described the blast as an apparent act of terrorism, with Ukraine’s interior ministry suspecting Russian involvement.

The escalation comes despite recent US-brokered talks in Geneva, underscoring the limited diplomatic progress.

Moscow continues to demand that Kyiv cede territory in the Donbas region, a condition Ukraine rejects outright.

The strikes also coincided with heightened tensions between Ukraine and neighboring Slovakia and Hungary over energy transit.

Both governments are pressing for the resumption of Russian oil flows through the Druzhba pipeline, which Kyiv says was damaged by a Russian drone attack earlier this year.

Hungary has threatened to block a new European Union sanctions package unless oil deliveries resume, while Slovakia warned it could halt emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine.

EU foreign ministers are preparing to meet in Brussels to consider a 20th round of sanctions against Moscow.

Four years into the war, Russia controls roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory but has not achieved its initial objective of toppling Zelenskyy’s government.

Zelenskyy maintains Ukraine is “definitely not losing,” citing recent territorial gains in Zaporizhzhia, as international voices—including Pope Leo XIV—renew calls for an immediate ceasefire and a path toward negotiations.