Zelensky Accuses Russia of Using North Korean Missiles

Ukraine and Russia continued striking each other overnight, with President Volodymyr Zelensky accusing Moscow of using missiles supplied by North Korea.

Zaporizhzhia hit with ballistic missiles

Ukraine said strikes on the southern city of Zaporizhzhia killed seven people and injured at least 24. The regional authorities said the attack involved ballistic missiles fired from Russia, an ally said to be receiving military support from North Korea.

Zaporizhzhia regional head Ivan Fedorov posted photos showing vehicles and buildings on fire, saying Russian forces used missiles and guided bombs. Ukrainian officials said the seven casualties were employees of the Zaporizhstal metallurgical plant, which later halted operations.

Air raid sirens sounded twice during the night in Kyiv, and explosions were heard on the outskirts, triggering fires. Local officials later said a children’s hospital was damaged, but staff and patients were sheltering and there were no injuries reported.

Western Russia raids and Wildberries fire reports

In western Russia, warehouses linked to Wildberries in Voronezh were hit by Ukrainian strikes. The company, often compared to Amazon in Russia, has been targeted repeatedly in recent weeks.

Separate reports described a fire and explosions at a logistics centre for Wildberries in the Voronezh region. Wildberries said the company had evacuated facilities in the area bordering Ukraine, but it had not yet confirmed the attack.

Ukraine said its forces targeted logistics hubs used by Russians to buy military equipment during earlier strikes on Wildberries retail warehouses in July, when operations for many small and medium-sized businesses were disrupted.

Zelensky links raids to North Korean reinforcement

In a video address on Monday evening, Zelensky said Russia “for the first time” cannot wage war “without reinforcements from North Korea”. He argued that increased North Korean strikes and involvement in Ukraine leave Russia using more missiles and soldiers, and that Kyiv’s assessment presents a threat beyond Europe.

Zelensky did not provide evidence for the claim.

Ukrainian officials and Western figures have previously accused Moscow of receiving military assistance from North Korea. Ukraine’s military said dozens of North Korean missiles have been fired into its territory since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022. Zelensky warned over the weekend that up to 50,000 North Korean soldiers were being sent to fight with Russian forces.

Some 11,000 North Korean troops were deployed to support Moscow in pushing back Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region after a cross-border incursion in August 2024. In January 2025, Western officials told the BBC that North Korean troops suffered nearly 40% casualties in that fighting within three months.

Other strikes across Ukraine

Elsewhere, Russia’s drone and missile strikes caused further damage. In the north-eastern city of Sumy, the regional head Serhii Kryvosheienko said two women were injured, and later added that one person died after an afternoon attack with gliding bombs.

In southern Kherson and eastern Kharkiv, strikes on substations were reported to have caused power outages.

Ukraine’s Armed Forces said Russia launched 120 drones overnight as well as a range of different missiles, but for the first time they did not give a number of missiles fired or intercepted.

Separately, Zelensky also hailed a Ukrainian air strike on a Russian petrochemical plant in western Siberia on Monday, calling it a “very significant achievement”. He said Ukraine would carry out “more Ukrainian deep strikes” to underline that peace is necessary.

Ukrainian officials said air defences were short, and the Air Force urged media not to publish “sensationalised headlines” or “spread pessimism” about the availability of interceptors.

The attacks in recent days followed one of the deadliest single strikes on Russia since the start of its full-scale invasion. On Sunday, Ukrainian drone strikes killed at least 13 people in the republic of Tatarstan, including a child, more than 1,100 km from the Ukrainian border. The Uzbek consulate in Tatarstan said seven of those killed were citizens of Uzbekistan, and the Ukrainian Armed Forces said it hit the city’s Tanevo oil refinery.

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12 August 2026