Over this past week, Russia used around 2,200 attack drones against Ukraine, more than 1,730 guided aerial bombs, and 106 missiles of various types, nearly half of them ballistic. Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Kharkiv, and Dnipro, as well as our border and frontline communities, are under fire almost every day. There was a massive strike on Kyiv that claimed the lives of 31 people and injured another 102, including four children. My condolences to their families and loved ones.
Every day, we must protect lives from these attacks. We already have the capabilities to effectively shoot down more than 90% of drones, but, unfortunately, not all ballistic missiles are intercepted. And it is ballistic missiles that Moscow is now leaning on to continue its war. And every day, we are working to strengthen air defense for Ukraine: through PURL and through our bilateral contacts with countries that have not joined PURL but do have the missiles we so urgently need. We are also strengthening our air defense through joint work with Europeans on anti-ballistic capabilities. We need answers from our partners to our requests for air defense. Every package of interceptor missiles provides real protection for lives. I thank all leaders who are finding ways to help in this particular area.