Russian Shahed drones struck the Pivenny bridge in Kyiv, causing traffic disruptions but minimal structural damage.

On Thursday and Friday the “big” Russian move was drone strikes against the Pivenny bridge in Kyiv...

Russian forces struck the Institute for Nuclear Research building in Kyiv City, which houses the Kyiv Research Reactor. The strike caused a fire in the building but did not harm the reactor and critical safety systems.

Russian forces also attacked Kyiv with ballistic missiles the same night. Fires broke out across the city, including houses in a residential area and two people were injured.

It also emerged on October 1 that a Russian drone had attacked the Institute for Nuclear Research of Ukraine’s National Academy of Sciences in Kyiv the previous day.

Ukraine’s Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara visited command posts at Air Force military units in the Kyiv region.

Together with military personnel, Khmara discussed changes in the tactics of Russian attacks and new challenges, particularly for the capital region.

They focused on the combat process: detecting and tracking targets, making decisions, and destroying aerial threats.

The Ministry of Defense emphasized that the mission for Ukraine’s air defenders is clear: destroy Russian weapons before they reach the capital.

Together, they determined which approaches need to be changed and how to strengthen Kyiv’s layered defense.

Aviation, air defense, and mobile fire teams must all adapt their operations to the new realities.

Khmara also spoke with combat pilots and air-defense system operators about their assessment of the situation.

They discussed in detail the forces, equipment, and needs currently available to the units.

The Ministry of Defense placed particular emphasis on jet-powered attack drones such as Shahed drones.

Such targets are already being shot down, the ministry noted.

The next step is to scale up effective technological solutions and provide them to military units.

Work on this is being carried out together with the military, Ukrainian manufacturers, and international partners.

The Ministry of Defense stressed that Ukraine’s long-range strikes are steadily reducing Russia’s ability to wage war.

At the same time, Ukraine will strengthen the protection of its cities and increase pressure on the enemy’s military capabilities.

Khmara postponed visits to Germany and Norway because of the increase in Russian attacks in Ukraine, which requires all efforts to counter the enemy to be accelerated.

The latest attack comes a day after Russia launched its largest attack on Kyiv's energy infrastructure since last fall, causing power outages.

As of 8 a.m., Ukrainian air defense forces had shot down or neutralized 160 targets, including five ballistic missiles (Iskander-M/S-400/Zircon/Onyx) and 155 Russian drones of various types.

Russian occupiers delivered a massive strike on Kyiv and the region with ballistic and hypersonic missiles.

Up to 20 missiles of various types (Zircon/Kinjal/S-400/Iskander-M) were used, launched from Kursk, Voronezh, and Bryansk regions.

On September 30, another attack was launched on Kyiv.

City authorities reported three fatalities.