Estonian foreign minister urges deeper sanctions and greater pressure on Russia

The attack was one of the largest aerial assaults on the Ukrainian capital since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Tsahkna wrote on X on Sunday, July 19.

“After five years of full-scale war, the human toll is staggering,” Tsahkna wrote. “The world cannot stand by. Accountability for these crimes must be pursued with full determination.”

Russian forces have been unable to achieve their aggressive objectives on the battlefield and are therefore seeking to terrorize civilians, he said.

“Moscow resorts to terror when it realizes that strategic gains through other means are becoming unattainable,” Tsahkna wrote. “That is why we cannot stop isolating Russia, even for a moment. Pressure must increase. Sanctions must deepen.”

“Only firm and continuous strategic isolation can prevent the Kremlin from continuing this campaign of terror,” he added.

Russia attacked Ukraine overnight on July 19 with 125 drones and 41 air- and ground-launched missiles of various types. Kyiv was the primary target of the attack.

At least one person was killed and 17 others were injured in the capital.

The attack was one of the largest Russia has carried out against Kyiv in terms of the number of ballistic missiles used, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

It was the fourth large-scale attack on the Ukrainian capital involving a large number of ballistic weapons in the past 35 days, Ukrainian Air Force Communications Directorate head Yurii Ihnat said.