Russia Launches 140 Drones at Ukraine With Majority Aimed at Kyiv
Overview of the 27 August Drone Assault
The Russian military launched around 140 attack drones on Ukraine during the day on 27 August, with more than 100 of them jet-powered. The enemy directed the majority of the drones towards the Ukrainian capital. As of 19:00, more than 10 jet-powered attack drones remained in the airspace. Early data indicates that air defence systems shot down or jammed around 120 of the 140 attack drones during the day. On the night of 26-27 August, Russia attacked Ukraine with ballistic missiles, two anti-ship missiles and 258 attack drones, with air defence systems neutralising 233 air assets. Since the start of the day on 27 August, the air-raid warning in Kyiv has been issued 11 times. Russian forces are also actively attacking Ukrainian warehouses containing products and other businesses. Russia destroyed a Roshen warehouse in the Boryspil district, damaged a distribution centre of the Comfy electronics store chain in Kyiv Oblast, and also destroyed a toy distribution centre. [3]
Impacts and Damage in Kyiv
The air-raid warning in Kyiv has been issued 11 times since the start of the day on 27 August, with air defence engaging Russian drones and damage to a residential building and student accommodation recorded in the evening. According to local authorities, emergency services are extinguishing a roof fire at a four-storey residential building in the Podilskyi district. Falling debris has been recorded on the roof of a student accommodation in the Desnianskyi district. Four people were injured in the Holosiivskyi district, and fires also broke out in the capital. Russian forces are also actively attacking Ukrainian warehouses containing products and other businesses. Russia destroyed a Roshen warehouse in the Boryspil district, damaged the distribution centre of the Comfy electronics store chain in Kyiv Oblast, and also destroyed a toy distribution centre. [3][4]
Ukrainian authorities urge residents to evacuate Kherson amid Russian drone attacks on Kyiv. — Source: vg
Strikes on Infrastructure Across Multiple Cities
Russian forces conducted strikes on oil processing facilities, metallurgical industry sites, and logistical centers in Kyiv, Boryspil, Zaporizhzhia, Kremenchuk, Kryvyi Rih, and Illichivsk, as well as port infrastructure in Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Reni used for military equipment and fuel. Russian armed forces carried out attacks on Ukrainian oil processing plants, metallurgical industry facilities and logistical centres in Kyiv and five other cities, using precision weapons from land, air and sea as well as strike drones. Russian forces also attacked infrastructure facilities in the ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk and Reni, which are used for the delivery and storage of military equipment and fuel and lubricants intended for the Ukrainian armed forces. Energy facilities that ensure the operation of ports in the Odesa region were also hit. Ukrainian forces reported striking the Lukoil Norsi refinery in Nizhny Novgorod, causing a fire. Moscow claims to have hit a ship carrying military cargo, fuel tanks, and port facilities in Izmail. [1][5]
Situation in Kherson Region
In the Kherson region, Russian strikes severely damaged the city's heating plant with guided aerial bombs, prompting the governor to urge residents, especially families with children and the elderly, to evacuate due to anticipated long-term power and heating outages ahead of winter. The governor of the Kherson region stated that the heating plant suffered very serious damage after Russian forces attacked it with aerial bombs several times in a row on the night leading into 27 August. The governor wrote that residents can no longer count on the heating plant or other critical infrastructure facilities functioning normally in winter. The governor urged residents of the southern Ukrainian city, especially families with children and the elderly, to leave if they have the opportunity. The authorities promise assistance with evacuation, transport, accommodation and social support for those who choose to leave the city. The governor warned that Kherson could be left without electricity and heating not for hours or days, but for a long time. Since 1 July, Russian forces have dropped 170 guided aerial bombs over the Kherson region, more than in the entire first half of 2026. In the last two months, Russian forces have also sent more than 1700 attack drones against the area. Russia is increasingly using jet-powered Shahed and Gerbera drones against critical infrastructure in the region. There are currently no means to combat this type of drone or aerial bomb. The number of attacks with small FPV drones has increased to 6500 in the last week alone. This is not the first time the heating plant in Kherson has been hit. On 27 August the plant was attacked with aerial bombs, destroying the remaining heat and power generators at the station. [2]
Russian forces launched over 100 jet-powered attack drones targeting Kyiv on 27 August. — Source: ukrainskapravda
Frontline and Retaliatory Statements
Russian officials stated their forces are four kilometres from the eastern outskirts of Sloviansk and that they would respond sharply to Ukrainian attacks on Russian economic and trade infrastructure, while claiming to have hit a ship carrying military cargo, fuel tanks, and port facilities in Izmail. The Chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces stated that Russian forces are only four kilometres from the eastern outskirts of the Ukrainian city of Sloviansk. The Kremlin stated that Russia will respond sharply to Ukrainian attacks on its trade and economic infrastructure. The Kremlin spokesman said Russia has no need to further intensify its military operation in Ukraine because its forces are already advancing. Ukrainian authorities reported that two people, including a child, were killed in an attack on Chernihiv, while Moscow claims nine people died in a Ukrainian drone attack on a bus in the Luhansk region, with 15 passengers on board at the time of the attack. One person was killed and five injured in a Russian air attack on Sloviansk, with residential buildings and houses damaged. Ukrainian forces reported striking the Lukoil Norsi refinery in Nizhny Novgorod, where a fire broke out. [1]
Diplomatic Context
Ukrainian forces reported striking the Lukoil Norsi refinery in Nizhny Novgorod, causing a fire, amid mutual accusations including Russian claims of nine deaths from a Ukrainian drone attack on a bus in Luhansk region and Ukrainian reports of civilian casualties from Russian strikes in Chernihiv and Sloviansk. The Kremlin stated that CIA Director John Ratcliffe did not meet with Vladimir Putin during his visit to Moscow. The Kremlin spokesman noted that the visit was related to contacts between security services. US President Donald Trump described Ratcliffe's visit as more or less routine and said the United States is working to end the war in Ukraine. The director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service confirmed that he had a working meeting with CIA Director John Ratcliffe in Moscow at the beginning of the week, discussing sensitive issues within the remit of their intelligence services. The fact that they met is nothing unusual. American President Donald Trump called Ratcliffe's visit semi-routine. At least two American media outlets, citing their sources, reported that Ratcliffe warned Russia not to attack any NATO member. Neither Washington nor Moscow confirmed this. The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman stated that Russia's response to Ukrainian attacks with British weapons could be British military facilities and equipment in Ukraine and beyond its borders. She said the Coalition of the Willing, by announcing the formation of multinational forces for deployment in Ukraine, has taken another step towards greater involvement of European NATO countries in the conflict. France, Germany and the United Kingdom have a destructive role in fuelling the Ukrainian crisis. [1]
What to watch next: Russian forces continue to target energy and port facilities while Ukrainian air defences face ongoing drone threats, with the governor in Kherson warning of prolonged outages and calling for further evacuations.
