Kyiv struck after 51 days as diplomacy and missiles overlapped
A look back at 28 April 2023, when a new wave of Russian cruise missiles hit Ukraine two days after a call between Xi Jinping and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
What did diplomacy and war look like in the same week? On 28 April 2023, Russia launched a new wave of cruise missile strikes across Ukraine. At least 25 civilians were killed and many others were injured. Kyiv was hit for the first time in 51 days.
The previous day, 27 April 2023, a Russian Kalibr missile strike on Mykolaiv killed one person and injured 23 others. Together, the two days showed civilians bearing the brunt of the attacks.
A call and its follow-up
On 26 April 2023, Chinese leader Xi Jinping telephoned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. After the call, both countries announced they would send representatives to establish a diplomatic presence.
The sequence was stark. A conversation between the two leaders on 26 April was followed within two days by strikes that reached the capital after a gap of 51 days. Kyiv had gone seven weeks without being hit, and the strikes ended that interval.
For readers looking back, the three dates 26, 27 and 28 April 2023 record a diplomatic step and two days of missile attacks on Ukrainian cities.
