Ukraine's parliament cancels session after Russia fired new missile

NATO-Ukraine emergency talks on missile threat; Russian drones strike Sumy; Czech FM visits Kyiv; parliament session cancelled due to threat.

Ukraine's parliament cancelled a session on Friday (November 22, 2024) as security was tightened after Russia deployed a new ballistic missile that threatened to escalate the nearly three-year war.

NATO and Ukraine will hold emergency talks next Tuesday (November 26), the alliance said, following a request from Ukraine. The meeting will be held at the level of ambassadors and will most likely address the new missile threat.

Russian troops also struck Sumy with Shahed drones overnight, killing two people and injuring 12 more, the regional administration said Friday morning. The attack targeted a residential district of the city.

Ukraine's Suspilne media, quoting Sumy regional head Volodymyr Artiukh, said the Russians used Shaheds stuffed with shrapnel elements for the first time in the region. “These weapons are used to destroy people, not to destroy objects,” said Mr. Artiukh, according to Suspilne.

Separately, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky arrived on a visit to Kyiv. He posted a photo from Kyiv's railway station on his X account Friday morning.

“I am interested in how the Ukrainians are coping with the bombings, how Czech projects are working on the ground and how to better target international aid in the coming months. I will discuss all of this here,” Lipavsky wrote.

Three Ukrainian lawmakers confirmed that the parliamentary session previously scheduled was cancelled due to the ongoing threat of Russian missile attacks targeting government buildings in the city centre.