At a joint press conference with the Dutch Prime Minister, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz sharply criticized Russia. He described the recent attacks against Ukraine as"terrorism against the civilian population."

Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has accused Russia of “serious war crimes” over the recent heavy attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

Russia has attacked the civilian population of Ukraine"in a targeted and ruthless manner" with numerous drones and cruise missiles in recent days, Merz said on Tuesday at a joint press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof in Berlin.

The massive Russian attacks were"terror against the civilian population" and "anything but a proportionate response" to the "very precise" Ukrainian attacks on Russian military airports, the Chancellor added.

Massive waves of attacks on Ukrainian cities

In recent days, there had been a series of waves of attacks on Ukrainian cities. According to Kyiv, Ukraine was hit on Monday by the largest nighttime drone attack since the beginning of the war. The Ukrainian Air Force reported 479 drones and 20 cruise missiles.

Moscow had announced a response following Ukrainian drone attacks on military bases deep within Russian territory. The attacks destroyed Russian aircraft, including in Siberia, in early June.

dpa/ds