Kyiv now feels like a front-line city — but its resolve is holding, for now

For much of Russia’s full-scale war, massive attacks on Kyiv came mainly at night, but that fragile division between wartime nights and relatively normal days is now disappearing.

Russia has increasingly launched jet-powered attack drones toward the capital around the clock, bringing air raid alerts, air defense fire, and explosions into the middle of workdays, commutes, and afternoons.

As strikes damage transport infrastructure, energy facilities, and residential buildings, sociologists note that the capital is moving closer to eastern regions on key indicators, with residents describing a new reality in which attacks can occur at any hour.

Photo: Danylo Antoniuk/Anadolu via Getty Images.