At least ten people were killed and around 100 injured when Russian ballistic missiles struck an outdoor arms exhibition near Kyiv on Friday, in a rare daytime attack that has prompted widespread soul-searching in Ukraine over the safety of such events. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the strike on social media, acknowledging that the arms show "certainly should not have been taking place there" and warning that holding any exhibition attracting large crowds near residential buildings was "absolutely impossible" under wartime conditions. Ukraine's prosecutor general, Ruslan Kravchenko, opened a criminal investigation to establish who authorised the event and whether risks had been properly assessed under martial law.
The exhibition, organised by a Ukrainian weapons manufacturers' association and held at a shooting range on the outskirts of the capital, showcased drone technology developed for the Ukrainian military. Promotional materials, including registration links and location details, had circulated openly on social media — a fact that drew immediate public backlash. Ukrainian air force spokesman Yuri Ihnat confirmed that three ballistic missiles were fired, of which only one was intercepted. An AFP reporter at the scene found at least five bodies covered in black sheets, with promotional tents still standing and a company's video still playing on a screen nearby. Homes adjacent to the shooting range were badly damaged, their roofs collapsed and windows blown out.
Russia's Defence Ministry confirmed the strike, claiming it had targeted a site where drones "used to strike civilian targets within Russian territory" were on display, and asserting that military commanders and intelligence officials involved in planning attacks on Russia were among those present. Among those initially feared dead was Serhiy Beskrestnov, a Defence Ministry adviser known as Flash, who later confirmed via social media that he had stayed away from the event due to security concerns. This is at least the third time since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022 that a Ukrainian military exhibition has been hit.
The strike came amid a broader surge in attacks on both sides. Five more people were killed by Russian glide bombs in Sloviansk, a city in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region, and two others died in Sumy, in the country's north. On the Ukrainian side, strikes on a military factory in the Russian city of Kirov — more than 1,000 kilometres east of the front line — killed six people, while separate attacks targeted warehouses belonging to Wildberries, Russia's largest online retailer, in the St Petersburg area. Kyiv says it is hitting logistics infrastructure because it can be exploited to supply the Russian military.
The attack on the exhibition underscores the acute dangers of conducting open, publicly advertised defence industry events in a country under active bombardment. Zelensky said he had received intelligence that Russia was preparing another large-scale missile strike within 48 hours. Diplomatically, the Ukrainian president is expected to travel to Washington next week for talks with US President Donald Trump, as American officials seek to revive stalled peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.