It is the first major attack by Moscow on Kyiv since Vladimir Putin met with US president Donald Trump in Alaska, though the Russian leader has since stalled any efforts to kickstart peace talks.
A spokesperson for the British Council said the office would be closed until further notice, adding: “While there may be some delays in our responses, our work with our Ukrainian partners in education and culture continues.”
Scott McDonald, the chief executive of the Council, said a guard was injured in the attack and was “shaken but stable”. The EU delegation building in the Ukrainian capital was also damaged in the attack.
Russia used a combination of decoy drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles, said Tymur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv’s city administration.
Merz: Russia’s attack on EU building in Kyiv shows ‘lack of scruples’German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said Russia’s attack on Kyiv shows their “lack of scruples”.
In a post on X he wrote: “”Russia showed its true colors again last night. We condemn the severe attacks against the civilian population in the strongest possible terms,” said Merz on social media platform X.
“The fact that the EU representation has now also been targeted is evidence of the Russian regime’s lack of scruples.”
Nicole Wootton-Cane28 August 2025 20:00
Explained: How Norway’s upcoming election is linked to Ukraine?Norway’s September election could impact Europe’s energy amid the Ukraine war.
The country is Europe’s top gas supplier, replacing Gazprom after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Its role is set to grow as the European Union plans to phase out use of Russian gas by 2027, but exploiting new oil and gas reserves is critical to slowing down an expected production decline.
The election could decide whether Norway opens new areas for exploration, or if oil companies will remain restricted to existing ones, depending on the influence wielded by the Greens, Liberals and other small parties.
More radical proposals to stop exploration completely are unlikely to gather sufficient support.
Steffie Banatvala28 August 2025 19:30
Turkey and US discuss peace efforts on Russia-Ukraine war, Turkish source saysTurkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan and US secretary of state Marco Rubio discussed peace efforts on the Russia-Ukraine conflict in a phone call on Thursday, a Turkish foreign ministry source said.
The source said Fidan told Rubio that Ankara was ready to fulfil its responsibilities in the peace process.
Tara Cobham28 August 2025 19:01
Trump ‘not happy’ with Russian strike on Ukraine and he will make statement laterThe White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump “was not happy” when he learned that Russia attacked Ukraine with missiles and drones overnight, killing at least 15 people and damaging buildings, including the British Council in Kyiv.
“He was not happy about this news, but he was also not surprised. These are two countries that have been at war for a very long time,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, adding that Trump will make an additional statement on the situation later on Thursday.
President Donald Trump ‘was not happy’ when he learned that Russia attacked Ukraine with missiles and drones overnight (AP)Tara Cobham28 August 2025 18:45
RECAP: The day’s events• Ukraine has been left reeling after a “massive” Russian drone and missile strike overnight.
• At least 18 people have been killed, including four children, and 48 injured following the strikes, which targeted residential areas of Kyiv.
• Parts of the capital have been reduced to rubble as pictures show rescue teams working around the clock to pull survivors from the devastation.
• The attacks have been condemned by world leaders, with foreign secretary David Lammy summoning the Russian Ambassador saying “the killing and destruction must stop”.
• The attack is one of the largest on Ukraine during the war, and the first since Russian leader Vladimir Putin met with US President Donald Trump in Alaska earlier this month.
• The US special envoy on Ukraine has labelled the strikes as “egregious” and added they “threaten the peace” he is pursuing.
Nicole Wootton-Cane28 August 2025 18:30
Putin must come to the negotiating table, von der Leyen saysEU chief Ursula von der Leyen has said Putin “must come to the negotiating table” after the latest strikes in Kyiv.
“We must secure a just and lasting peace for Ukraine with firm and credible security guarantees that will turn the country into a steel porcupine,” she wrote on X.
Nicole Wootton-Cane28 August 2025 18:00
Full story: Putin accused of ‘sabotaging peace’ after devastating airstrike on Kyiv kills 19 and hits British Council buildingRussia killed at least 19 people including four children in a massive wave of drone and missile attacks on Ukraine’s capital that has drawn international condemnation.
Sir Keir Starmer accused Vladimir Putin of ‘sabotaging hopes of peace’ with the attacks that took place in the early hours of Thursday and saw more than 600 drones and over 30 missiles launched. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strike, the second largest attack since Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022, was Moscow’s answer to diplomatic efforts to end its war.
Moscow claimed it only hit military targets but the UK summoned the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Office in London to receive an official complaint after the British Council building in Kyiv was struck by a missile. The death toll from the overnight attacks continued to rise on Thursday with at least 38 more people wounded.
The Independent’s world affairs editor Sam Kiley reports:
Tara Cobham28 August 2025 17:45
British Council Ukraine chief refuses to be drawn on whether Russia deliberately struck Kyiv buildingThe director of the British Council Ukraine declined to speculate whether Russia deliberately struck a British Council building in Kyiv, but said Moscow is targeting education and cultural buildings.
Colm McGivern told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme: “I don’t want to speculate on whether or not it was deliberate and intentional for the Russians to attack the British Council.
“But what I do think was deliberate, and what I do think is intentional, is Russia’s continued attacks on education and cultural infrastructure in Ukraine, attacking schools, attacking theatres, forcing children to learn from bomb shelters, preventing universities from opening fully and teaching their young learners.
“And the British Council is absolutely determined, steadfastly determined, that we will continue to support education and cultural expression, education and cultural links for Ukraine with the UK, in order to keep those sectors strong.”
Mr McGivern also said: “The blast damage has severely damaged our offices there, making it impossible for us to open them today and they’ll be closed until further notice.”
Tara Cobham28 August 2025 17:35
Lammy: ‘The killing and destruction must stop’UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has slammed the strikes that hit Kyiv overnight.
In a post on X, he said he had summoned the Russian Ambassador, writing that “the killing and destruction must stop”.
Nicole Wootton-Cane28 August 2025 17:30
Ukraine summons Hungarian envoy over ‘discrimination’ against ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine, Kyiv saysUkraine’s foreign minister said on Thursday that Kyiv had summoned Hungary’s ambassador over what he called his government’s “discrimination” against ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine.
“He was given a protest note in response to Hungary’s discrimination against the Hungarian minority in Ukraine, particularly our Hungarian-descent defender who was banned from entering the country of his ancestors,” Andrii Sybiha wrote on X.
Sybiha was referring to the commander of Ukraine’s drone forces, an ethnic Hungarian who Budapest said on Thursday it was blocking over his role in attacking the Druzhba oil pipeline, through which Russia supplies Hungary and Slovakia.
“We urge Hungary to further refrain from unfriendly actions and instead engage in constructive dialogue, for which Ukraine remains ready,” he said.
Tara Cobham28 August 2025 17:25
