Russian strikes shut Ukraine’s biggest steel producer, kill 5 in Kyiv

Steelmaker ArcelorMittal said it was halting production at Ukraine’s largest steel plant, underscoring the rising economic cost of Russia’s air strikes, which on Friday killed five people in Kyiv, including a 14-year-old boy.

ArcelorMittal said on Friday it had informed the Ukrainian government that “safe and sustainable” operations were not possible after four strikes in five weeks caused heavy damage and killed five workers at the southeastern plant.

The shutdown is another blow to Ukraine’s once-mighty steel sector, which previously accounted for 15% of the country’s exports but is under pressure from Russian attacks and restrictions by the EU, its main trading partner.

Russia has intensified air strikes across Ukraine in recent months, using ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones that have hit businesses, logistics networks, Black Sea port facilities and civilian infrastructure.

The economic impact of the strikes is cutting tax revenues and leaving the government with a widening budget gap as it seeks to finance the war, officials said.

“The Russians are constantly expanding their escalation operation,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said, noting that a food warehouse used by McDonald’s was also hit on Friday.

Ukraine has also stepped up its own strikes on Russia, targeting defence and energy facilities as well as online retailers in an effort to undermine revenue and support for Moscow’s war effort.