Russia’s missile and drone strikes in Ukraine reflect ‘war crimes’ strategy, retired U.S. Army colonel tells PBS

Ukraine reported that Russia launched several missiles and an estimated 168 drones during an attack that killed at least 17 civilians and left more than 40 others wounded, according to the Ukrainian account discussed on PBS NewsHour on Aug. 20, 2026. The discussion took place with retired U.S. Army Col. Robert Hamilton, who said he was in Kyiv during the attack and described the scale of the strike and the immediate impact on residents.

Hamilton, appearing in an interview with Geoff Bennett, argued that the strikes are not just battlefield actions but part of a broader strategy that fits the concept of war crimes in Ukraine. He said that the repeated use of large-scale drone and missile attacks against populated areas and civilian infrastructure reflects calculated choices that investigators often examine under the laws of armed conflict.

In the same segment, PBS reported that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy linked the attack to an urgent need for air defense supplies. Zelenskyy called on allies to replenish Ukraine’s stockpile of Patriot interceptors, describing the strain on defenses after repeated Russian air attacks.

Ukraine’s reported casualty figures, as relayed in the PBS discussion, underscore the public safety dimension of the attacks. Hamilton’s account from Kyiv, combined with Ukraine’s statement on fatalities and injuries, framed the event as a test of civil protection capacity during repeated barrages, including the ability to keep civilians safe while air defense systems engage incoming threats.

The interview also placed Hamilton’s assessment in the context of ongoing scrutiny by international observers of Russia’s conduct in Ukraine. He did not cite a court verdict in the PBS segment, but characterized the pattern of attacks as consistent with violations that can form the basis of war-crimes examinations.

Ukraine’s call for Patriot replenishment highlighted the practical constraints behind the request. By urging allies to send additional interceptor stock, Zelenskyy indicated that air defense availability is a limiting factor during high-volume missile and drone attacks, with implications for how many incoming threats Kyiv can effectively engage.

As of Aug. 20, Ukrainian authorities and allied governments continued to assess the damages and respond to the attack, while the debate over accountability and the laws of armed conflict remained central to diplomatic efforts around air defense deliveries. The PBS segment focused on Hamilton’s view that the attack pattern reflects deliberate operational choices, while Zelenskyy’s remarks emphasized the immediate need to maintain interceptors for future strikes.