During the night, Russia initiated the most significant drone attack on Ukraine in the more than a three-year-long conflict, as confirmed by a Ukrainian official on Monday. President Donald Trump remarked that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to intensify the bombing of Ukraine while the U.S. is striving for peace is a sign of him going “crazy.”
The attack on Sunday night involved 355 drones, according to Yuriy Ihnat, head of the Ukrainian air force’s communications department, speaking to The Associated Press.
The night before, Russia launched 298 drones and 69 missiles of different kinds at Ukraine, marking the largest combined aerial assault in the conflict. Officials reported that from Friday to Sunday, Russia deployed approximately 900 drones against Ukraine.
This escalation dashed hopes for an imminent breakthrough due to Trump’s peace efforts, as Putin appears determined to seize more Ukrainian territory and cause further destruction.
Russia has set a new record this month for the number of aerial attacks on Ukraine on three occasions. The expansion of its air campaign followed Kyiv’s acceptance of a U.S.-proposed unconditional 30-day ceasefire in March, which Moscow effectively dismissed.
Russia continues to advance along the roughly 1,000-kilometer front line, where it has been making sluggish and costly progress, preparing for a summer offensive, as reported by Ukraine and military analysts.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed on Monday on Telegram that only a sense of complete impunity could embolden Russia to conduct such attacks and continually escalate their magnitude. He emphasized the lack of significant military rationale behind these actions but acknowledged their substantial political implications.
Zelenskyy reiterated his call for stricter international economic sanctions on Russia to cut off the resources fueling their desire to fight and ultimately bring an end to the war.
The European Union’s chief diplomat, foreign policy head Kaja Kallas, condemned the recent assaults on Kyiv as “totally appalling” on Monday and announced the bloc’s intention to impose additional sanctions on Russia.
Although Trump has threatened significant sanctions on Moscow, no action has been taken thus far.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov defended Putin’s decisions as necessary for Russia’s security, attributing the attacks to Ukraine’s deep strikes against Russia.
Russia appreciates American efforts for peace, including their first direct peace talks in three years, Peskov noted.
He described the ongoing negotiations as being at a “decisive moment linked to emotional overload for everyone and eliciting emotional reactions.”
The reported number of drones and missiles fired by Ukraine could not be independently verified.
Trump expressed his waning patience towards Putin, stating in a social media post on Sunday night that Putin has seemingly lost control. He criticized Putin for the unnecessary loss of life resulting from the missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Trump warned that if Putin pursues the conquest of all Ukraine, it will lead to the ruin of Russia. He also voiced frustration with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, suggesting that his rhetoric is not serving his country well.
Russia and Ukraine conducted a significant prisoner exchange on Sunday, swapping hundreds of prisoners in the last part of a major exchange, which was a rare moment of cooperation.
According to Russia’s Defense Ministry, each side exchanged 303 soldiers, following the release of 307 combatants and civilians each on Saturday and 390 on Friday, marking the largest total swap since the war began.
In discussions held in Istanbul earlier this month, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war and civilian detainees each, with the exchange being the only tangible outcome of the talks.
—Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed.
