Russian attacks continue on Ukraine despite Trump’s criticism of Putin
Welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Kyiv has been attacked by Russian drones for a third night in a row despite Donald Trump warning that if Vladimir Putin attempts to conquer all of Ukraine it will lead to the “downfall” of Russia.
“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” the US president wrote in a social media post yesterday, adding, “I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!”
Trump also criticised Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whom he has an uneasy relationship with, posting that he “is doing his Country no favours by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don’t like it, and it better stop.”
In separate comments to reporters on Sunday night, Trump said:
I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin. I’ve known him a long time. Always gotten along with him. But he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all.
Asked if he was considering more sanctions on Russia, something the EU is pushing for but Washington has so far been reluctant to back, Trump said: “Absolutely.”
Trump’s comments came after Russian strikes killed at least 12 people in Ukraine overnight into Sunday, with the highest number of drones and missiles launched in a single night since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine’s air force said on Sunday morning that Russia had attacked the country with 298 drones and 69 missiles overnight from Saturday. It said it downed 45 missiles and 266 drones.
Zelenskyy called for fresh sanctions on Russia after the attack and said “silence” from the US and “others around the world” was encouraging Vladimir Putin’s intensifying assault.
On Sunday night, attacks from Moscow continued, though they were reported to be less widespread. A series of fires were reported in private households across the Odesa region following Russian drone strikes.
Ukraine’s air force reported incursions by drones and UAVs overnight, but said the threat had been successfully repelled for all regions by the early morning.
Meanwhile, the head of Kyiv’s military administration, Timur Tkachenko, said that Russian strikes caused damage in the Dnipro district of the Ukrainian capital, in what was the third consecutive night of attacks on the city.
“Windows were broken in one of the residential buildings. Also, falling debris was recorded on the territory of a garage cooperative and a recreation facility,” Tkachenko said, but confirmed there were no immediate reports of casualties.
Key events
The Guardian’s senior international correspondent, Peter Beaumont, has written some analysis on the state of the war as Russia intensifies its assault on Ukraine and ignores calls for a ceasefire. Here is an extract from his piece:
Ukrainian and western officials anticipate that Russia will once again attempt a large-scale offensive during the summer, even if they are highly sceptical that it will be effective given Moscow’s punishing losses.
The reality is that with deadlock on the ground, the escalating long-range drone war on both sides is becoming ever more significant, even if it cannot conquer territory.
As it has become ever larger, with Russian and Ukrainian factories turning out thousands of new drones, it has become more sophisticated with Moscow’s employment of big numbers of decoys and systems designed to fool air defence systems.
While Ukraine has targeted bases and factories, including those producing fibre optic cable for a new generation of small combat zones, the purpose on Russia’s side appears aimed solely at undermining morale on the home front. In recent days, drones and missiles have hit apartment blocks, homes and a student dormitory.
As we mentioned in the opening post, Ukrainian officials reported Russian strikes overnight to Monday, but not on the same scale as those that struck Ukraine across the weekend.
Two people were injured and a house was destroyed in the Zaporizhia region when “the enemy struck the village of Yurkivka”, Ivan Fedorov, the governor of the region, said in a Telegram post on Monday.
Kyiv and Odesa were among the other areas to have been targeted overnight. There were no immediate reports of casualties in either location.
Russian attacks continue on Ukraine despite Trump’s criticism of Putin
Welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Kyiv has been attacked by Russian drones for a third night in a row despite Donald Trump warning that if Vladimir Putin attempts to conquer all of Ukraine it will lead to the “downfall” of Russia.
“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” the US president wrote in a social media post yesterday, adding, “I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!”
Trump also criticised Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whom he has an uneasy relationship with, posting that he “is doing his Country no favours by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don’t like it, and it better stop.”
In separate comments to reporters on Sunday night, Trump said:
I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin. I’ve known him a long time. Always gotten along with him. But he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all.
Asked if he was considering more sanctions on Russia, something the EU is pushing for but Washington has so far been reluctant to back, Trump said: “Absolutely.”
Trump’s comments came after Russian strikes killed at least 12 people in Ukraine overnight into Sunday, with the highest number of drones and missiles launched in a single night since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine’s air force said on Sunday morning that Russia had attacked the country with 298 drones and 69 missiles overnight from Saturday. It said it downed 45 missiles and 266 drones.
Zelenskyy called for fresh sanctions on Russia after the attack and said “silence” from the US and “others around the world” was encouraging Vladimir Putin’s intensifying assault.
On Sunday night, attacks from Moscow continued, though they were reported to be less widespread. A series of fires were reported in private households across the Odesa region following Russian drone strikes.
Ukraine’s air force reported incursions by drones and UAVs overnight, but said the threat had been successfully repelled for all regions by the early morning.
Meanwhile, the head of Kyiv’s military administration, Timur Tkachenko, said that Russian strikes caused damage in the Dnipro district of the Ukrainian capital, in what was the third consecutive night of attacks on the city.
“Windows were broken in one of the residential buildings. Also, falling debris was recorded on the territory of a garage cooperative and a recreation facility,” Tkachenko said, but confirmed there were no immediate reports of casualties.
