Russia unleashed its biggest air assault on Ukraine since the war began — launching 550 drones and missiles overnight, just hours after President Donald Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The massive wave of attacks hammered Kyiv and several other cities. Ukrainian officials said homes were destroyed, cars burned, and even ambulances were damaged. One person was killed, and at least 24 others were hurt.
“Five ambulances were damaged. Twelve people are in hospital,” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram.
The weapons included mostly Shahed drones and 11 missiles, according to Ukraine’s air force.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called out the timing of the strike on X: “The first air raid alerts in Ukraine’s cities went off almost simultaneously with media reports discussing a phone call between President Trump and Putin. Yet again, Russia is showing it has no intention of ending the war and terror.”
Russia’s defense ministry claimed it had intercepted 48 drones fired by Ukraine.
The bombardment came just hours after Trump’s call with Putin — a call the president said led nowhere.
“I’m very disappointed with the conversation I had today with President Putin, because I don’t think he’s there. I’m just saying, I don’t think he’s looking to stop, and that’s too bad,” Trump said Thursday night.
On Friday morning, Trump spoke with Zelensky. The Ukrainian president called the talk “important and fruitful,” saying they discussed “opportunities in air defense” and agreed to work together to “strengthen protection of our skies.”
Zelensky added: “We are ready for direct projects with the United States and believe this is critically important for security, especially when it comes to drones and related technologies.”
The back-to-back calls with Putin and Zelensky were Trump’s first conversations with either leader since the Pentagon paused some weapons shipments to Ukraine over concerns about U.S. stockpiles.
Trump has long promised to end the war quickly. But during the call, Putin made clear he has no plans to back down.
