Zelensky: Russia planning new offensive after record drone strikes

Yahoo

26-05-2025

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday accused Russia of planning a new offensive, after he had previously described Russia's massive attack against Ukrainian cities as "the largest" since Russia started the war in 2022.
There are no signs that Russian President Vladimir Putin is seriously considering a diplomatic solution, Zelensky said in his evening video address.
"We can see from the information obtained by intelligence and from open-source data that Putin and his entourage do not plan to end the war," he said.
"On the contrary, there is ample evidence that they are preparing new offensive operations."
Zelensky said this shows Moscow's contempt for all those who are trying to achieve peace, a likely reference to US President Donald Trump, who has presented himself as a mediator for a peaceful solution to the war since taking office in January.
Largest Russian attack to date
His comments come after the Ukrainian Air Force said earlier in the day that Ukraine was subjected to a record number of Russian drones overnight.
Moscow deployed 355 drones and drone dummies as well as nine X-101 cruise missiles, the Ukrainian Air Force said. An air raid alert covered the whole country.
Zelensky described it as "the largest number of drones against our cities and communities since the beginning of the full-scale war" over three years ago.
The "third consecutive night of combined Russian terror ... Putin shows just how much he despises the world — the world that spends more effort on 'dialogue' with him than on real pressure," he wrote on X. "The increase in Russian strikes should be met with increased sanctions," he added.
The figures cannot be verified in detail. All nine cruise missiles were shot down and 288 drones were destroyed, the air force said.
Two people were injured in the Zaporizhzhya region, according to the local military governor Ivan Fedorov.
According to the air force, Russian drones attacked the port city of Odessa from the Black Sea.
In the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, military governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram that a series of powerful explosions were heard.
Authorities elsewhere confirmed damage had been caused in several other parts of the country. It was widely reported that one target was the Starokostiantyniv military airbase in western Ukraine.
Zelensky said over the past three days Russia bombarded Ukrainian cities with ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and more than 900 drones in a move that is militarily pointless and only serves to cause destruction.
The Russian Defence Ministry wrote on Telegram that it had shot down 128 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory by late Monday morning.
Operations at several airports in Russia were temporarily restricted for security reasons.
Moscow launched a massive attack on its neighbour over the weekend using drones, missiles and cruise missiles, killing more than a dozen people.