Russia launched a record number of drones at Ukraine overnight into Friday, striking multiple buildings and residential areas, hours after US President Donald Trump said he had made “no progress” towards a ceasefire deal in a phone call with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
At least 23 people were wounded in the attack, which lasted 13 hours, according to Kyiv city and military authorities. Ukraine intercepted 476 out of a record 539 Russian drones, according to the country’s air force. It said Russia also launched 11 cruise and ballistic missiles.
Thousands of residents spent the night in shelters, including in subway stations or underground parking lots, as explosions and the sound of drones echoed through the city in the early hours of Friday morning.
“Absolutely horrible and sleepless night in Kyiv. One of the worst so far,” said Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called it “one of the most large-scale air attacks” the country had seen.
“Notably, the first air raid alerts in our cities and regions yesterday began to blare almost simultaneously with media reports discussing a phone call between President Trump and Putin,” Zelensky said. “Yet again, Russia is showing it has no intention of ending the war and terror.”
The strikes sparked fires in buildings and structures across several city districts, and partially destroying multi-story buildings, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. They also destroyed part of Kyiv’s railway, and damaged five ambulances that were responding to calls from those wounded.
In recent weeks, Russia has launched near-nightly air attacks on Ukraine involving hundreds of missiles and drones. Earlier this week Ukraine’s foreign minister said that in June alone, Russia launched over 330 missiles, including nearly 80 ballistic missiles, 5,000 combat drones, and 5,000 gliding bombs against Ukraine.
Before Friday, the last record-setting night of attacks came just five days ago – when Russia fired 537 drones and missiles at Ukraine.
On Thursday, Trump held a nearly hour-long call with Putin and voiced frustration afterward about the stalled ceasefire negotiations.
“We had a call. It was a pretty long call. We talked about a lot of things, including Iran and we also talked about, as you know, the war with Ukraine,” Trump said. “I’m not happy about that.”
Asked if he felt he made progress with Putin on a deal with Ukraine, Trump said firmly: “No.” He added, “I didn’t make any progress with him today at all.”
Trump said he would speak with Zelensky early Friday morning, saying he was “very disappointed” with his conversation with Putin, whom he believes is “not looking to stop” the war.
The strikes come as the Trump administration pauses some weapons shipments to Ukraine, including air defense missiles, following a review of military spending and American support to foreign countries.
Trump acknowledged said that the decision had been made to protect US stockpiles.
The US has been the biggest single donor of military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, supplying Ukraine with air defense systems, drones, rocket launchers, radars, tanks and anti-armor weapons, leading to concerns over dwindling US stockpiles.
But the balance of aid to Ukraine has changed significantly since Trump returned to power, casting doubt over the future of US support for Kyiv.
Trump and Putin did not discuss the pause in shipments to Ukraine during their call, according to Russian state media TASS, citing a Kremlin aide. However, Trump brought up ending the war “as early as possible” – to which Putin responded that Russia would not “back down” from its war goals in Ukraine, according to TASS.
