Russia carried out its largest drone attack on Ukraine since the war began, launching 273 drones overnight. The strike came one day before a planned call between the U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a possible ceasefire.
Ukraine’s air force reported that most of the drones targeted the Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Donetsk regions. Emergency services confirmed multiple fires and damage to buildings. A 28-year-old woman was killed and three others were injured in the Kyiv region. In Donetsk, one person was killed and eight others were injured.
Russian drone attacks on civilians all over Ukraine tonight.
pic.twitter.com/OyHwAPKFWE— Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) May 17, 2025
Ruslan Stefanchuk, the head of Ukraine’s parliament, said in a social media post on Sunday: “The air raid alarm lasted almost nine hours. This is what Putin’s ‘sincere desire for peace’ looks like.”
273 drones. In a single night. Nearly 9 hours of air raid alerts.
This is what putin’s “genuine desire for peace” looks like.A massive russian attack on the Kyiv region took the life of a woman and injured three people, including a child. Residential buildings were destroyed,… pic.twitter.com/RRYAOt1FBk
— Ruslan Stefanchuk (@r_stefanchuk) May 18, 2025
The attack surpasses a previous drone strike in February, when Russia launched 267 drones on the war’s third anniversary.
The drone strike followed face-to-face peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials on Friday in Turkey, the first such talks in over three years. They agreed to a prisoner exchange but made no progress on a ceasefire.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine supports a 30-day unconditional ceasefire, as proposed by Trump. Russia said it will only consider a pause if arms supplies to Ukraine stop and talks include Ukraine’s neutrality, military cuts, and dropping its NATO ambitions. Ukraine has rejected those terms.
Trump is scheduled to speak with Putin on Monday about ending the Ukraine war. Trump previously said he does not expect significant progress in peace talks until he speaks with Putin directly.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Saturday that preparations are underway for a phone conversation between the two leaders.
