Kyiv: Russia unleashed its largest drone offensive on Ukraine since the onset of the war, targeting civilian areas and leaving at least one woman dead, just one day before a high-stakes call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a proposed ceasefire.
According to Ukraine’s intelligence service, Moscow was also preparing to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile later that day in what Kyiv interpreted as a calculated move to intimidate the West. Russia has not issued an official response to the allegation.
Amid growing diplomatic maneuvering, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy sought to rebuild ties with Washington after a challenging visit to the White House in February. He met U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Rome on the sidelines of Pope Leo’s inaugural ceremony.
Zelenskiy described the encounter as “good” and shared images showing both delegations in a cordial setting, seated around a round table outdoors. Ukrainian media reported that the meeting lasted around 40 minutes.
“I reaffirmed that Ukraine is ready to be engaged in real diplomacy and underscored the importance of a full and unconditional ceasefire as soon as possible,” Zelenskiy said.
Following the meeting, Zelenskiy also held talks with Pope Leo after the pontiff’s inaugural Mass at the Vatican.
Friday marked a rare diplomatic engagement between Ukraine and Russia — their first in-person negotiations in over three years. The discussions, held under pressure from President Trump to reach a ceasefire, led to an agreement to exchange 1,000 prisoners each. However, the talks stalled when Moscow presented terms described by a Ukrainian delegate as “non-starters.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz revealed that the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, and Poland would hold a joint call with Trump ahead of the anticipated Trump-Putin discussion. These same European leaders had recently traveled to Kyiv, calling for fresh sanctions against Russia should it refuse to accept a ceasefire proposal.
In the early hours of Sunday, Ukraine endured a night of air raid alerts as Russia launched a record 273 drones at various Ukrainian cities, according to the Ukrainian air force. This surpasses the previous high recorded in February on the war’s third anniversary.
‘I Could Hear the Drone’
In the Obukhiv region, west of Kyiv, 44-year-old Natalia Piven recounted the terrifying experience of surviving the drone strikes. She and her son had sought shelter in their cellar following an air raid warning, narrowly escaping the first wave. They then rushed to a nearby kindergarten bomb shelter, moments before more drones struck.
Their home was completely destroyed, and a 28-year-old woman living next door was killed. Local authorities reported three additional injuries, including a four-year-old child.
“I cannot get over it. I simply cannot. I could clearly hear the drone flying right towards my house,” Piven told Reuters.
As Trump pivots U.S. policy rhetoric from unequivocal support for Ukraine to partial alignment with some elements of Moscow’s narrative, Kyiv and its European allies are intensifying efforts to convince the U.S. president that Russia is currently the main obstacle to peace.
Zelenskiy has publicly expressed willingness to support Trump’s proposal for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. Moscow, however, insists any truce must be conditional, demanding a halt in Western arms shipments to Ukraine.
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Russia also maintains that peace negotiations must address what it calls the “root causes” of the conflict — including Ukraine ceding territory, accepting neutral status, and disarming. Kyiv has rejected these terms as tantamount to surrender, arguing that they would leave the country defenseless against future aggression.
Just a day earlier, Ukraine reported that a Russian drone had struck a shuttle bus in the northeastern Sumy region, killing nine civilians. Zelenskiy labeled the attack as “deliberate” and renewed his call for stronger international sanctions against Moscow. Russia claimed it was targeting a military site.
