Ukrainian intelligence and open-source data show Russian President Vladimir Putin does not “plan to end the war,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his daily evening address Monday.
“There is currently no indication that they are seriously considering peace or diplomacy,” he added. “On the contrary, there is ample evidence that they are preparing new offensive operations.”
The address came after an overnight exchange of long-range cross-border drone attacks between Russia and Ukraine.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched a total of 364 “air attack vehicles” — nine cruise missiles and 355 attack drones — in the latest bombardment.
All missiles and 288 drones were shot down or neutralized in flight, Ukraine’s air force said. Impacts were reported in five regions and falling debris in 10 regions, it added.
Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces downed 128 Ukrainian drones over 12 regions from Sunday night into Monday morning.
Near-nightly cross-border strikes have become a prominent feature of Russia’s war on Ukraine, now more than three years old with little sign of an imminent ceasefire or peace deal. Recent months have seen the bombardments grow in size.
On Saturday night into Sunday, for example, Russia launched what Ukrainian officials described as its largest aerial attack of the war. The assault included 367 drones and missiles and killed at least 18 people, officials said.
The weekend attacks prompted Trump to rebuke both Putin and Zelenskyy on his social media platform on Monday.
“I’m not happy with what Putin is doing,” he wrote. “He’s killing a lot of people, and I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin. I’ve known him a long time. Always gotten along with him, but he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all.”
“Likewise, President Zelenskyy is doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does,” he continued.
On Monday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia is “really grateful to the Americans and personally to President Trump for his assistance in organizing and launching this negotiation process. This is a very important achievement.”
However, Zelenskyy and his officials have cited Russia’s continued massed strikes as evidence that Moscow is not genuine in its public appeals for peace.
“Russia is counting on a prolonged war,” Zelenskyy remarked, when discussing the new intelligence that he said was analyzed in a meeting with his staff on Monday. “And on their part, this is a blatant disregard for all those around the world who seek peace and are trying to make diplomacy work.”
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