Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin bombs energy plant hours after agreeing 30-day halt during Trump call – UK Times

A 60-year-old man was injured in a Russian drone attack in the Kyiv region overnight.

The attack also damaged several houses in the capital region, governor Mykola Kalashnyk said in a statement early today.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia launched more than 40 drones against Ukraine in the hours following the call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

Ukrainian military said on Wednesday its air defence units shot down 72 of the 145 drones launched by Russia overnight.

Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump have agreed to shackle Ukraine after hours of talking on the telephone over ceasefire terms, which won’t work but are intended to further divide Ukraine and Europe from the White House.

There has not been a Russian agreement to a ceasefire. But if there is to be one, then all foreign military and intelligence assistance has to stop.

That means the Anglo-French efforts to create a coalition of the willing to back Ukraine and support a long-term peace with military muscle must stop. US assistance must stop, again. All intelligence sharing, by both the US and other Nato members, must also be ended.

Ukraine, Russia has demanded, must be hog-tied, muzzled and blinded before substantial talks can begin.

World affairs editor Sam Kiley writes:

Several overnight flights in Russia were suspended from airports in Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod and Nizhnekamsk, all hundreds of kilometres east of Moscow, to “ensure air safety”, said Russia’s aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia.

The agency did not say what the reason was for the suspension of flights, which lasted a couple of hours, but it usually suspends flights when there are reports of drone attacks.

Ukraine’s air defence units shot down 72 of 145 drones launched by Russia in an overnight attack today, the air force said.

It said 56 drones were lost, in reference to the Ukrainian military using electronic warfare to redirect them.

Russia’s air defence units intercepted and destroyed 57 Ukrainian drones overnight, the Russian defence ministry said this morning.

Of these, 35 drones were destroyed over the Kursk border region, while the rest were over the territory of the Oryol, Tula, Bryansk regions and the Sea of Azov, the ministry said in a statement.

It did not mention the targets of the drone attacks and if any damage was caused.

China has said it is ready to assist countries involved in the Ukraine conflict with post-war reconstruction.

Beijing has remained a close ally to Russia throughout the war and refused to condemn Vladimir Putin’s invasion, while offering to act as a mediator for peace.

“We are ready to continue to provide assistance within our capacity according to the wishes of parties involved, which, of course, includes post-war reconstruction,” said Li Ming, spokesperson for the China International Development Cooperation Agency.

He added that Beijing has already delivered four batches of humanitarian aid to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s all-out invasion.

China remains committed to being a “positive force for world peace and stability and a progressive force for global fairness and justice,” the spokesperson said.

Since returning to the White House in 2025, US President Donald Trump has dramatically reshaped US policy toward Russia, adopting a markedly softer stance on Vladimir Putin and the ongoing war in Ukraine. This approach has included cutting military aid to Ukraine, and pressuring Kyiv to accept unfavourable terms to end the fighting.

Trump is also weakening America’s negotiating position by repeatedly and prematurely signalling the concessions the US is willing to make.

Historically, Russia has responded to strength, not appeasement.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has criticised his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin’s rejection of a full ceasefire, noting that Moscow’s drones continue to bombard his country hours after Putin’s call with Donald Trump.

“Right now, in many regions, you can literally hear what Russia truly needs. Around 40 “Shahed” drones are in our skies, and air defence is active,” Mr Zelensky said on X.

He confirmed drone hits on civilian infrastructure.

“A direct hit by a ‘Shahed’ drone on a hospital in Sumy, strikes on cities in the Donetsk region, and attack drones currently in the skies over the Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Chernihiv, Poltava, Kharkiv, Kirovohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, and Cherkasy regions,” Mr Zelensky said.

He added: “Today, Putin effectively rejected the proposal for a full ceasefire. It would be right for the world to respond by rejecting any attempts by Putin to prolong the war.”