The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power."
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
Ukrainian Air Force Command spokesperson Yurii Ihnat briefs the press on the consequences of Russia's missile strikes on Ukraine and the work of the Air Force at the Ukraine-Ukrinform Media Center in Kyiv on Nov. 21, 2022. (Photo by Evgen Kotenko/Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Russia’s military began covering its Shahed attack drones with carbon to complicate the work of Ukrainian air defense, Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said on Nov. 25.
Speaking on national television, Ihnat was explaining the black color of drone debris found in Ukraine after Russia’s mass overnight attack.
Carbon is “an absorbing material for the radar signal," and the black color is supposed to make it harder for Ukrainian soldiers to identify and shoot down the drones in the sky, according to Ihnat. Most often, Russia attacks Ukraine with drones and missiles at night.
The photo shared by Ukrainian activist Serhii Sternenko via his Telegram channel allegedly shows the debris of a drone launched by Russian troops at Ukraine overnight on Nov. 25, 2023.
"Even earlier, they (Russian forces) were improving the drones they had received from Iran and those they had produced domestically, using composite materials for the reflective surface,” the spokesman added.
Overnight on Nov. 25, Russia carried out the largest drone attack on Kyiv since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
Ukraine’s air defense downed 74 out of 75 drones launched by Russian troops, according to the Air Force. Five people were reportedly injured in Kyiv as a result of the attack, including an 11-year-old child.
Russia has used Iranian-designed Shahed-type kamikaze drones to attack Ukrainian cities since September last year, regularly resulting in casualties among civilians.
Dinara Khalilova is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a news editor. In the early weeks of Russia’s full-scale invasion, she worked as a fixer and local producer for Sky News’ team in Ukraine. Dinara holds a BA in journalism from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and a Master’s degree in media and communication from the U.K.’s Bournemouth University.
Francis Farrell
