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Zelensky says 'US silence' over Russian attacks encourages Putin

James Waterhouse
BBC Ukraine correspondent, reporting from Kyiv
Jaroslav Lukiv, Jemma Crew & Rachel Hagan
BBC News
Reuters Emergency workers work at the site where private houses were destroyed in a Russian rocket strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in MarkhalivkaReuters

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has alleged that the US's "silence" after recent Russian attacks is encouraging President Vladimir Putin, following Moscow's largest aerial attack yet.

The overnight attack saw Russia fire 367 drones and missiles - the highest number in a single night since Putin launched a full-scale invasion in 2022.

At least 12 people, including three children, were killed and dozens more injured in widespread strikes across Ukraine. They came a day after one of the heaviest assaults on the capital Kyiv in months.

US President Donald Trump reacted late on Sunday by telling reporters: "I'm not happy with what Putin is doing. He's killing a lot of people."

Ukraine's Air Force said that since 20:40 on Saturday local time (17:40 GMT), Russia had carried out strikes using 298 drones and 69 cruise and ballistic missiles.

The air force said it had shot down 45 cruise missiles and destroyed 266 UAVs, with most regions in Ukraine affected and hits recorded in 22 locations. Rescuers were working in more than 30 cities and villages, Zelensky said.

Despite mounting international calls, Russia has continued to intensify its aerial campaign, showing no sign of halting its offensive and ignoring calls for a ceasefire.

In a pointed message to Trump - who has previously claimed that Putin is interested in ending the war - Zelensky said: "The world may go on vacation, but the war continues, despite weekends and weekdays.

"This cannot be ignored. America's silence, and the silence of others in the world, only encourages Putin."

Zelensky warned that Russia's "brutality cannot be stopped" without "strong pressure on the Russian leadership."

Trump's first comments on the latest strikes came hours later at an airport in Morristown, New Jersey, as he was preparing to return to Washington.

"I'm not happy with Putin. I don't know what's wrong with him. What the hell happened to him":[]}