KYIV, May 13: Russia launched more than 100 drones at targets across Ukraine on Wednesday, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, continuing intense attacks despite growing discussion of a possible peace deal. The strikes came hours after another Russian barrage on civilian areas killed at least eight people.
Zelenskyy said Russia deliberately targeted railway infrastructure, residential areas, ports and energy facilities in the Dnipro, Kharkiv, Odesa and Poltava regions. He noted that 14 Ukrainian regions had come under attack the previous day and urged the international community not to ignore the war amid global attention on the Iran conflict.
The attacks occurred as US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that the four-year war might be nearing an end. Trump told reporters before departing for a summit in Beijing that he believed a peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv was “getting very close.” Putin also recently claimed the conflict could be “coming to an end,” though neither leader provided details.
Despite the optimism, the Kremlin signalled that Russia’s demands remain unchanged. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow still insists Ukraine withdraw its troops from the four regions Russia illegally annexed in 2022 — Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia — before any ceasefire can begin. He acknowledged that future negotiations would be difficult and involve major unresolved issues.
At the same time, battlefield developments appear to be shifting slightly in Ukraine’s favour. Ukraine has increasingly relied on domestically developed drones and long-range missile strikes to target Russian energy and industrial facilities deep inside Russian territory. Russia’s Defence Ministry said it intercepted 286 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions, Crimea, the Azov Sea and the Black Sea.
According to the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War, Russia’s offensive has slowed significantly in recent months. The think tank said Russian forces suffered a net territorial loss last month for the first time since 2024, while Ukrainian defensive positions continue to hold. Analysts say Ukraine has increasingly challenged Russia’s battlefield initiative despite Moscow’s larger military and continued manpower advantages. (AP)
