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It was the latest in a series of almost weekly large-scale missile and drone attacks. President Trump said he “didn’t make any progress” with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
July 4, 2025, 5:43 a.m. ET
Russia attacked Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities on Friday with the largest number of drones and missiles launched in a single barrage so far in the war, according to Ukraine’s air force, just hours after a phone call between President Trump and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
The assault left Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, wrapped in smoke from fires early Friday, though the authorities reported little damage and it was not immediately clear what had burned. Officials said residential buildings had been damaged in five neighborhoods.
Russia has been ramping up drone attacks in recent months with record numbers launched almost weekly. The attacks, as happened Friday, typically combine exploding drones, cruise and ballistic missiles, and decoys intended to confuse or overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses.
Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin spoke by phone shortly before the air-raid alerts went off in Kyiv. After the call, Mr. Trump told reporters, “I didn’t make any progress with him at all.” There was no clear link between the timing of the air assault and the call, which was at least the sixth between Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin this year, given the frequency of the large-scale aerial attacks.
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Friday’s attack was also the first large-scale volley from Russia since the Trump administration said this week that it would withhold some of the air defense missiles and other weapons that the United States had promised to the Ukrainian military. Those supplies were expected in the coming weeks or months.
