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The bombardment, which Ukrainian officials said mostly targeted Kyiv, came just before President Trump was expected to talk with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
May 18, 2025, 12:40 p.m. ET
Russia targeted Ukraine with one of its largest drone bombardments of the war on Sunday, with an estimated 273 exploding drones and decoys recorded in the skies across the country.
The barrage, which killed a woman and injured several others, appeared designed as a show of force just a day before President Trump is expected to talk with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia in an attempt to get an agreement on a cease-fire. Mr. Putin has dragged his feet on agreeing to any temporary truce, adding preconditions that he knows Ukraine will not accept.
Mr. Trump said on Saturday that he would also call President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who has agreed to an unconditional and immediate cease-fire, as well as the leaders of the NATO alliance.
Much of the latest drone barrage was directed at Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said, and antiaircraft fire lit up the skies over the capital as air defense teams scrambled to counter the assault. Over the course of some nine hours, the Ukrainian Air Force said, it intercepted 88 drones, while 128 others vanished from radars.
A 28-year-old woman in the capital region was killed and three more people were injured, including a 4-year-old child. While the impact of the barrage appears to have been limited, it was part of a pattern of escalating aerial bombardments, with the swarms growing larger the longer the war has raged.
It is now common for waves of more than 100 drones to attack towns and cities several times a week. On Feb. 23, the Ukrainian Air Force recorded 263 drones in the skies.
Marc Santora has been reporting from Ukraine since the beginning of the war with Russia. He was previously based in London as an international news editor focused on breaking news events and earlier the bureau chief for East and Central Europe, based in Warsaw. He has also reported extensively from Iraq and Africa.
