CNN —

Moscow barreled hundreds of drones toward four key regions in Ukraine overnight, just as lawmakers in Kyiv scrambled to approve additional defense spending against the backdrop of intensified Russian attacks over the past few days.

The Kremlin unleashed 400 long-range drones and one missile late Tuesday, according to Ukraine’s Air Force – in what marked largest onslaught so far this week. Kyiv’s forces intercepted or disabled at least 345 of those drones.

Russia’s strikes pelted multiple cities late Tuesday – including parts of the Odesa region, Kharkiv, Vinnytsia, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih.

Ukrainian troops have struggled to contend with one of the fiercest escalations by Russian forces since the full-scale 2022 invasion, with lawmakers in Kyiv supporting an initial amendment to boost army and defense spending. At the same time, Zelensky enacted a seismic cabinet reshuffle on Monday – after the US announced a fresh package of weaponry for the war-ravaged country.

‘Most massive attack’

Kryvyi Rih, in central Ukraine, faced “the most massive attack … since the beginning of the war,” said the head of the city’s military administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, adding that it involved a ballistic missile and 28 drones. The onslaught sparked several fires and left parts of the city without electricity and water, he added.

Zelensky said Russia had targeted energy infrastructure in the city and that 15 people had been wounded there.

“Russia is not changing its strategy – and to counter this terror effectively, we need to systematically strengthen our defenses: more air defense systems, more interceptors, and more determination,” Zelensky said in a post on X.

Ihor Terekhov, the mayor of the eastern city of Kharkiv, said his city was struck 16 times in just 14 minutes during the assault.

In Vinnytsia, southwest of Kyiv, eight people were injured and two infrastructure facilities caught fire during attacks.

Zelensky said response efforts are still underway in some of the regions targeted overnight.

Three deaths were recorded in Ukraine – one from shelling in the Sumy region and two in Kharkiv – over the previous 24 hours, with 38 people wounded, according to officials.

Russia continued its attacks into Wednesday with Ukrainian officials reporting that at least two people were killed and 27 injured in a strike on a shopping center in Dobropillya.

The damage included 54 retail outlets, 304 apartments, and eight cars, Vadym Filashkin, the governor of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, said Wednesday on Telegram.

Members of parliament voted to spend an additional 400 billion Ukrainian hryvnia ($9.6 million) on security forces, according to the former Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. Separately, politicians also approved increased funding for defense equipment and machinery.

US changes tack

Russia’s latest large-scale wave of attacks on Ukraine comes days after a policy shift from the US administration, and as President Donald Trump grows increasingly frustrated with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Trump announced on Monday that Ukraine will receive Patriot missile systems via NATO as part of a new package of US weaponry, and threatened “secondary tariffs” on other countries that buy Russian oil, signaling an economically punitive stance towards Moscow.

Moscow is monitoring those Western long-range missile deliveries “very closely,” according to Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov. He had warned earlier that Trump’s threat of sanctions was “very serious,” claiming that the US president addressed his Russian counterpart “personally” in his announcement.

Asked about the decision of US President Donald Trump to sell NATO weapons for further shipment to Ukraine, Peskov said: “This is business. There were deliveries before. No one stopped them. It’s just a question of who pays for them. Now, some Europeans will pay for them.”

Just on Tuesday, he warned that “such decisions, which are made in Washington, and in NATO countries, and directly in Brussels, are perceived by the Ukrainian side not as a signal for peace, but as a signal to continue the conflict.”

Smoke and orange flames rise after a Russian drone attack on civilian infrastructure in the Vinnytsia region of Ukraine on Wednesday, as Moscow launched one of the most ferocious assaults this week. Vinnytsia Military Admin/Anadolu/Getty Images

Once complimentary of Putin, Trump appeared angry that his overtures on ending the war have been mostly ignored in Moscow.

“My conversations with him are very pleasant, and then the missiles go off at night,” Trump said, even as he denied falling into a trap set for his predecessors: “He fooled Clinton, Bush, Obama, Biden – he didn’t fool me.”

Meanwhile, a number of European foreign ministers welcomed Trump’s Monday announcement.

“In order to have peace, we need to support Ukraine, and we need to put the pressure on Russia,” Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign affairs chief, said as she arrived at a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Tuesday.

“I also hope that Americans will move also with their sanctions package or tariffs, so that pressure is on Russia to really stop this war,” Kallas added.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

Russia launched a large-scale aerial attack across Ukraine, firing 400 drones and a ballistic missile at several cities, severely damaging energy infrastructure and injuring at least 15 people, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday.

According to Ukraine’s air force, the attacks struck from multiple directions, targeting major urban centers including Kharkiv, Kryvyi Rih, and Vinnytsia. While most of the drones were intercepted, 12 key sites were hit by a combination of 57 drones and the missile.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the barrage as a calculated assault on Ukraine’s vital systems. “Russia does not change its strategy,” Zelenskyy said on X, formerly Twitter. “To effectively counter this terror, we need a systemic strengthening of defences: more air defences, more interceptors, more resolve to ensure Russia feels our response.”

The wave of drone strikes severely impacted the country’s energy grid, with power outages reported across wide areas. DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy provider, said some 80,000 families in Kryvyi Rih and surrounding areas of the Dnipropetrovsk region were left without electricity.

The head of the Kryvyi Rih military administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, confirmed the city had been hit by 28 drones and a missile, causing additional disruptions to water supplies. He added that a 17-year-old boy was gravely injured and is now fighting for his life in the hospital.

In Vinnytsia, located in central Ukraine, at least eight people were wounded in the attack. One of the Russian drones struck a facility belonging to Polish wood flooring manufacturer Barlinek Group, drawing a sharp reaction from Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski.

Calling the strike “deliberate,” Sikorski warned, “Putin’s criminal war is getting closer to our borders.” He noted that the factory had been hit from three directions, suggesting a targeted attack on the Polish-owned facility.

Further northeast in Kharkiv, regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported 17 explosions within a 20-minute window, describing the intensity as one of the worst recent attacks. Three people were injured in the drone barrage, which was part of Russia’s summer strategy of overwhelming Ukraine’s defences with swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles.

In Kyiv, air defence systems were activated, though no damage or casualties were reported, Mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed.

The escalating assaults come just days after U.S. President Donald Trump cited such attacks as justification for approving a new round of military assistance to Ukraine. The aid package includes additional air defence systems, a key demand of Kyiv as drone and missile attacks grow in scale and frequency.

Russians launched a massive drone attack on the Vinnytsia region overnight

The attacks come mere days after Trump threatened to enact a 100% secondary tariff on Russia

President Zelenskyy’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih was also attacked by Russian forces

The Ukrainian army said it shot down 208 Russian drones and missiles. | Oleksandr Gimanov/AFP via Getty Image

More than 300 strike drones and 30 missiles targeted Odessa and other cities, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

Russian drones attacked Ukrainian cities in the night between Friday and Saturday, killing one person and injuring six in a residential building in Odessa.

“Last night, our warriors from various units repelled another Russian attack. More than 300 strike drones and over 30 missiles of various types were launched against our cities,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote in a social media post on Saturday. “Target elimination is still ongoing — drones remain in the air,” he added.

The Ukrainian army said it shot down 208 Russian drones and missiles.

This week the EU adopted an 18th package of sanctions against Russia, which included a lower cap on the price of Russian oil. The measures also restrict Russian banks’ access to transactions, target “shadow fleet” ships used to evade sanctions and ban any transactions related to the Nord Stream pipelines.

Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 400 drones and one ballistic missile, primarily targeting Kharkiv, Kryvyi Rih and Vinnytsia – three cities in different parts of Ukraine.

Russia launched overnight attacks on multiple cities in Ukraine using hundreds of drones and a missile, striking energy infrastructure and injuring at least 15 people, officials said on Wednesday.

Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 400 drones and one ballistic missile, primarily targeting Kharkiv, Kryvyi Rih and Vinnytsia – three cities in different parts of Ukraine.

The large-scale long-range attacks targeted energy infrastructure, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X.

Power was cut for 80,000 families in Kryvyi Rih and other locations in the Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, DTEK, said on the Telegram app.

The air force said it had shot down most of the drones, but that 12 targets were hit by 57 drones and a missile.

Russia Intensifies Strikes

Russia has stepped up attacks on cities across Ukraine this summer, regularly sending several hundred drones accompanied by ballistic missiles. The attacks were cited by U.S. President Donald Trump this week as a reason for his decision to approve more weapons for Ukraine, including air defences.

“Russia does not change its strategy, and to effectively counter this terror we need a systemic strengthening of defences: more air defences, more interceptors (drones), more determination to make Russia feel our response,” Zelenskyy wrote.

In Vinnytsia and the surrounding region, eight people were wounded, according to Ukraine’s interior ministry.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on X that drones had hit a factory of the Polish wood flooring producer Barlinek Group in Vinnytsia, which is in the western part of central Ukraine.

“The plant manager told me just now that it was deliberate, from three directions… Putin’s criminal war is getting closer to our borders,” he added.

The head of the military administration in Kryvyi Rih, Oleksandr Vilkul, said Russian forces conducted an extended attack with a missile and 28 drones. He said water supplies had also been disrupted in some areas.

Injuries Reported

A 17-year-old boy had been severely injured in the attack and was fighting for his life in the hospital, Vilkul added.

In Kharkiv, a frequent target of Russian attacks, regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov said at least 17 explosions were recorded in a 20-minute drone attack in which three people were injured.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air defence units had gone into action for a time in the capital, but there were no reports of casualties or damage there.

Russia has killed thousands of civilians in attacks on Ukrainian cities since launching its full-scale invasion more than three years ago. Moscow says civilian infrastructure, such as energy systems are legitimate targets because they help Ukraine’s war effort. Ukraine also launches long-range strikes on targets in Russia, although on a more limited scale.

(With inputs from Reuters)