The Kremlin has responded to U.S. President Donald Trump's harsh criticism of Vladimir Putin, defending the Russian leader's military actions in Ukraine. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized that Putin's recent drone strikes were necessary measures aimed at safeguarding Russian national security. Trump's comments label Putin as "crazy" for orchestrating the largest drone assault in Ukraine since the conflict escalated in February 2022.
Over the course of a single night, Ukraine reported an unprecedented 355 Russian drones launched, targeting civilian areas and resulting in injuries. This surge in hostilities comes on the heels of a weekend marked by brutal Russian attacks, which claimed 13 lives. Despite the scale of the drone assault, there have been no reported fatalities specifically from the latest attack itself; however, prior shelling in northeastern Sumy led to the death of one civilian.
Trump's vehement critique accused Putin of indiscriminately killing civilians, not just military personnel, and suggested that his ambitions extend beyond Ukraine's borders. He argued that the ongoing war could have been avoided had he been president, reiterating that the conflict is ultimately a result of the failures of current leaders, including Putin and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
As tensions rise in the region, this latest exchange underscores the complexity of international relations and the ongoing implications of military actions on both sides.
