BUDAPEST — Russia launched four missiles and 136 drones into Ukraine overnight into Monday morning, according to Ukraine’s air force, after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would provide Kyiv with more Patriot surface-to-air systems to help defend against Russia’s nightly bombardments.
Ukraine’s air force said in a post to Telegram that 108 drones were shot down or otherwise neutralized during the latest attack, with 28 drones impacting in 10 locations. Falling debris from downed drones was reported in four locations, the air force said.
Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces downed 11 Ukrainian drones overnight into Monday morning.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is continuing the long-range bombardment of Ukrainian cities despite criticism from Trump, whose months-long push for a ceasefire and eventual peace deal has thus far failed to achieve a breakthrough.
Ahead of an expected announcement on his Ukraine-Russia policy on Monday, Trump said Sunday that the U.S. would provide more “sophisticated” equipment to aid Kyiv in its defense against Russian attacks.
Trump is also expected to meet with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Washington, D.C., on Monday.
“We basically are going to send them various pieces of very sophisticated military equipment,” Trump told reporters on Sunday. “They’re going to pay us 100% for them, and that’s the way we want it,” Trump said.
Asked if he would still send 10 Patriot missiles to Ukraine — as announced last week — the president said the number has not been finalized but that Kyiv would be receiving more aid.
“I haven’t agreed on the number yet, but they’re going to have some because they do need protection,” he said.
“But the European Union is paying for it,” Trump added. “We’re not paying anything for it, but we will send it. It will be business for us, and we will send them Patriots, which they desperately need, because Putin really surprised a lot of people.”
“He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening. There’s a little bit of a problem there,” Trump continued.
The Patriot surface-to-air missile system has become one of Ukraine’s most important platforms during Russia’s full-scale invasion, which began in February 2022. Since 2023, Patriots in Ukraine have been used to down drones, ballistic missiles and Russian aircraft.
Ukraine now fields at least six Patriots, two of which were provided by the U.S. and the others by different NATO allies.
Ukraine has other air defense platforms — among them the European IRIS-T and SAMP-T systems — but none have been so publicly celebrated by Ukraine for blunting Russian attacks. The system, which entered U.S. service in the 1980s, has even been credited with shooting down Russian hypersonic missiles.
Trump declined to say whether he would be announcing new sanctions on Russia on Monday.
Sen. Lindsey Graham told ABC News last week that Trump is “ready” to act on a sweeping Senate bill that would impose tariffs of up to 500% on countries that buy oil and gas from Russia.
Trump, Graham said Wednesday, is “trying to get Putin to the table, but Putin’s not responding.” The legislation will include a waiver allowing Trump to lift sanctions on countries purchasing Russian oil or uranium for 180 days, Graham said.
Meanwhile, Trump’s Russia-Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg arrived in Kyiv on Monday.
Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, welcomed Kellogg in a post to Telegram. “Peace through strength is the principle of U.S. President Donald Trump, and we support this approach,” he said.
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