VIDEO 1,000 drones in 24 hours over Ukraine: Russia launched one of the largest attacks to date
The Ukrainian authorities announce that the Russian bombings launched throughout the day on Tuesday targeted 11 regions, including the historic center of the city of Lviv. The attacks, which caused several deaths, were part of a massive wave of drones, according to The Guardian.
On the night of March 23-24, Moscow launched nearly 400 long-range drones and 23 cruise missiles, Ukrainian officials said. These were followed by another 556 drones on Tuesday in an unusual attack that hit several cities in the west of the country.
A Russian drone struck the Bernardine Monastery, a 16th-century church in the UNESCO-listed medieval center of Lviv, causing damage.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attack had caused damage in 11 regions and reiterated calls for allies to urgently provide Kiev with more air defense munitions.
He has repeatedly said that Ukraine, which depends on the US for systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles, faces an imminent shortage as Washington's attention remains focused on the US-Israel conflict with Iran.
After enduring a winter marked by widespread power and heating blackouts, Ukraine is bracing for a new Russian offensive.
Moscow's war of attrition usually intensifies in the spring as weather conditions improve. Russian forces, outnumbering Ukrainian troops by about three to one, are trying to make gains along the eastern and southern fronts.
Peace talks to no avail
Ukrainian and American delegations held two days of talks in Florida over the weekend with the aim of finding a way to end the large-scale Russian invasion, but no significant developments were reported. A key sticking point remains the Donbas region, which Moscow wants Kiev to cede entirely.
On Tuesday, Zelensky wrote on X: “We had a detailed discussion about the results of the meetings in the United States. It is significant that while our negotiators were presenting the report, Russia launched a new wave of shahed drones against Ukraine.
The geopolitical situation has become complicated because of the war against Iran, and unfortunately this encourages Russia.”
Ukrainska Pravda reported that during the talks in Florida, the US put pressure on Ukraine to withdraw its troops from the Donetsk region, saying Washington could withdraw from peace talks and focus more on the military operation in Iran.
Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly stated that any discussion of a voluntary withdrawal would only be possible if Ukraine first received firm security guarantees from the West.
The Kremlin, which has benefited from an economic windfall driven by rising global energy prices, said last week that talks between Washington, Moscow and Kiev on ending the war in Ukraine were on a “situational pause” because of the conflict in Iran.
