Russia will respond to Ukraine’s latest attacks as and when its military sees fit, the Kremlin said yesterday, accusing Kyiv of state terrorism as US President Donald Trump downplayed prospects for an immediate peace between the countries.
Ukraine used drones to strike Russian heavy bomber planes at air bases in Siberia and the far north at the weekend, and Russia also accused it of blowing up rail bridges in the south of the country, killing seven people.
Trump said that during a more than two-hour-long call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday he urged him to refrain, but fully expected Moscow to strike back.
“It’s probably not going to be pretty. I don’t like it,” said Trump, who described what he called “great hatred” between Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
The Kremlin confirmed that Putin had told Trump that Moscow was obliged to retaliate.
Russian warplanes were damaged but not destroyed in Sunday’s attack by Ukraine, and they will be restored, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.
Ukrainian drones struck airfields in Siberia and the far north where Russia houses heavy bombers that form part of its strategic nuclear forces.
The US assesses that up to 20 warplanes were hit and around 10 were destroyed, a figure that is about half the number estimated by Zelenskiy.
Speaking to reporters before a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump said he believed that “at some point” there would be peace between Russia and Ukraine.
Merz said he would discuss with Trump ways to increase pressure on Russia.
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