Russia bombed four Ukrainian regions despite Trump's warnings

The Ukrainian Air Force reported early Wednesday thatRussia launched hundreds of drones toward four of Ukraine's most important regions, just as lawmakers in Kiev were rushing to approve as soon as possible an increase in defense spending amid a sharp intensification of Russian shelling in recent days. The latest attacks, which have so far left 15 wounded and two dead, hit several cities and even parts of the regions of Vinnytsia, Kharkov, Odessa and the Ukrainian president's hometown Volodymir Zelensky, Kryvyi Rih.

As reported by the Ukrainian government, the Kremlin unleashed 400 long-range drones and a missile, in what different media have described as the biggest attack perpetrated this week by Moscow. In a posting on his X account, Zelenski detailed that Ukrainian forces disabled or intercepted at least 345 of the Russian drones, and explained that the aim of this attack was todestroy Ukraine's energy infrastructure. "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 — so that Russia feels our response," the Ukrainian president wrote.

The latest bombings came just hours after Trump's warnings

Russia's attacks on Ukraine took place after President Donald Trump warned on Monday that the Kremlin would face significantly tougher sanctions if President Vladimir Putin did not put an end to Russia's attacksRussia's attacks against Ukraine in the coming hours, asserting that Moscow would face harsh consequences if it continued on its warmongering drift and failed to reach a peace deal with Kiev soon. "We’re very, very unhappy with [Russia], and we’re going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don’t have a deal in about 50 days. We are very unhappy — I am — with Russia," Trump commented during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Despite these words, Russian leaders not only downplayed Trump's threat, but evenpublicly assured that the Republican leader was acting theatrically. "Trump issued a theatrical ultimatum to the Kremlin. The world shuddered, expecting the consequences. Belligerent Europe was disappointed. Russia didn’t care," Russian Federation Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev wrote on his X account on Tuesday.