Putin bombs civilians in latest evidence he has no interest in peace
By WILL STEWART and ELENA SALVONI
Vladimir Putin inflicted a savage night of drone strikes on Ukraine, targeting civilians in a merciless attack which Kyiv said demonstrated that Moscow has no interest in peace.
Volodymyr Zelensky declared today that Russia's onslaught against Kharkiv and Dnipro proved its claims to Donald Trump that it is ready for an end to the war are hollow and false.
The Ukrainian President is set to meet with European leaders in Paris today for a summit aimed at boosting Ukrainian security ahead of any potential ceasefire with Russia.
The meeting is seeking to set out what security guarantees Europe can offer Ukraine once a ceasefire deal is agreed, including the possible deployment of military forces by a so-called 'coalition of the willing'.
Zelensky said he was expecting 'strong decisions' from Thursday's meeting, which was also due to be attended by Sir Keir Starmer and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who met ahead of the conference this morning.
Both Russian and Ukrainian authorities have been accusing each other of trying to derail any initial agreement.
Pointing the finger at Russia for 'dragging' out the conflict after it rejected a 30-day ceasefire proposal agreed upon by Ukraine and the United States, Emmanuel Macron said Moscow 'wants this war to continue'.
'We need to put pressure on Russia so that the war ends,' the French President said, as he prepared to welcome European partners for the talks which the Kremlin has shown unvarnished contempt for.
Last night's relentless attacks by Iranian-designed Shahed drones appeared to target civilians and reportedly injured at least 11 people including a child, 14, in Kharkiv
Fires raged in residential areas of Ukraine overnight after a drone barrage
People take shelter in a metro station during a drone strike alert, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv
One video shows how players in a football game in Kharkiv ran in terror from a drone which exploded nearby
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer during a meeting at the British embassy in Paris on the sidelines of a summit for 'coalition of the willing'
French President Emmanuel Macron (L) meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Elysee Palace on March 26, 2025
The Eiffel Tower was lit up in the colors of the Ukrainian flag in Paris last night on the eve of the summit with the 'coalition of the willing'
Last night's relentless attacks by Iranian-designed Shahed drones appeared to target civilians and reportedly injured at least 11 people including a 14-year-old child.
Zelensky said that a 12-year-old girl had also been injured in the bombardment.
One video shows how players in a football game in Kharkiv ran in terror from a drone which exploded nearby, while a dozen drones caused fires in four separate locations.
'Multi-story residential buildings, cars, outbuildings, and an infrastructure facility were damaged,' said mayor Ihor Terekhov.
Dnipro was also hit by Shahed drone strikes, with three wounded, including two women aged 78 and 75.
Zelensky said he had agreed to an unconditional ceasefire in part to prove that Putin's claims to Donald Trump and leaders in the Middle East that he is ready for peace are bogus.
They have 'always told me in private, in other conversations, that Putin is ready for a ceasefire, for an unconditional one [and] that Ukraine does not want the war to end,' he said.
'Ukraine does not want peace. That is, Russian propaganda has worked very hard there.
'And with such steps I have clearly shown that we are ready for a ceasefire, but you will now see that Putin is not ready.'
Firefighters try to extinguish the fire that broke out after an attack near the local market as the war between Russia and Ukraine continue on March 26, 2025 in Kharkiv,
Huge fires raged after Russia launched some 86 drones and an Iskander-M ballistic missile at Ukraine
Russia launched 86 drones and an Iskander-M ballistic missile during overnight attacks, the Ukrainian air force said, with 42 drones shot down and another 26 missing their targets, likely due to electronic warfare countermeasures.
Meanwhile Moscow said it noticed and downed only one Ukrainian drone above its territory overnight, in Bryansk region, the fewest for many months.
Kyiv this morning disclosed that an attack it carried out on a Russian air force warehouse last week destroyed hundreds of millions of pounds worth of cruise missiles.
It said that almost 100 of the cruise missiles exploded in the strike at Engels-2 airbase - some 375 miles from the nearest Ukrainian-controlled territory - when it was hit by long-range drones.
It was previously reported that Kh-101 and Kh-555 cruise missiles were stored at the base.
If so, the likely range of losses to the Putin war machine is between £450 million and £820 million, according to Ukrainian estimates.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said today: 'According to the updated information, as a result of the strike [on] Engels-2 on 20 March 2025, the enemy lost 96 air-launched cruise missiles, in particular, as a result of secondary detonation.
'These weapons were designed to deliver three missile strikes during March-April of this year.'
Vladimir Putin inflicted a savage night of drone strikes on Ukraine, targeting civilians in a merciless attack
'The strikes on storage sites led to the destruction of significant reserves of fuel for aviation 'which negatively affects the ability of the Russian aggressor to provide combat operations'.
Engels-2 is a home to Putin's strategic nuclear Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers, which have been used to unleash Kh-101 and Kh-555 cruise missiles on Ukraine during the war.
Footage showed towering flames and a giant mushroom cloud when the airbase storage base was struck.
After the detonation, debris scattered more than three miles from the exploding missiles, say reports.
Explosions continued for several days.
Russia has not commented on alleged missile losses.
In the wake of the strike, Russia has mainly used drones not cruise missiles to attack Ukraine.
British defence intelligence said two days ago that the strike was Ukraine's most successful targeting of Russian munitions so far this year.
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