Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in an X post on Friday that he had discussed air defences in a conversation with US President Donald Trump, with the two agreeing to work together on increasing Kyiv's capability to "defend the sky" as Russian attacks escalate.
The conversation also touched upon defence industry capabilities and joint production, with Zelenskyy adding that Ukraine was ready for “direct projects with the United States”, as he felt that it was “critically important for security, especially when it comes to drones and related technologies”.
I had a very important and fruitful conversation with @POTUS. I congratulated President Trump and the entire American people on the US Independence Day.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 4, 2025
We - in Ukraine - are grateful for all the support provided. It helps us protect lives, safeguard our freedom and… pic.twitter.com/kQ3Byipvd2
This comes as Russia's latest offensive overnight into Friday morning superseded their previous one, which was reportedly the biggest attack from Moscow since the beginning of the three-year-long conflict.
According to separate statement from Zelenskyy, as many as 550 air munitions were launched, including at least 330 Russo-Iranian “shaheds”, along with 11 missiles (including ballistic ones). This “deliberately massive and cynical” attack came just hours after what Trump described was a disappointing phone call with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, on Thursday.
Firefighting efforts and debris removal are still ongoing after another Russian strike. This was one of the most large-scale air attacks – deliberately massive and cynical. In total, 550 targets were launched, including at least 330 Russian-Iranian “shaheds”, along with missiles,… pic.twitter.com/vnn31oST0z
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 4, 2025
The statement added that despite the onslaught targeting the capital city—as well as parts of Dnipro, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv—270 of the air munitions were shot down, while 208 drones were jammed by electronic interference.
“As of now, 23 people are known to have been wounded. Everyone is receiving assistance. There are many sites where drone and missile debris fell. Sadly, there were also direct hits,” he said.
A recent US decision to halt some shipments of weapons to Ukraine prompted warnings by Kyiv that the move would weaken its ability to defend against Russia's airstrikes and battlefield advances.
However, after the “very good” conversation between Zelenskyy and Trump, the latter had told the Ukrainian president that he would check what US weapons due to be sent to Ukraine (if any) had been put on hold, as per Reuters and Axios reports.
Zelenskyy urged Kyiv's allies to impose “truly large-scale pressure” on Russia, especially mentioning the US, since the US has not yet imposed separate sanctions on Moscow, despite Trump's commitment to increasing defence spending at the recent NATO summit, and despite the EU imposing its own sanctions packages, urging America to follow suit.
