'Gone crazy' Escalation in drone strikes as Trump berates Putin

Moscow launched three consecutive nights of massive drone strikes against Ukraine, as Donald Trump broke his silence to suggest the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, had “gone crazy”.

- By Peter Beaumont KYIV and Pjotr Sauer

Overnight on Monday, Russia fired a record 355 Shahed drones as well as nine cruise missiles, in an escalating drone campaign targeting Ukraine’s cities and communities, with Ukraine’s air force spokesperson, Yuriy Ignat, confirming it was the largest drone attack since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The previous day, Volodymyr Zelenskyy had condemned “the silence of America” over the escalating intensity of the airstrikes. But on Monday, Trump railed against Putin, saying he had “gone absolutely CRAZY”; he also criticised Zelenskyy, for calling out US inaction against Russia.

“Something has happened to [Putin]. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” Trump said of the Russian president on Truth Social. “I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!”

Trump also posted that the Ukrainian president “is doing his Country no favours by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don’t like it, and it better stop.”

Zelenskyy, however, doubled down on his criticism on Monday. “Only a sense of total impunity can allow Russia to carry out such strikes and continue increasing their scale,” Zelensky said on social media, adding: “The increase in Russian strikes should be met with increased sanctions.”

While Trump had suggested to reporters earlier that he may be considering new sanctions, there was no indication on Monday of any meaningful US action against Moscow.