Moscow launched 40 missiles and nearly 600 drones across Ukraine overnight, forcing Poland to scramble jets as the western city of Lviv was hit. Follow the latest.
Thursday 21 August 2025 08:29, UK
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he’s proposed a $50bn (£37bn) five-year drone deal with the US, aiming to produce 10 million drones annually.
“It’s a massive programme. It’ll likely take off after the war.”
Russia has “ramped up their drone numbers” and allies need to “step up urgently”, Zelenskyy added.
“We, due to funding shortages, haven’t been able to keep pace.”
Ukraine has 1.1 drones to every Russian drone on “key fronts”, down from 1.4 last month, he said.
More photos now of Russian attacks on Ukraine, with smoke billowing from a factory in the Zakarpattia region.
Firefighters were pictured at a Flextronics factory, a Singaporean–American manufacturing company, in Mukachevo.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he wants to see a “robust response” from the US if Vladimir Putin doesn’t agree to a meeting.
In wide-ranging remarks to journalists yesterday, he said: “If the Russians aren’t prepared for this, we’re asking for tariffs.
“We’re calling for additional sanctions and tariff measures from the US as they will genuinely make an impact,” he added.
“We’re hopeful that America will step up.”
Where could they meet?
He said he was “fine” with Switzerland or Austria and unopposed to Turkey.
“A meeting in Moscow is out of the question,” he said.
As for Budapest, Zelenskyy said it was “tricky” because there is “broad unity across Europe in supporting Ukraine during this war, but, to be frank, Budapest hasn’t been on board”.
“I asked President Trump to ensure Budapest doesn’t block our path to European Union membership.
“President Trump promised his team would work on this.”
‘Four years’ for Russia to take Donbas
Zelenskyy says he believes it would take Russia four years of war to seize the rest of the Donbas, which Vladimir Putin has demanded in exchange for an end to fighting.
He explained Russia already occupied a third of the region before the full scale invasion and now hold 67-69%, meaning they have taken just a third in nearly four years of fighting.
“I made it clear that talk of them occupying our Donbas by year’s end is pure bluster.”
The Ukrainian president said he explained to Trump that withdrawing from the Donbas would open a path for the Russians to Kharkiv and Dnipro.
“If Putin gains control here, he’ll push further, regardless of any agreements signed. Did President Trump agree? He understood.”
Zelenskyy says he told Trump that Putin was selling “hot air”.
“Perhaps he’s banking on this, hoping to avoid ending the war by setting conditions we can’t accept.”
Security guarantees boosted by US
US agreement to support security guarantees has opened the door for other allies to commit, Zelenskyy said.
Turkey, for example has “indicated it’s ready to ensure security in the Black Sea”.
General staffs from “key countries” are already discussing what they’re prepared to contribute,” he said.
This ranges from boots on the ground to air defence systems and air patrols to financial support and weaponry.
Russia hit an American electronics manufacturer in Ukraine during its overnight attack, Ukraine’s foreign minister says.
“A fully civilian facility that has nothing to do with defence or the military,” Andrii Sybiha said.
“This is not the first Russian attack on American businesses in Ukraine, after strikes on Boeing offices in Kyiv earlier this year and other attacks.”
Russia used hundreds of drones, hypersonic, ballistic and cruise missiles in the countrywide attack, he added.
Pictures show the aftermath of a Russian strike on a residential area in western Ukraine.
Firefighters were seen tackling a blaze in the Lviv region, where tens of houses have been damaged.
Russia attacked Ukraine with 574 drones and 40 missiles overnight, Ukraine’s air force says.
That would make it one of the biggest aerial attacks of the entire war.
The air force said it shot down 546 drones and 31 missiles.
By Ed Conway, economics and data editor
Why is Donald Trump threatening to impose sanctions, or tariffs, or maybe both, on India in relation to the Ukraine war?
The short answer is that India has established itself as one of the single most important customers for one of the single most important products made in Russia: crude oil. You only have to glance at the data on Russian fossil fuel exports to see what I mean…
Nor is it just India. China has raised its imports of Russian fossil fuels by 44% since the imposition of sanctions.
Back before the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, by far and away the biggest recipient of Russian energy exports was Europe.
Then Europe imposed sanctions on various different Russian products, most notably oil. The idea was to starve Vladimir Putin of the revenues he is using to fund the Russian war machine.
Instead, something else happened: those Russian tankers which previously delivered oil to Europe instead started sending it to Indian oil refineries. The Middle Eastern oil tankers that had previously served those Russian refineries began sending their oil to Europe. Nothing, fundamentally, really changed.
US vice president JD Vance says European countries will have to pay the “lion’s share” of costs for Ukraine’s security guarantees.
Security guarantees refer to commitments by Ukrainian allies to protect it in the event Russian launches another invasion after peace is agreed.
It is one of Ukraine’s key priorities in any deal and US backing would provide the greatest deterrence, but Donald Trump wants to shift responsibility to Europe.
“I don’t think we should carry the burden here,” Vance told Fox News.
“The president certainly expects Europe to play the leading role here.
“No matter what form this takes, the Europeans are going to have to take the lion’s share of the burden.
“It’s their continent, it’s their security, and the president has been very clear – they are going to have to step up here.”
Trump has said he will not put US troops on the ground but could offer air support.
European countries have formed a “coalition of the willing” that would commit forces to guarantee Ukraine’s security.
Bloomberg reported 10 nations were willing to commit troops, citing European diplomatic sources.
Poland says aircraft have been scrambled to protect its airspace due to Russian strikes on Ukraine.
Moscow launched a deadly attack on the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, which is less than 50 miles from the border with Poland (see more details in previous post).
“In connection with the activity of long-range aviation of the Russian Federation, conducting strikes on Ukrainian territory… aircraft of the Polish Air Force and allied aviation are operating in Polish airspace,” the Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces said.
A wave of Russian missiles and drone attacks on cities across Ukraine has been reported by local officials and Ukrainian media.
Tens of houses have been damaged by combined strikes as far west as Lviv, its regional governor says.
Maksym Kozytskyi said at least one person has been killed and two injured.
Ukraine’s airforce said it was fighting off ballistic missile attacks and reported drones headed for Chernihiv, Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Rivne, Khmelnytskyi and Ternopil regions.
The impact on the ground is as yet unclear.
A missile strike on Mukachevo in the Zakarpattia region injured 12, according to its city council.
Infrastructure was damaged in Zaporizhzhia, said Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration.
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