Russia hits Kyiv and Dnipro with more than 200 drones as proposed ceasefire collapses, Ukraine signs US drone production memorandum
A weekend ceasefire proposal between Russia and Ukraine collapsed on Tuesday as Russian forces launched more than 200 drones overnight, with explosions reported in Kyiv and Dnipro and Kyiv claiming a roughly 90 percent interception rate. Ukraine signed a memorandum with the United States on drone-technology exchange and joint production, Washington's first formal move to tap Ukrainian battlefield expertise on unmanned systems. The crisis landed alongside a domestic shock: anti-graft agencies named six more suspects in their probe of former presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak — the day after NABU and SAPO filed a UAH 460 million money-laundering case tied to a luxury housing project — while Kyiv's top diplomat accused Moscow of trying to barter abducted Ukrainian children in the proposed prisoner swap.
Russia launched more than 200 drones at Ukraine overnight, with explosions reported in Kyiv and Dnipro, as a proposed weekend ceasefire collapsed and fighting resumed in full. Ukraine said it shot down roughly 90 percent of the incoming drones. Kyiv Post analyst Paul Goble said the Kremlin's recent end-of-war signalling was "simply another delay tactic designed to fool Europe", and the Kremlin itself acknowledged it has no specifics on how Vladimir Putin proposes to end the war despite his earlier statements.
Talks were not abandoned. Kyiv discussed ramped-up arms support with NATO and is working with European partners on what officials are calling an "airport ceasefire" — a narrower, practical framework aimed at reducing fighting through tangible arrangements. The prisoner-swap component of the weekend proposal has not happened: Ukraine's top diplomat accused Moscow of trying to trade abducted Ukrainian children, saying they should be returned through proper channels, while Zelensky said the coalition working to secure their return now spans nearly 50 nations.
The day's second shock was domestic. Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies named six more suspects in the probe of former presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak — a continuation of last year's Operation Midas — and emphasised that President Volodymyr Zelensky himself is not, and has never been, a subject of the case. The escalation comes one day after the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) formally filed a UAH 460 million money-laundering case against Yermak linked to elite real estate. Zelensky's former spokesperson chose the same news cycle to appear on Tucker Carlson's US programme, accusing Zelensky of corruption and claiming Kyiv had agreed to give up the Donbas in 2022.
On the technology front, Washington moved to tap Ukrainian battlefield expertise, signing a memorandum with Kyiv on drone-technology exchange and joint production. The US is positioning itself to import Ukraine's frontline drone know-how — the same know-how that has produced the 90 percent interception rates Kyiv reports against Russian and Iranian-made drones. It is the first formal US–Ukraine cooperation framework on unmanned systems.
The economic backdrop is sour for Ukraine's interception effort. New research cited by the Kyiv Post found Russia's April oil revenue rose despite Ukrainian strikes on refineries, with China and India among the biggest buyers and Europe "not far behind". The figures undercut the assumption that sanctions plus Ukrainian deep strikes would degrade Moscow's war chest.
European strategy is openly shifting. Finland's president said Europe should engage with Moscow — not out of preference but because US policies no longer align with European interests. European capitals are racing to build long-range weapons after concluding Washington may no longer be a reliable long-term security guarantor, with the US scrapping parts of its planned regional deployments.
The Iran front continues to bleed into the Ukrainian story. The United Arab Emirates reportedly struck Iran in retaliatory attacks. US President Donald Trump rejected Tehran's latest proposal, and his administration imposed sanctions on firms accused of helping route Iranian oil to China — the same buyer keeping the Russian war economy afloat.