From: Transform Ukraine By Douglas Landro / July 5, 2025
As Trump and Putin Exchange Frustrated Words, Russia Unleashes its Largest Aerial Assault Since February 2022, While Ukrainian Drones Strike Back at Russian Military Infrastructure
Summary of the Day – July 4, 2025
The deadliest irony of Independence Day emerged not in American fireworks, but in the thunderous echo of 550 Russian drones and missiles pounding Ukrainian cities just hours after Donald Trump declared Vladimir Putin unwilling to negotiate peace. The massive overnight assault—the largest combined strike since Russia’s full-scale invasion began—killed one civilian and wounded 26 others in Kyiv alone, transforming the Ukrainian capital into a hellscape of fires and debris. Yet even as rescue workers pulled bodies from the rubble, Ukrainian forces demonstrated their own reach, striking deep into Russian territory to destroy critical military production facilities. The day’s events crystallized a grim reality: as diplomatic efforts stagnate, both sides are escalating their capacity for destruction, with civilians bearing the ultimate cost.
Breaking Point: Trump’s “Very Disappointed” Phone Call Precedes Russia’s Largest Strike
Hours before air raid sirens began wailing across Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump emerged from his July 3 phone call with Vladimir Putin visibly frustrated and uncharacteristically blunt. “I didn’t make any progress with him today at all,” Trump told reporters, his usual diplomatic veneer stripped away. “I don’t think he’s there. I don’t think he’s looking to stop this fighting.”
The conversation, Trump’s sixth with Putin since taking office, had yielded nothing but Russian intransigence. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed Putin’s position the following day: Russia would continue military actions because “it is not yet possible to achieve goals through diplomatic means.” The Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov’s characterization of the call as “frank and constructive” stood in stark contrast to Trump’s barely concealed anger.
Within hours of media reports about the Trump-Putin conversation, Russian forces launched what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described as “one of the most large-scale air attacks—deliberately massive and cynical.” The timing was no coincidence. “The first air raids in our cities and regions began yesterday, almost simultaneously with the start of media discussions of President Trump’s phone call with Putin,” Zelensky observed.
Record Destruction: 550 Russian Weapons Target Ukrainian Cities
The overnight assault of July 3-4 shattered previous records for Russian aerial aggression. Over seven hours, Russian forces deployed 330 Shahed drones, 209 decoy drones, one Kh-47M2 “Kinzhal” aeroballistic missile, six Iskander-M ballistic missiles, and four Iskander-K cruise missiles. The coordinated barrage launched from six directions—Kursk, Oryol, Bryansk, Millerovo in Rostov Oblast, Shatalovo in Smolensk Oblast, and Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Krasnodar Krai.
Voice of Ukraine 