On Monday, the Kremlin dismissed former US President Donald Trump’s comments calling Russian President Vladimir Putin “absolutely crazy,” attributing them to “emotional overload” following Russia’s largest aerial attack on Ukraine since its full-scale invasion began in February 2022.
Trump, posting on his social media platform Truth Social, condemned Russia’s recent barrage of 367 drones and missiles targeting Ukrainian cities, which resulted in at least 13 civilian deaths. He said, “Something has happened to him,” referring to Putin, adding, “He has gone absolutely crazy — needlessly killing a lot of people.”
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In response, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian media that Trump’s remarks were not based on a rational assessment but rather stemmed from emotional reactions affecting all parties involved.
This exchange came after a weekend of relentless drone and missile attacks on Ukraine. Ukrainian officials reported that between Saturday night and Sunday morning, Russia launched 367 drones and missiles in what Kyiv described as the most intense aerial assault since the conflict began. Another 355 drones were launched between Sunday night and Monday, resulting in at least 10 more casualties, according to the Ukrainian air force, which called it the largest drone-only attack to date.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the strikes, calling them politically motivated. “It is an obvious political choice… by Putin, a choice by Russia to continue the war and destroy lives,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin justified the attacks as retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on Russian civilian infrastructure. Russia’s defense ministry reported intercepting 20 Ukrainian drones over various Russian regions during the same period.
In related news, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz indicated a major shift in Western arms policy by announcing that Ukraine’s allies have removed all range restrictions on weapons supplied to Kyiv. This change potentially allows Germany to provide long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, a move Berlin has previously resisted.
“There are no longer any restrictions on range,” Merz stated at a press conference. “This means Ukraine can now defend itself, for example, by striking military targets inside Russia.”
Although the German government has not confirmed an imminent delivery of Taurus missiles, which have a range of 500 km — significantly longer than previous weapons supplied — Berlin faces increasing pressure from Kyiv and NATO partners to approve the transfer.
Reuters also reported that President Zelensky is expected to visit Berlin on Wednesday, though this has not yet been officially confirmed.
The question of how Ukraine may use Western-supplied arms offensively inside Russian territory remains under discussion. In November 2023, then-US President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use certain US-supplied long-range weapons to strike targets within Russia, though with some limitations. The UK has also acknowledged that Ukraine ultimately decides how to deploy the weapons it receives.
Moscow has warned that providing Taurus missiles to Ukraine would be a “dangerous move,” suggesting it could lead to further escalation in the conflict.
