Volodymyr Zelenskyy has thanked Ukraine’s allies for condemning Russian strikes after one of the deadliest days for civilians in his country so far this year.

Ukraine’s president described the attacks as a “vile and inhumane intimidation tactic” by Russia.

While a warning by Donald Trump to Vladimir Putin to stop “pounding” Ukraine or else, appears to have fallen on deaf ears.

Russia launched heavy aerial attacks overnight into Saturday after the White House administration suspended intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

The US has been piling pressure on President Zelenskyy’s government to cooperate in convening peace talks with Russia.

American aerospace company Maxar Technologies said on Friday it had disabled access to its satellite imagery for Kyiv. Its ability to strike inside Russia and defend itself from bombardment is very much diminished without such images.

At least 22 people were killed in multiple Russian attacks, including 11 in the frontline town of Dobropilla in Ukraine’s embattled eastern Donetsk region.

Russia fired two ballistic missiles into the town centre, then launched a strike targeting rescuers who responded, according to Mr Zelenskyy. Forty-seven people, including seven children, were injured in the attack.

“It is a vile and inhumane intimidation tactic to which the Russians often resort,” he said.

The president added: “It was one of the most brutal strikes, a combined one. The strike was deliberately calculated to cause maximum damage. Missiles, along with a Shahed drone, targeted the central part of the town.

“Nine residential buildings were hit. Also, the shopping centre and stores were struck.”

Read more:
Russia ‘appears to have ignored Trump warning’
US pausing military aid is ‘betrayal’ to Ukraine, soldier says

Another seven people were killed in four towns close to the frontline where Russian troops have been making steady advances, said regional governor Vadym Filashkin.

Three others died when a Russian drone hit a civilian workshop in the northeastern Kharkiv region, emergency services reported. And one man was killed by shelling in the region.

The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said it was one of 2025’s deadliest attacks for Ukrainian civilians.

Some 24 hours earlier, Russia struck Ukrainian energy facilities using dozens of missiles and drones.

The attacks hampered Ukraine’s ability to supply power to its citizens and run weapons factories vital to its defences.

When asked on Friday if Russian President Vladimir Putin was taking advantage of the US pause on intelligence-sharing to attack Ukraine, Mr Trump responded: “I think he’s doing what anybody else would.”

Mr Zelenskyy did not mention intelligence-sharing on Saturday, but said he welcomed Mr Trump’s proposal to bring in banking sanctions and tariffs on Russia until a ceasefire and final peace settlement is reached.

Read more from Sky News:
South Korea’s impeached president released from prison
Would the world be more peaceful if women were in charge?

Mr Zelenskyy also said: “I am grateful to all the leaders, all those diplomats of our partner countries, all public figures who support Ukraine, who have condemned these Russian strikes and who call all things by their proper names.

“And it is essential that we continue coordinating all our efforts with our partners to ensure that our defence works effectively and that we do everything to bring peace closer.”

Mr Zelenskyy has said he and other senior Ukrainian officials will go to Saudi Arabia next week to discuss proposals aimed at ending the war.

In a post on X, he wrote he was set to meet Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday, and his team would remain in the country to have talks with US officials.

It “cuts my heart” and is a “betrayal”.

This was the response of a Ukrainian soldier in a frontline combat regiment directly affected by Donald Trump’s decision to pause US military support to Ukraine.

Serhii, 45, maintains a unit of US-supplied Bradley infantry fighting vehicles that are defending an area of eastern Ukraine from attacking Russian forces.

The halt to American military aid – if sustained – means there will be no new ammunition and no ability to repair any of the vehicles when they are damaged – a constant risk.

Ukraine war latest: Follow live updates

On a recent mission by the 425th Storming Regiment “Skala”, three Bradleys went into battle towards the direction of the city of Pokrovsk, an area of heavy clashes.

Only two returned after the other was hit by the Russian side.

“It’s going to be very hard,” Serhii said, standing next to a large Bradley, covered by a camouflage net and tucked under a line of trees in the Donetsk region.

“These vehicles are really good. You can fight back with them. And not just defend, you can even advance. It’s a shame we didn’t have this equipment two or three years ago.”

The regiment has been using Bradleys for a number of months. Serhii is the lead mechanic.

The tracked vehicles, armed with a chain gun that can fire 200 rounds per minute, were first developed in the 1980s but have been fitted with modern reactive armour that means they can survive drone strikes, rocket attacks and the shrapnel from artillery rounds.

“The vehicle’s protection… is fantastic,” Serhii said, with clear admiration for the equipment compared with Soviet-era fighting vehicles that many Ukrainian troops have to use.

He said the crew of one of his Bradleys was hit by two rocket-propelled grenades but was able to continue driving and was unharmed.

Serhii, who comes from the Donetsk region, said he felt betrayed by Mr Trump’s decision to halt such crucial support.

The US president ordered the move as he attempts to put pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to negotiate a ceasefire deal with Russia.

“Although I’m not a politician, it’s a betrayal for us, for the guys who are defending Ukraine,” the soldier said.

Asked how he felt when he heard the news about the US president’s decision, Serhii said: “The latest news cuts my heart, I can answer you that way. It cuts my heart… If politicians solve issues this way, just by halting weapons supply in one move, that’s criminal.”

He signalled it would be harder for Ukrainian troops to defend their land without the US military support – but they would still fight.

“Even without this weapon, we believe we will move forward,” he said.

“They [the Russians] have to retreat, no matter what. The guys didn’t take up arms here for nothing, and they stand together. Together, all of us, as one, will defeat this enemy.”

As for whether he had a message for Mr Trump, the soldier said: “Don’t stop military aid. Politics is politics, but the people, I believe, are the most important.

“It will be very hard for us without such equipment. This equipment is good; it allows us to show results. And we will keep showing them. We’ve shown them before and we will keep showing them. That’s how it is. Thank you.”

Fighting ‘for my motherland’

Sky News watched as two crews prepared their fighting vehicles for a potential mission on Thursday evening.

Sedoi, 41, commands one of the Bradleys and operates the gun.

He said the American-supplied vehicle gives him confidence when he goes into battle – and was also likely a scary prospect for Russian troops to have to encounter.

“We make a lot of noise. Everything catches fire and burns… It’s a good vehicle,” he said.

Sedoi said he did not have a reaction to the news about the halt to American military support, saying: “I don’t get involved in their politics.”

However, he signalled he did want an end to the war – even if it meant Russia keeping some of the land it has seized.

“Let it end, so people stop dying. Because a lot of people have died,” he said.

Read more:
Russia has ‘all the cards’ in negotiations
Russia ‘appears to have ignored Trump warning’

Recently recovered from a shrapnel wound, Sedoi said he volunteered to fight after Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale war more than three years ago because of Russia’s brutality.

“I’ve heard what they do when they enter villages, what they do with children and women… I don’t want them to go any further… That’s why I’m here.

“But, to be honest, I’m getting tired of it.”

Yet still he and his fellow soldiers battle on. Asked why he was fighting, the soldier said: “For my motherland.”

A warning by Donald Trump to Vladimir Putin to stop “pounding” Ukraine or else, appears to have fallen on deaf ears after another night of devastating Russian strikes.

The persistent pummelling of Ukrainian towns and cities also follows a decision by the US president to stop sharing American intelligence and weapons with Kyiv – a move that is directly hampering the Ukrainian military’s ability to defend their skies from the Russian onslaught.

In the deadliest attack overnight, at least 11 people were killed and 30 wounded, including five children, in the town of Dobropillia, about 15 miles from the frontline in the Donestsk region of eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine war latest: Follow live updates

The Ukrainian police service said a Russian ballistic missile, rockets and attack drones hit eight multi-storey buildings as well as a shopping centre and dozens of cars.

“Some buildings were burnt down almost completely,” the national police of Ukraine said in a post on its Telegram social media channel.

Another three civilians were killed and seven injured in a drone attack on the Kharkiv region in the northeast of the country, according to a separate post by the interior ministry.

Just hours earlier, the US president posted a warning to the Kremlin on social media.

“Based on the fact that Russia is absolutely ‘pounding’ Ukraine on the battlefield right now, I am strongly considering large-scale banking sanctions, sanctions, and tariffs on Russia until a cease fire and FINAL SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT ON PEACE IS REACHED,” he wrote.

“To Russia and Ukraine, get to the table right now, before it is too late. Thank you!!!”

Kyiv will be watching closely to see whether Moscow’s continuing attacks will prompt Mr Trump to carry out his threat.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been in crisis mode ever since Mr Trump returned to office and started attacking his record on the war, falsely calling him a dictator and even claiming – again erroneously – that Ukraine was to blame for Russia’s invasion.

Sky News on the ground in Dobropillia 24hrs before strike

Deborah Haynes

Security and Defence Editor

@haynesdeborah

A Sky News team was in Dobropillia 24 hours before the attack – stopping off to grab food at a pizza restaurant that was close to the site of at least two of the incoming strikes.

The restaurant is on a road of shops, including a clothes store and a small grocery outlet.

The town, which used to be home to 28,000 residents before Russia’s full-scale war, feels far more battle-hardened than areas further away from the frontline.

Fighting has been raging for months between invading Russian forces and Ukrainian troops, just over a dozen miles away, around the city of Pokrovsk.

Despite the closeness of the war, however, many civilians, including children, still live in Dobropillia.

In the most significant blow, Washington has paused the sharing on intelligence with its Ukrainian partners, instantly making it far harder for Ukraine to have a clear picture on the movement of Russian forces and weapons, while also hampering the ability of the Ukrainian armed forces to effectively conduct targeting attacks against Russian positions.

Read more:
The most significant part of Zelenskyy’s olive branch to Trump
Would the world be more peaceful if women were in charge?

A decision to stop the flow of military support to Ukraine will also have a huge impact on the country’s ability to keep defending itself.

The US has been Kyiv’s largest and most important supplier of arms, including the Patriot air defence system – the only piece of equipment in Ukraine’s arsenal that has the ability to take down ballistic missiles.