KYIV: Russia has unleashed its most extensive drone assault on Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion, Ukrainian officials confirmed on Wednesday, following a renewed pledge of military support for Kyiv from U.S. President Donald Trump.

According to Ukraine’s Air Force, the overnight attack involved 728 drones and 13 missiles, surpassing the previous record of 539 drones launched on July 4. The majority of the drones were directed at the city of Lutsk in north-western Ukraine, causing Poland to scramble military aircraft due to the scale of the air activity near its borders.

Ukrainian forces successfully shot down 718 of the drones, officials said. Despite the intensity of the strike, reports of physical damage remain limited. No fatalities have been confirmed so far, though a woman was hospitalised with chest injuries in the city of Brovary, near Kyiv.

On Telegram, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that there was a massive drone attack at a time when there are ongoing efforts towards peace and ceasefire with Russia. He also mentioned that his partners knew how to apply pressure so that Russia will be forced to think about ending the war and not launching new strikes. And he also mentioned in his talk that “everyone who wants peace must act.”

The drone barrage came just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump, during a Cabinet meeting in Washington, criticised Vladimir Putin’s behaviour in peace talks and promised increased American military aid to Ukraine. Trump remarked that he received a great deal of misinformation from President Putin” and his words always seems to be without substance.

In response, Ukraine reportedly launched 86 drones towards Russian territory overnight, according to the Russian Ministry of Defence, further escalating tensions between the two nations amid a prolonged and deadly conflict.