Ukraine: Phone call between the Pope and Putin. Zelensky asks Europe for 70 billion for defence

The Ukrainian leader then made specific requests: ‘Next year, the war will cost 155 billion euros. And we need at least 70 billion euros more from you: for defence, for weapons and for our resilience. This is a realistic figure. I am asking you to provide this support; it will help us contain Russia.’ He added: ‘There are some very simple facts. Thanks to drones,’ he continued, ‘we are able to stop most Russian attacks along the front line. With this technology, we are cutting off Russian supply lines. Furthermore, our drones are helping to weaken Russia’s economy. At present, we could produce two to three times as many drones – depending on the type. But, quite simply, we do not have enough funds to do so. That is the reality. Imagine what would happen if we could exert two or three times as much pressure on Russia as we do now.’

“What will happen if we fall? I don’t know how many refugees will come to Europe – 20 million Ukrainians,” Zelensky said in Brussels. “Because they will destroy us, they will drive us out,” he continued, “which is why we are asking you to defend our country.”

Meanwhile, on the war front, there have been severe power cuts in Kyiv and in the area bordering Poland following the latest Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector. This confirms that the energy truce – a halt to mutual attacks on energy infrastructure announced by Trump but observed for only a few days by Ukraine alone – remains merely a hope of the US administration, as new Russian attacks on Ukraine’s critical energy infrastructure have taken place in recent hours, leaving some areas of Kyiv without electricity. Overnight, Russian drone raids left 370,000 people without electricity in the Ukrainian region of Volhynia. Two people were injured in the attacks, which targeted a company with foreign investment: this was stated by the regional governor on Telegram, as reported by Sky News UK. Volhynia is situated in the far west of Ukraine, on the border with Poland. Explosions were also heard in Lviv this morning, according to RBC, caused by a drone approaching the city.

The Ukrainian capital has also been affected. “There have been widespread power cuts in some areas of Kyiv and the surrounding region,” said Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s state-owned power system operator. Once the air-raid alerts have ended, an assessment of the damage will be carried out and the necessary emergency repairs made, the company added.

Journalists from the Kyiv Independent reported hearing loud explosions, caused by air defence systems in operation over the Podil district, shortly before power cuts were reported. It is not yet clear which specific attack caused the blackouts in the Kyiv area. Damage to power infrastructure in the Kyiv region has also reduced water pressure in some parts of the capital located on the right bank of the River Dnipro. President Zelenskyy described the attack as “a blatant display of contempt towards the United States”.

US President Donald Trump has once again attacked Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky. “Zelensky is not someone who is easy to deal with,” Trump said in an exclusive interview from the White House with the cable channel Newsmax. “I find it harder to deal with Zelensky than with Putin,” added Trump, who also criticised the end to the energy truce (which Moscow never observed) announced by Kyiv. “If you tell me that” the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr “Zelensky, is striking refineries again, the only result is that it drives up the global price of oil,” Trump commented in the same interview. “Well, I think it’s a disgrace. There are plenty of other targets... there are plenty of targets that can be hit,” Trump continued. “But when you target refineries – where, in fact, diesel is produced, which we and the whole world need – then you’re not doing the world any favours,” he emphasised.

Donald Trump also stated that he had not ordered any restrictions on Ukraine’s access to SpaceX’s Starshield satellite technology and that he did not believe Elon Musk had done so either. Trump’s comments mark the latest development in an unresolved mystery surrounding how Ukraine’s access to Starshield – a key component of its air defence against Russian drones – was restricted earlier this week.

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has accused Trump and Musk of ordering the restrictions, which he claims have already been directly responsible for civilian deaths. Yesterday, the situation appeared to have been resolved with access to Kyiv being restored. “From what I understand, it’s business as usual,” Trump said today.

Drone raids on Russian regions; Yandex data centre also hit

Meanwhile, the conflict on the ground continues. Overnight, the Ukrainian armed forces struck several targets in the Russian regions of Moscow, Rostov and Vladimir during a large-scale operation carried out using drones. This was reported by *The Kyiv Independent*, citing the monitoring channels ExileNova+ and SuperNova+, which stated that the night-time operation targeted the data centre of the Russian tech giant Yandex, located in the Vladimir Oblast, some 500 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.

A fire then broke out following a drone attack on an oil depot in the Shepetivka district, in the Khmelnytskyi region of Ukraine. This was reported by Ukrinform, citing the Telegram channel of Serhii Tyurin, head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Military Administration. “Today, Russia launched several drone attacks on the Khmelnytskyi region. Air defence forces were deployed and several unmanned aerial vehicles were shot down. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out at an oil depot in the Shepetivka district,” the statement reads. All relevant services are currently engaged in safety operations.

Russia “fully agrees with President Trump” that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “does not want to take responsibility and pursue a path towards a peaceful resolution” of the conflict. This was stated by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, as reported by the Interfax news agency.

“The official Rome lacks the political will to act in the interests of its citizens” and does not dare to oppose “the demands of its masters in Brussels and other capitals to take Russophobic actions that run counter to the interests of its people”. This was stated during a briefing by the Russian Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, as reported by TASS.