Trump says he is ‘not happy’ with Russia’s overnight missile attack on Kyiv and urges: ‘Vladimir, STOP! Let’s get the peace deal done!’

Donald Trump has said he is ‘not happy’ that Vladimir Putin launched a deadly barrage of missile strikes on Kyiv overnight after talks to reach a peace deal failed.

‘I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing,’ he wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

Trump urged his Russian counterpart: ‘Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!’

Russia attacked Kyiv with an hourslong barrage of missiles and drones overnight, killing at least nine people and injuring more than 70 in its deadliest assault on the Ukrainian capital since last July and just as peace efforts are coming to a head. 

Trump’s frustration with Putin is growing as a US-led effort to get a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia has not made progress. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said today that the large-scale missile attack on Kyiv was designed to put ‘pressure’ on the United States.

He noted that Ukraine had agreed to a US ceasefire proposal 44 days ago as a first step to a negotiated peace, but that Moscow’s attacks had continued. 

Zelensky also insisted that Kyiv would not change its position on Crimea, after Trump criticised him for not agreeing to cede the Black Sea peninsula illegally annexed by Russia in 2014.

When asked about the Russian strikes on Kyiv at a briefing earlier on Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was continuing to hit ‘military and military-adjacent targets.’ 

The Kremlin fired 66 ballistic and cruise missiles, four plane-launched air-to-surface missiles, and 145 Shahed and decoy drones at Kyiv and four other regions of Ukraine overnight, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Kyiv reeled from the bombardment, which kept residents on edge for about 11 hours. Zelensky called the fatal attack ‘one of the most sophisticated, most brazen’ during Russia’s three-year invasion. 

Zelensky is visiting South Africa but has said he will cut his trip short to return to Kyiv – after his talks with President Cyril Ramaphosa.

‘Russia understands that Ukraine is standing up, defending its rights and (it) is putting pressure on our people. It is also putting pressure on America,’ the Ukrainian president told journalists in South Africa. ‘This is what I also link today’s attack with.’ 

Thursday’s attack came hours after Trump said a Ukraine peace deal was ‘very close’ and effectively closed with Moscow.

But Zelensky insisted that Kyiv would not accept Crimea as part of Russia. 

Moscow annexed Crimea in 2014 and backed a pro-Russian rebellion in eastern Ukraine, leading to years of conflict with Kyiv.

‘We do everything that our partners have proposed, only what contradicts our legislation and the Constitution we cannot do,’ Zelensky said, answering a question on Crimea.

Zelensky also said he did not see enough pressure from Kyiv’s allies on Moscow to halt its invasion.

‘I don’t see any strong pressure on Russia or any new sanctions packages against Russia’s aggression,’ Zelensky told journalists during a visit to South Africa.

He did however acknowledge that Trump had previously warned of repercussions if Moscow did not agree to a ceasefire.

Trump’s rare rebuke of Putin followed his criticism of Zelensky yesterday for saying Ukraine would not recognise Russia’s occupation of Crimea – a longtime Kyiv stance.

‘This statement is very harmful to the Peace Negotiations with Russia,’ Trump said in a social media post.

Trump, who argued with Zelensky in a disastrous Oval Office meeting in March, said Crimea was lost years ago ‘and is not even a point of discussion.’

Trump yesterday accused Zelensky of ‘prolonging the killing field’ by refusing to give up territory and warned the Ukrainian president he can ‘have peace, or he can fight for another three years before losing the whole country’. 

The White House tried to turn the screw yesterday, with Vice President JD Vance telling Kyiv to surrender land or the US would walk away.

But Zelensky is refusing to countenance any Russian claim to annexed Crimea, or hand over a fifth of the country to the Kremlin, as per the US-dictated deal put forward. 

Planned high-level talks in London were scuppered yesterday when two members of Trump’s top team suddenly pulled out.

Peace envoy Steve Witkoff and secretary of state Marco Rubio were due to sit down with UK, European and Ukrainian officials, hosted by Foreign Secretary David Lammy.

But in a humiliating move, they withdrew at the 11th hour, sending Ukraine special envoy Keith Kellogg instead, as Kyiv refused to buckle to American ultimatums.

Instead, Witkoff was said to be on his way to Moscow last night for a meeting with Putin tomorrow.

US attempts to strong-arm Ukraine into concessions have also placed strain on the ‘special relationship’ with Britain.

Trump is set to meet with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre later today to discuss the war in Ukraine, US tariffs and other issues.

Norway, a member of NATO and strong supporter of Ukraine, shares a roughly 123-mile border with Russia.

Meanwhile, Europe has stepped up its demands that Putin agree to an immediate unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, with French President Emmanuel Macron having accused the Russian leader of ‘lying’ about wanting peace.

‘The only thing to do is for President Putin to finally stop lying,’ Macron said during a visit to Madagascar, saying how the Russian leader was telling US negotiators ‘he wants peace’ but then continuing ‘to bombard Ukraine’.

‘In Ukraine, they only want a single answer: Does President Putin agree to an unconditional ceasefire?’

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the deadly overnight attack demonstrated that Putin was ‘the aggressor here’.