President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday said Russia carried out thousands of attacks on Ukraine over the past week, using hundreds of drones, guided aerial bombs and missiles against civilian infrastructure across the country.
In a message posted on Telegram, Zelensky said Russian forces launched nearly 1,750 strike drones, 1,530 guided aerial bombs and 39 missiles over the last seven days.
Civilian infrastructure, including energy facilities and residential buildings, was among the main targets of the attacks, he said.
Air defense intercepts majority of targets
Zelensky said Ukrainian air defenses managed to neutralize most incoming targets but warned that additional protection is still urgently needed.
“Over the past week, Russia has attacked our country thousands of times,” Zelensky wrote.
He added that although many of the strikes were intercepted, strengthening Ukraine’s air-defense capabilities remains essential.
“But protection must be increased, and it is needed every day,” he said.
Call for more air-defense missiles
Zelensky said air-defense missiles are the most immediate priority, stressing that contributions and deliveries through the PURL program are crucial for Ukraine’s protection against ongoing Russian attacks.
“First of all, these are air-defense missiles, and therefore contributions and deliveries within the PURL program are key,” he said.
As the war between the US, Israel and Iran has spread across the Middle East, Zelensky has also offered Ukraine’s expertise in intercepting Iranian Shahed drones to Gulf states that have recently come under attack. Ukrainian forces have spent years developing relatively low-cost interceptor drones and tactics to counter the Iranian-designed weapons widely used by Russia. Kyiv has indicated that such cooperation could be paired with additional support for Ukraine’s own air defense, particularly interceptor missiles for Patriot systems supplied by Western allies.
Sanctions and talks with European partners
Zelensky also called for stronger sanctions against Russia and its partners, saying financial flows that sustain Moscow’s war effort must be blocked.
“It is necessary to continue strengthening sanctions against Russia and its accomplices,” he said.
“Everything that helps the Russian Federation finance and continue this war must be blocked.”
He added that talks with European partners were scheduled for later in the day to discuss additional measures related to military support and sanctions pressure.
Recent attacks across Ukraine
Russia has continued large-scale drone and missile attacks across Ukraine in recent days.
On the night of March 8, Russian forces launched two Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 117 attack drones from six directions. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 98 drones, while two ballistic missiles and 19 drones struck 11 locations across the country.
A night earlier, Russian forces launched 29 missiles – most of them ballistic – along with about 480 drones in one of the largest overnight attacks in recent weeks. The strikes hit multiple regions, including Kyiv, Dnipro and Kharkiv. In Kharkiv, a ballistic missile struck a residential high-rise building, killing several civilians, including children, and injuring others.