US silence 'encourages Putin', Zelensky says after massive Russian attack

Following a deadly overnight attack on May 25, President Volodymyr Zelensky called for stronger sanctions on Russia and added that "America’s silence, and the silence of others around the world, only encourages Putin."

Russia launched 69 missiles and 298 drones overnight on May 25, according to Ukraine's Air Force. The attack killed 12 people, including three children, and injured more than 60, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.

Rescuers worked in more than 30 Ukrainian villages and cities, reacting to the large-scale attack, Zelensky said. More than 22 direct strikes were recorded, with additional regions affected by falling debris, the Air Force said.

"Without really strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped. Sanctions will definitely help," Zelensky wrote in a post on Telegram on May 25.

"The world knows all the weaknesses of the Russian economy. It is possible to stop the war, but only through the necessary force of pressure on Russia. Putin must be forced to think not about launching missiles, but about ending the war."

Russian and Ukrainian officials met in Istanbul on May 16 in the first direct talks between the two countries in three years, but left without reaching an agreement on a ceasefire.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov confirmed that Moscow had no interest in agreeing to a ceasefire in Ukraine, saying on May 21 that Russia "doesn't want this anymore."

Ukraine had also been rocked by one of the heaviest strikes of the war the night prior.