Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on Monday that the United States did not provide advance warning of a Russian missile barrage that struck power infrastructure in Kyiv on Sunday evening. The accusation has intensified a public dispute between Kyiv and Washington, with Zelenskyy characterizing the lack of intelligence sharing as a deliberate attempt to pressure Ukraine into accepting unfavorable terms.
Intelligence Failure or Strategic Withholding
Yuri Ihnat, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian air force, confirmed on television that no alert was issued before the initial wave of attacks began around 11 pm. A subsequent strike at 3 am was preceded by a warning, Ihnat noted, highlighting an inconsistency in the information flow from American partners.
Zelenskyy took to social media to describe the situation as a “denial of reality” on the part of US officials. He linked the intelligence gap to broader geopolitical shifts, specifically pointing to recent US decisions that benefit Moscow. On Friday, President Donald Trump waived a package of sanctions on Russia, arguing that the pause was in the national interest and necessary to keep Russia engaged in peace negotiations.
“When the supply of missiles for Ukrainian air defence is blocked, and Russia receives sanctions relief or delays, it is, unfortunately, a denial of reality on the part of our partners,” Zelenskyy wrote. The president also cited slowed deliveries of PAC-3 air defence missiles from the United States as evidence of a cooling relationship.
US Officials Cite Technical Glitches
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed the issue during a trip to Samarkand, Uzbekistan. He stated that he was unaware of the specific failure on Sunday night but noted that a software problem had affected Ukraine’s early warning system in recent days. Rubio mentioned that the US military’s European Command was investigating the strikes.
Ukrainian officials had previously attributed missed warnings to bad weather obscuring Russian preparations, but the admission of a software glitch by US officials introduces a new technical dimension to the dispute. The Trump administration has maintained that it has not intentionally throttled support services, including Starlink satellite internet, which Ukraine uses for military communications and drone operations.
Tensions were further complicated by reports that the US threatened to slow weapons deliveries through the PURL scheme unless Ukraine ceased striking Russian oil refineries. In response, Ukraine launched over 1,000 drones at Russian targets on Sunday, damaging an oil export terminal in St Petersburg.
Casualties and Humanitarian Crisis
The Russian attack on Sunday evening hit 28 substations and other energy facilities, leaving more than 500,000 people without electricity, heat, or running water. Zelenskyy reported that 16 ballistic missiles were fired at Kyiv and the surrounding region. A 21-year-old woman was killed in the capital.
Violence also spread to the Kharkiv region, where drone strikes on a public park in Nova Vodolaha killed six people, including three children. Regional Governor Oleg Synegubov condemned the attack as a “terrorist act,” noting that the location contained no military infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV spoke with Zelenskyy to discuss the humanitarian situation in Oleshky, a city in the Kherson region caught between Russian and Ukrainian forces. The Vatican stated that the Pope had requested a humanitarian ceasefire from Vladimir Putin to allow for aid deliveries and evacuations. This call occurred just two days after Leo was discharged from a hospital following lung cancer surgery.
Source: The Guardian
