Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy criticises ‘weak’ US reaction to deadly Russian strike on his hometown

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has expressed disappointment in the US embassy’s response to a Russian missile strike that killed 18 people, including nine children, in Zelenskyy’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih. Zelenskyy, who has been cautious about openly criticising Washington since an uneasy White House meeting with Donald Trump in February, wrote on X that several embassies in Kyiv had condemned Friday’s attack and singled out Russia for carrying it out.

Zelenskyy noted that the message from the US embassy made no reference to Russia in condemning the attack. “Unfortunately, the response from the U.S. Embassy is surprisingly disappointing – such a strong country, such a strong people, and yet such a weak reaction,” Zelenskyy wrote in English. “They are afraid to even say the word ‘Russian’ when speaking about the missile that murdered children.”

The US ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, wrote about the strike in a post on X: “Horrified that tonight a ballistic missile struck near a playground and restaurant in Kryvyi Rih. More than 50 people injured and 16 killed, including 6 children. This is why the war must end.” Under Trump, the US has moved to improve relations with Russia, a shift from the approach of his predecessor, Joe Biden. Zelenskyy has made efforts to smooth over relations with Trump since the Oval Office altercation and has praised US efforts to work towards a settlement of the three-year-old war with Russia.

The death toll from the Kryvyi Rih strike has risen to 18, including nine children, the regional governor, Serhii Lysak, said on Saturday. The Russian defence ministry claimed on Friday it had carried out a precision missile strike with a high explosive warhead on a restaurant where a meeting had taken place with unit commanders and western instructors.

Zelenskyy met the leaders of the British and French armed forces in Kyiv on Saturday to discuss the potential deployment of a multinational peacekeeping force to Ukraine, despite the reluctance of US president Trump to provide security guarantees. Zelenskyy hailed “tangible progress” after the discussion, writing on social media that the meeting with British chief of the defence staff Tony Radakin and French counterpart Thierry Burkhard had discussed “the first details on how the security contingent of partners can be deployed”, without giving details. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, are spearheading European efforts to send what they call a “reassurance force” to Ukraine after any end to the war.

“We continue our discussions on long-term support for the Ukrainian people,” Macron said on X on Saturday. “First, for their army, which is – and will remain – their first line of defence; and second, on a possible reassurance force, deployed behind the line of contact to deter any renewed Russian aggression.” Zelenskyy thanked “the UK and France for their leadership”, saying “it is this kind of joint work, when everyone is focused on a strong result, that helps to bring a reliable and lasting peace to Ukraine”. This is one of the latest efforts by European leaders to agree on a coordinated policy after Trump sidelined them and opened direct talks with the Kremlin.

The Trump administration has apologised after saying it accidentally informed some Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russian invasion that they needed to leave the US because their legal status was being revoked, Edward Helmore reports. About 240,000 Ukrainians have been settled in the US as part of the Uniting for Ukraine – or U4U – program launched during Joe Biden’s presidency. But according to CBS News, some resettled Ukrainians received emails this week telling them that the US Department of Homeland Security would be terminating their legal protections.

Meanwhile, a US neo-Nazi terrorist group with a Russia-based leader is calling for targeted assassinations and attacks on the critical infrastructure of Ukraine in an effort to destabilise the country as it carries out ceasefire negotiations with the Kremlin, Ben Makuch reports. The Base, which has a web of cells all over the world, was founded in 2018 and became the subject of a FBI counter-terrorism investigation that led to several arrests and several countries designating it as a terrorist organisation. Now, with the Trump administration pulling the FBI from pursuing the far right, the Base, left unchecked, is trying to export its violence.

Russian forces launched 92 drones into Ukraine overnight, with 51 shot down by air defences, the Ukrainian air force wrote on social media on Saturday. A further 31 decoy drones also failed to reach their targets, it said.