Ukraine was hit by a massive Russian drone and missile assault overnight, with nearly 400 long-range drones targeting multiple locations across the country, the Ukrainian Air Force reported. The attacks, which continued into Tuesday morning, also included 23 cruise missiles and seven ballistic missiles, striking at least 10 sites. Officials confirmed four civilians dead and at least 27 injured in the strikes on populated areas.

The drone and missile barrages coincided with a renewed push by Russian forces to breach Ukrainian front-line defenses, signaling the potential start of a spring ground offensive. Ukrainian troops, stretched along the roughly 1,250-kilometer eastern and southern front line, have been reinforcing key positions in anticipation of intensified assaults.

General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said that Russian troops attempted simultaneous attacks in several strategic sectors over the past days. “Fierce fighting unfolded along the entire line of contact,” he noted, adding that Ukraine deployed reinforcements to counter the assaults. Russia launched 619 attacks in just four days, according to Ukrainian military reports.

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The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, confirmed that these developments indicate the beginning of Russia’s spring-summer offensive. Despite heavy bombardment, Russian forces have been unable to capture major cities, maintaining control over roughly 20% of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014.

Ukraine has increasingly relied on domestically produced drones to compensate for infantry shortages and has offered its drone defense expertise to the US and Gulf partners in exchange for Patriot air defense systems. Meanwhile, Ukrainian long-range drones have also targeted Russian sites supporting the war effort.

Russia’s air defense, in turn, reported intercepting 55 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian territory, Crimea, and the Black Sea. The ongoing escalation comes amid global tensions, including the concurrent conflict in the Middle East, which has diverted international attention from the Ukraine war.

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