Ukraine hit fewer Russian planes than it estimated, US officials say

Source: Reuters

Exclusive-Ukraine hit fewer Russian planes than it estimated, US officials say

Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali
Wed, June 4, 2025 at 3:57 PM EDT·4 min read

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States assesses that Ukraine's drone attack over the weekend hit as many as 20 Russian warplanes, destroying around 10 of them, two U.S. officials told Reuters, a figure that is about half the number estimated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Still, the U.S. officials described the attack as highly significant, with one of them cautioning that it could drive Moscow to a far more severe negotiating position in the U.S.-brokered talks to end more than three years of war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump in a telephone conversation on Wednesday that Moscow would have to respond to attack, Trump said in a social media post.

Trump added it "was a good conversation, but not a conversation that will lead to immediate peace."

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