The Kremlin has rebuffed US President Donald Trump’s blistering criticism of Vladimir Putin, suggesting the remarks stemmed from “emotional overload” after the Russian leader was labelled “absolutely crazy” in the wake of Moscow’s most intense aerial bombardment of Ukraine since the war began.
Speaking on Truth Social, Trump accused Putin of “needlessly killing a lot of people”, following an unprecedented barrage that saw 367 drones and missiles launched overnight, killing at least 13 civilians. “He has gone absolutely crazy,” Trump wrote, adding: “Something has happened to him.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the comments as emotionally charged, stating they were “connected to an emotional overload of everyone involved”. He defended Russia’s escalation as a response to Ukrainian attacks on “social infrastructure”.
The Russian Defence Ministry said air defence systems shot down 20 Ukrainian drones over multiple regions on Sunday night. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described Russia’s strikes as having “no military sense”, instead calling them “an obvious political choice… to continue the war and destroy lives”.
Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz responded by signalling a shift in arms policy, declaring there were “no longer” range restrictions on weapons supplied to Ukraine. This has fuelled speculation over Berlin’s readiness to supply Taurus cruise missiles, which can strike targets up to 500 km away. The previous government had refused such transfers.
“This means that Ukraine can now defend itself, for example, by attacking military positions in Russia… with very few exceptions, it didn’t do that until recently. It can now do that,” Merz said.
Zelensky is expected in Berlin on Wednesday, with reports suggesting talks may finalise the missile deal.
Meanwhile, Trump also turned his ire on Zelensky, criticising the Ukrainian president’s rhetoric. “Everything out of his mouth causes problems,” he said. “I don’t like it, and it better stop.”
Despite his harsh words, Trump claimed a recent two-hour call with Putin over a US-led ceasefire proposal had gone “very well”, expressing hope that negotiations would “immediately start” to bring an end to the war.
Kyiv has agreed to a 30-day ceasefire proposal, but Russia has so far only committed to crafting a memorandum on a “possible future peace”, a move described by Ukraine and its allies as a stalling tactic. Direct talks between Ukrainian and Russian negotiators resumed in Istanbul on 16 May for the first time since 2022, but aside from a major prisoner swap, progress has been limited.
Russia continues to occupy roughly 20% of Ukraine’s territory, including Crimea.
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