Ukraine warns Russia preparing major offensive

Russia is preparing a large-scale attack on Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday, citing intelligence reports.

In a Telegram post, Zelenskyy called for new sanctions against Moscow and urged partners to accelerate air defense agreements, Norwegian news outlet Dagbladet reported.

The warning follows days of heavy Russian strikes and threats of further attacks on Kyiv. On Monday, Russia announced plans for “systematic strikes” on targets in the capital and advised foreigners and diplomats to leave the city, according to Reuters.

Russia’s foreign ministry claimed earlier this week that the attacks target Ukraine’s defense industry in Kyiv. Spokesperson Maria Zakharova told state news agency TASS that retaliatory strikes would continue, following a Ukrainian drone attack on a dormitory linked to an educational institution in Russian-occupied Starobilsk, Luhansk region. Russian authorities said 18 people, mostly minors, were killed.

President Vladimir Putin called the strike a “terrorist attack” targeting civilians, rejecting claims it was accidental. Ukraine denied targeting civilians, stating it had struck a drone command center.

A massive Russian attack on Kyiv early Sunday, including the use of a hypersonic missile, killed at least four people and injured over 20, according to NTB.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned the threats as “blackmail,” urging allies not to yield. Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre called the escalation unprecedented, stating Russia had shown “no will to find a path to peace.”