Putin Roars: Imposing 'Iron Fist' on the West, Ukraine Faces Unprecedented Bloody Retaliation

Russian President Putin spoke firmly, accusing the West of trying to strangle Russia, saying 'it's time to retaliate.' Just before his speech, the former U.S. president publicly condemned Putin as 'crazy', at which point Russia launched its most intense airstrikes since the outbreak of war in 2022.

For two consecutive days, Russia fired over 700 drones and missiles at multiple locations in Ukraine, resulting in dozens of deaths, marking the largest drone attack in history. The Ukrainian Air Force condemned this attack as having no military significance, stating it was a political decision by Putin.

Trump strongly condemned the attacks, then deleted his post. The Kremlin responded that this was merely 'loss of control', emphasizing that the attack was a 'retaliation' for Ukraine's strikes on Russian civilian areas, with details unclear.

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Merz announced the easing of restrictions on the use of weapons in Ukraine, allowing the use of Western equipment to attack military targets within Russia. There is speculation that Germany may approve the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, which have a range of 500 kilometers and will significantly enhance Ukraine's strike capabilities.

Other Western countries have long lifted similar restrictions, and the U.S. also allows Ukraine to use long-range missiles. In response, Russia warned that the delivery of the Taurus would be a highly risky provocation.

On the diplomatic front, Russia thanked Trump for facilitating the latest peace negotiations. The two sides had a phone call to discuss a ceasefire, with the Ukrainian president supporting a 30-day ceasefire, but Putin refused and instead prepared a 'peace memorandum', seen as a delaying tactic.

On May 16, there was no substantial progress after the first formal talks between Russian and Ukrainian representatives in Istanbul. The fighting continues, with nearly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory still under Russian control, and the situation remains stalled.