As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders met with US President Donald Trump in Washington on 18 August, Russia launched a massive overnight air assault on Ukraine. The attack, which began in the evening and continued into 19 August, struck at least six oblasts, leaving civilians wounded and civilian infrastructure in ruins.

280 air weapons launched

The Ukrainian Air Force reported Russia’s 270 Shahed-type drones and 10 missiles launched from multiple directions, including Kursk, Millerovo, Primorsko-Akhtarsk, occupied Crimea, and the Caspian Sea. These included five Iskander-M ballistic missiles and five Kh-101 cruise missiles. Ukrainian air defense shot down 230 drones, 2 Iskander-Ms, and 4 Kh-101s, but 40 drones and four missiles still hit their targets across 16 confirmed sites.

Poltava: power cut, energy sites hit

In Poltava Oblast, Russian drones and missiles struck energy sector facilities in Kremenchuk and Lubny districts, local authorities said. Damage to utility buildings left 1,471 households and 119 legal entities without power. No injuries were reported. Repairs began immediately.

Donetsk Oblast: Five civilians killed in separate attacks

Sloviansk Military Administration chief Vadym Liakh reported that Russian forces fired two Iskander-M missiles at Sloviansk around 21:00 on 18 August. Both missiles struck the industrial zone in the Lisnyi microdistrict, injuring one woman. She was hospitalized in moderate condition. Fires broke out after the impact.

Earlier that day, the Donetsk Oblast Military Administration said that Russian shelling killed five civilians: three in Kostiantynivka, one in Dobropillia, and one in Novodonetske. Eight others were injured across the oblast.

Kharkiv Oblast: Russian drone injures family in Peremoha

Mayor of Lozova Serhii Zelenskyy reported that Russian drones — for some reason, identified by the regional prosecutor’s office by Shahed-136’s Russian designation Geran-2 type — struck a residential building in the village of Peremoha around 04:58 on 19 August. The blast injured a woman, who was hospitalized with a leg injury. Her husband and two children — an 8-year-old boy and a 2-year-8-month-old girl — suffered psychological shock and cuts from broken glass. The family remains in emotional distress, according to community leader Tetiana Kukhmeister, who spoke to Suspilne.

Sumy Oblast: Russia shells town, follows with drone strikes

Head of the executive committee of the Seredyna-Buda city council Ksenia Piatnytsia told Suspilne that Russian forces shelled Seredyna-Buda with tanks around 01:00 on 19 August and followed up with FPV drone strikes around noon. The attacks damaged local infrastructure.

Acting head of the Sumy community Artem Kobzar reported that Russian drones attacked the Pishchanske community twice — first with a Shahed drone that shattered 34 windows and damaged a slate roof, then with a Molniya-type drone that damaged six more windows and a door.

On 18 August after 17:00, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration said that five Russian drones targeted the Sumy community. Three drones struck civilian infrastructure; two were intercepted. According to Suspilne reporters, one drone exploded near a shopping center in the city of Sumy. No casualties were reported.

Dnipropetrovsk Oblast: Man wounded, school burns after drone strikes

Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration head Serhii Lysak reported that Russian FPV drones and artillery struck Nikopol, Marhanets, and Pokrovsk communities overnight on 19 August. The attack injured a man, who was hospitalized. Fires destroyed a greenhouse and a utility structure. A residential building, another utility building, and a car were also damaged.

In the Vasylkivska community of Synelnykove district, Russian drones hit a school, setting it on fire. Lysak confirmed that Ukrainian air defense shot down seven Russian drones over the oblast during the night.

Kherson Oblast: Child, pensioners injured in Russian attacks

The Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported that Russian forces injured six civilians in the oblast over the past 24 hours. These figures do not include additional victims reported later this morning.

On the morning of 19 August, officials confirmed that a 71-year-old resident of Kozatske, who was attacked by a Russian drone on 16 August, had been hospitalized with abdominal blast trauma and shrapnel injuries. He remains under medical supervision.

Later that morning, Russian artillery struck residential areas of Chornobaivka. An 11-year-old boy, who was walking down the street at the time, suffered a concussion, a shrapnel wound to his shoulder, and a closed traumatic brain injury. Neighbors gave him first aid before emergency services transported him to a hospital.

In Kherson city, a 61-year-old man was also wounded in a Russian drone attack. He sustained a blast injury and shrapnel wounds to his arm and leg and is receiving medical treatment.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is not ready to end the war, French President Emmanuel Macron said on 19 August in an interview with NBC News. The remarks followed a high-level White House meeting involving President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and top European leaders.

This comes as Russia continues its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, while Trump pushes for Ukraine-Russia negotiations to end the war. 

Macron: Putin shows no intent to end war

“I don’t see President Putin very willing to get peace now,” Macron told NBC. He added, “Perhaps I’m too pessimistic,” but pointed to the facts on the ground.

He said Trump’s optimism about securing a deal should be taken seriously.

“If he considers he can get a deal done, this is great news, and we have to do whatever we can to have a great deal,” Macron said.

Russia launched deadly strikes in Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia overnight before the Trump-Zelenskyy talks in Washington.

Macron said it was “impossible” for Ukrainian leaders to negotiate peace while the country is being destroyed and civilians are being killed.

France calls for pressure, warns of more sanctions

Macron stressed that the United States must pressure Russia to find a resolution. He said that if no progress is made in the Trump-announced meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy, or if a trilateral format fails, Russia should face increased primary and secondary sanctions.

“There is an aggressor, which is Russia,” he said. “There is a country which decided to kill people, stole children and who refused a ceasefire and peace, so we cannot just create an equivalent situation between Ukraine and Russia.”

No peace without guarantees, no land swaps

Macron said Ukraine must receive security guarantees to prevent future Russian attacks. Without them, he warned, Russia would not respect any agreement. He said Trump told him that during his 16 August meeting with Putin, the Russian president accepted the need for such guarantees.

He firmly opposed any territorial concessions to Russia.

“I don’t see any swap in the proposal of the Russians, except a swap in comparison with what they wanted at the beginning,” Macron said. He emphasized that territorial issues are for Ukraine and its people to decide.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on 18 August that the Kremlin has not publicly confirmed US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a planned bilateral meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by a trilateral summit with US participation. ISW noted that Trump stated he had called Putin after the 18 August summit and began arranging such meetings, but Russian officials gave no direct confirmation.

According to ISW, Russian Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov said that Putin and Trump “expressed support for the continuation of direct negotiations between the delegations of Russia and Ukraine” and mentioned the possibility of “raising the level of representatives of the Ukrainian and Russian sides.” ISW emphasized that this language did not amount to a commitment to leader-level meetings.

ISW also noted that Zelenskyy stated after the summit that he is ready to meet with Putin “without any conditions” and that it was Russia who first proposed a bilateral meeting, followed by a trilateral format with the United States. He said territorial matters would remain a subject “between [himself] and Putin.”

ISW: Security guarantees discussed, US role remains unclear

During the 18 August summit, Trump and Zelenskyy met at the White House before joining talks with European leaders, including NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian President Giorgia Meloni, and Finnish President Alexander Stubb. According to ISW, the leaders emphasized the importance of security guarantees to ensure a lasting peace and deter future Russian aggression.

ISW noted that von der Leyen, Meloni, and Starmer expressed support for guarantees modeled after NATO’s Article 5. Trump stated that the United States would support these guarantees in a coordination role, while “various European countries” would provide the main commitments. This was echoed in Trump’s readout posted on Truth Social.

Zelenskyy said in a joint press conference with Trump that Ukraine needs not only guarantees from partners but also continued access to weapons, training, and intelligence. Zelenskyy added that Ukraine and its European allies have launched a program to purchase weapons from the United States, and that a strong Ukrainian military is itself a security guarantee.

Financial Times: Ukraine proposed US arms and drone deals tied to guarantees

The Financial Times (FT) reported on 18 August that Ukraine offered to purchase $100 billion worth of US weapons, financed by European partners, in exchange for American security guarantees. FT stated that the document it obtained did not specify which weapons were involved.

FT also reported that Ukraine proposed a $50 billion plan to manufacture drones through Ukrainian companies, but the share of procurement versus investment was not defined. FT cited four people familiar with the matter and noted these proposals were included in Ukraine’s talking points shared with European leaders ahead of the summit.

Russia rejects NATO troop involvement in peace process

According to ISW, Trump stated during the 18 August summit that Putin had earlier expressed openness to security guarantees for Ukraine during the 15 August Alaska summit. However, ISW noted that Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on 18 August that Russia “categorical[ly] reject[s]” any plan involving a military contingent in Ukraine with participation from NATO countries. Her statement applied both to formal NATO missions and independent deployments by NATO member states. ISW says this mirrors earlier Russian threats to treat such deployments as legitimate military targets.

Trump and other European officials clarified that any future deployment of peacekeeping forces would not be part of a NATO mission.

Leaders voice support for ceasefire, but prospects remain uncertain

Trump said all leaders attending the 18 August summit “would obviously prefer an immediate ceasefire while we work on a lasting peace,” but added, “as of this moment, it’s not happening.” Trump stated he supports a ceasefire because it could halt casualties “immediately.”

ISW noted that Macron and Merz expressed support for a ceasefire either ahead of or after a potential trilateral meeting. Trump added that both Zelenskyy and Putin “can talk a little bit more” about the matter.