Ukrainians rejoiced amid jubilant scenes as hundreds of prisoners of war returned from captivity in Russia for third day of a mass exchange on May 25, hours after Moscow launched its largest ever air attack on its neighbor.
"It is good that I'm home. Everything will be alright. I have no words," Oleksandr, a returning soldier, told RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service.
He said he had been captured in Avdiyivka, in eastern Ukraine, on July 27, 2022.
"My wife and son [are waiting for me]. We will talk soon," he added.
"I was waiting for this day. I still can't believe it," another soldier, who did not give his name, told RFE/RL.
"I didn't know how long would I be there...We had no information. For three years we didn't know what was happening to our country," he added.
Meanwhile, Russian media reported that 303 Russian soldiers released by Ukraine had landed in Moscow on May 25 and would "undergo medical treatment and rehabilitation."
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"This Is The Best Feeling," Says Ukrainian Soldier Returned From Russia In Mass Prisoner Exchange
'America's Silence'
Following Russia's major air assault, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned what he called “America’s silence.” The attacks across major Ukrainian cities claimed at least 13 lives and left dozens more injured.
Among the reported dead were three minors -- aged 8, 12, and 17 -- in the northwestern region of Zhytomyr, far away from the front lines.
“America's silence, the silence of others in the world, only encourages [Russian President Vladimir] Putin,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media on May 25.
Hours later, US envoy Keith Kellogg said attacks on Kyiv were "shameful" and urged for a cease-fire.
"The indiscriminate killing of women and children at night in their homes is a clear violation of the 1977 Geneva Peace Protocols designed to protect innocents...Stop the killing," Kellogg wrote in his X account.
It was the second night in a row that Russia launched mass attacks using missiles and drones.
"It has never been like this before. There were dozens of explosions. Not 10, not 15 -- it was endless. You hear that roar in the sky and then bang! And we just keep waiting for what's next," Oleh, a pensioner in Mykolayiv, told RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service after the May 25 attacks.
"We assume that [a drone] was on its way to bomb a factory [nearby], but it was shot down and hit the house as it fell. The blast was crazy. We were in the kitchen at that moment. We all ran to the hallway and sat there. It was really scary," he added.
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Russia Hits Ukraine With Largest Air Attack Yet
Dmytro, another Mykolayiv resident, told RFE/RL how he and others had to save a neighbor who "had his leg stuck under bricks that started falling from the fourth floor as their ceiling caved in."
"It was a miracle that he moved to the hallway..." he added. "Had he stayed in the living room or the bedroom, he would have been cut in half."
The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched 367 air strikes, including the use of 9 Iskander ballistic missiles, more than 50 cruise missiles, and nearly 300 drones.
The Call For Sanctions
"Last night's attacks again show Russia bent on more suffering and the annihilation of Ukraine," top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas wrote on social media.
She called for "the strongest international pressure on Russia to stop this war."
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said in a TV debate that the attacks were "further proof that Russia is not interested in peace."
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul -- who had visited Ukraine earlier this month -- on May 25 urged Ukraine's allies to "react with determination" after the latest Russian attacks.
"We cannot accept this," Wadephul told German television. Putin "is trampling on human rights, this is an affront, also against US President Donald Trump, who has tried so hard to get Putin to the negotiating table."
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 110 Ukrainian drones overnight.
The numbers given by both sides could not be independently verified.
RFE/RL is effectively banned in Russia and unable to operate there. Its teams in Ukraine regularly witness deadly attacks on civilian targets across the country.
“Without truly strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped. Sanctions will certainly help,” Zelenskyy said.
Ukraine and European countries have called for a significant ramping up of the existing sanctions regime unless Moscow accepts a 30-day cease-fire proposed by Washington.
But Trump has proved reluctant to do it, praising a recent telephone call he had with Putin, in which the Russian leader did not agree to any pause in fighting.