Ukraine warns reduced missile alerts are worsening the impact of Russian strikes

Ukraine says reduced access to early-warning intelligence is leaving civilians with only seconds to react before Russian missiles hit, as this week's attacks killed at least 15 people and wounded dozens. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that Ukraine's partners had not provided data from NATO early-warning satellites, a claim that comes amid rising tensions between Kyiv and Washington. He did not name the United States directly, while Donald Trump has denied that Washington has stopped sharing intelligence.

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The warning system matters because the satellite constellation can detect ballistic missile launches by their thermal flames seconds after take-off, giving Ukraine up to 10 minutes to sound sirens and send emergency alerts. Without that data, Ukrainian ground radars can only pick up incoming missiles much later because of their speed, which the supplied material says ranges from 6,000 to 12,000 kilometres per hour. A former deputy head of Ukraine's general staff, Lieutenant-General Ihor Romanenko, said the lack of intelligence significantly reduces air-defence effectiveness and leaves forces with less time to respond.

The immediate impact has been visible in the latest wave of strikes, which hit apartment buildings, power plants and warehouses. Sirens reportedly began sounding just seconds before or after missiles struck, underlining the gap between launch and warning. Zelenskyy said the warnings are what help prevent killings, while the attacks this week were described as resembling hundreds of previous raids but with the added problem of shortened alert times.

The issue has wider significance because air-raid warnings are a central part of Ukraine's civilian protection system and military resilience. Faster alerts can mean the difference between evacuation and exposure, especially when strikes target energy infrastructure and residential areas. The intelligence dispute also feeds into broader questions about how much outside support Ukraine can rely on as the war continues and as diplomatic pressure grows around ceasefire proposals.

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The supplied material links the warning gap to a broader political row over an "energy ceasefire" and peace negotiations. Trump announced a ceasefire proposal on Sunday that would bar mutual strikes on energy infrastructure, but the material says Moscow did not agree and continued attacks within hours. Ukrainian observers quoted in the material suggested the pressure on Kyiv may be tied to domestic US politics, although that claim is presented as an interpretation rather than a confirmed fact.

Energy infrastructure has become one of the war's most sensitive targets because it affects electricity generation, fuel supplies and military logistics. Refineries, power plants and warehouses are all vulnerable to strikes that can disrupt both civilian life and wartime supply chains. The latest developments also highlight the continuing role of satellite intelligence and communications systems in Ukraine's defence, including their use in warning civilians and supporting drone and missile operations.

What remains unclear is whether the reduced warning time reflects a formal cut in intelligence sharing, a temporary disruption, or another change in how the data is being passed on. It is also not clear how long the current spike in Russian strikes will continue or whether any ceasefire effort can be revived. The next developments to watch are further attacks on Ukraine's energy system, any change in intelligence support, and whether Kyiv and Washington can narrow their differences over the issue.

Ukraine will resume strikes on Russian oil refineries after a three-day pause, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said, in a fresh sign of the energy war between the two countries. He said the pause had been made at Washington's request, but that Ukraine was now ending it. The comments came as Russia said it had intercepted a large-scale Ukrainian attack on a refinery south of Moscow, with falling debris causing a fire at the site in Ryazan.

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Zelensky said he had restricted such attacks for three days while Russia continued to strike Ukrainian energy infrastructure. He also accused the United States of withdrawing intelligence-sharing on Russian strikes to pressure Kyiv into stopping the attacks altogether. In the same remarks, he said restrictions on Starlink satellite services used by Ukraine's military were deliberate, although he did not provide evidence in the supplied material for that claim.

According to Russia's defence ministry, four missiles and dozens of drones were intercepted during the attack on the Ryazan refinery. The ministry said the fire was caused by debris from the intercepted weapons. Zelensky said dozens of Ukrainian cities had come under Russian attack in the past day, and he said strikes had left hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians without power after Moscow ignored a proposed energy ceasefire within hours of it being announced.

The exchange matters because energy infrastructure has become a central target in the war, with both sides seeking to disrupt fuel supplies, electricity generation and military logistics. Refineries are especially sensitive because they affect domestic fuel availability and export capacity, and attacks on them can have wider economic consequences. The latest statements also underline the continuing role of outside support, particularly US intelligence and satellite communications, in Ukraine's air defences and drone operations.

The row comes after Zelensky said he would accept the so-called energy ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump on Sunday if Moscow also observed it. He said the Kremlin never agreed to the deal, and accused Russia of ignoring it within hours. The comments also follow reports of tension over intelligence-sharing and satellite access, which Ukraine relies on to warn of incoming aerial attacks and to support its military communications.

What remains unclear is the full scale of the damage at the Ryazan refinery and whether the fire caused any lasting disruption to production. It is also not clear how far Ukraine will now go in resuming strikes, or whether any diplomatic effort to revive an energy truce will continue. The next developments to watch are any further Russian attacks on Ukraine's power system, any new Ukrainian strikes on refinery infrastructure, and whether Washington changes its position on intelligence support.

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