Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin's promise not to attack Ukraine's energy infrastructure was "very much at odds with reality" following a series of drone strikes across the country overnight.

Just before Zelenskyy spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump, the Ukrainian leader expressed his anticipation to hear more about Trump's recent phone call with Putin regarding a potential limited ceasefire and discuss subsequent steps.

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"Even last night, after Putin's conversation with Trump, when Putin claimed to have ordered a halt to strikes on Ukrainian energy, 150 drones were launched, including on energy facilities," Zelenskyy said during a press conference in Helsinki with Finnish President Alexander Stubb.

Russia responded by claiming it had stopped targeting Ukraine’s energy facilities and accused Kyiv of attacking equipment near one of its pipelines.

“We unfortunately see that there is no reciprocity from the Kyiv regime,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Despite Putin’s refusal to agree to a full 30-day ceasefire in discussions with Trump, he pledged to immediately halt attacks on Ukraine’s power grid.

The White House described the call between Trump and Putin as the first step toward a "movement to peace," with hopes for a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea and a full end to the conflict.

However, there was no sign that Putin had softened his stance on the conditions for peace, which are strongly opposed by Kyiv.

The Institute for the Study of War, a U.S.-based think tank, stated that Putin's demands during the call amounted to “Ukrainian capitulation.”

“Putin is attempting to hold the temporary ceasefire proposal hostage to extract preemptive concessions before formal peace talks,” the Institute said in an analysis of the call.

Stubb called the talks between Trump and Putin a positive development but emphasized that Russia needed to end its aggression.

"There are only two ways to respond to the U.S. president's proposal: yes or no—no buts, no conditions," Stubb said. “Ukraine accepted a ceasefire without any conditions. If Russia refuses, we must increase our support for Ukraine and intensify pressure on Russia to return to the negotiating table.”

White House national security adviser Mike Waltz stated on social media that he and his Russian counterpart, Yuri Ushakov, agreed on a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to focus on implementing and expanding the partial ceasefire secured by Trump.

It was unclear who would attend the talks in Riyadh or if Ukrainian officials would be involved.

Following the lengthy phone conversation between Trump and Putin on Tuesday, air raid sirens sounded in Kyiv, followed by explosions as residents sought shelter.

Despite efforts to defend against the attack, several strikes hit civilian infrastructure, including two hospitals, a railway, and over 20 houses, according to Zelenskyy. Russian drones were reported over Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Chernihiv, Poltava, Kharkiv, Kirovohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, and Cherkasy regions.

Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed its military launched seven drones at power facilities in Ukraine’s Mykolaiv region, but these were shot down after receiving Putin’s order to avoid targeting energy infrastructure.

Moscow accused Ukraine of targeting its energy facility in the Krasnodar region, bordering the Crimean Peninsula, hours after the Putin-Trump talks. The ministry said three drones targeted oil transfer equipment, causing a fire and loss of pressure in one oil tank.

"It is clear that this is another provocation fabricated by Kyiv to sabotage President Trump’s peace initiatives," the ministry stated.

Russia and Ukraine trade overnight aerial attacks after Putin sets out conditions for ceasefire

Russia also claimed its air defences intercepted 57 Ukrainian drones over the Azov Sea and various Russian regions, including Kursk, Bryansk, Oryol, and Tula.

Zelenskyy stated that "words of a ceasefire" were not enough.

"If the Russians don’t hit our facilities, we certainly won’t hit theirs," he said.

Zelenskyy rejected Putin’s key condition that Western nations halt military aid and intelligence support to Ukraine. He argued that such an action would endanger lives by leaving citizens unaware of incoming airstrikes and prolong the war.

“I don’t think anyone should make concessions in helping Ukraine; instead, aid to Ukraine should be increased,” Zelenskyy said. “This would signal that Ukraine is ready for any surprises from Russia.”

Nigel Gould-Davies, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, called Putin’s rejection of the ceasefire unsurprising, noting that it was unwise for Putin to express it directly to President Trump, who has made ending the war a top priority.

“What we now have is a rivalry between Kyiv and Moscow to persuade Trump that the other side is preventing him from achieving his goal of ending the war,” Gould-Davies said.

Zelenskyy noted that one of the most challenging issues in future negotiations would be territorial concessions.

"For us, the red line is recognizing the temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories as Russian," he said. “We will not agree to that.”