NewsWorld newsVladimir PutinThe Kremlin's bloody terror attacks on Ukraine's cities show how its frontline troops on the battlefield are likely now losing the war - and President Vladimir Putin's time may finally be up10:57, 02 Jun 2026Updated 10:58, 02 Jun 2026As the fires die down and the smoke clears from last night’s brutal Russian onslaught on Ukraine President Vladimir Putin may enjoy a few moments of cruel pleasure. But it cannot last. Even after the unleashing of close to 700 missiles and drones which slammed into Ukraine’s civilians, killing at least 13 and injuring well over 100.‌This strategically pointless act of violence was aimed at avenging major successes of Kyiv’s drone teams steadily dismantling and diluting the Kremlin’s warchest. It was also aimed at impressing upon America and specifically President Donald Trump, that Russia is winning the war and must gain leverage on territorial claims during peace talks.‌‌It is not winning the war and since Christmas Ukraine’s troops have been making repeated gains on the battlefield against a greater force in numbers which is poorly-trained. And Kyiv has steadily been hitting the Kremlin’s ability to launch its attacks.Even as the onslaught, including several cruise missiles, hit their ill-thought out targets Kyiv was continuing to smash Putin’s ability to pay for this immensely costly war. The latest Kremlin onslaught will have run up a bill of hundreds of millions but despite the human tragedy hardly made a dent in plucky Ukraine’s ability to fight back.‌Days before the strike on the oil depot Ukraine struck a military aircraft repair plant in Taganrog, a key Russian airbase in Voronezh. Another oil refinery in Tuapse was also hit in the latest of Kyiv’s deep strikes against Moscow’s military infrastructure.‌All of this is having a deep and lasting effect on Russia’s ability to fund its war on Ukraine and when negotiators sit around the table, this will be a very real problem for the Kremlin. Without strategic gains in recent months it will not be able to claim it is winning the war and its claim on occupied eastern Ukraine will be more limited.Ukraine’s President Zelensky has declared his troops are putting as many as 35,000 Russian soldiers a-month out of the battle through death or injury and it cannot be sustained. The Russian economy is tanking and there are increasing rumours, whether they are true or not, about palace coups being set to topple Putin’s awful rule.Article continues belowAlthough these huge strikes by Russia gain huge publicity because of the horror they cause, that is about the substance of it - they do not help it win the war. Meanwhile Ukraine is hitting the Kremlin where it hurts, because these oil fields are what pays for nights of horror such as that suffered by Ukraine last night.And only this week it emerged France had stormed another Russian sanctions-busting tanker in the Atlantic, helped by UK forces. The clock is ticking on the peace process in Ukraine but Putin's celebrations over last night's cruelty will be short-lived.Chris HughesChris Hughes is the Daily Mirror's award-winning Defence and Security Editor. Chris won UK Press Awards Specialist Journalist of the year in 2013. As an experienced war correspondent he has reported from frontlines in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Korea, Pakistan and Ukraine. As well as commenting on the military and geopolitics he also specialises in covering terrorism and the intelligence world. He has reported on terror attacks globally including 9-11 in the US and throughout Europe, Asia and Africa. Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.‌Donald TrumpVladimir PutinSoldiersSpecial forcesTerror attacks