The attack injected some much-needed optimism into Ukraine, beleaguered by years of war and worn down by what many see as U.S. pressure to concede to Russian demands.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was sending a Ukrainian delegation to Istanbul for another face-to-face with Russian representatives.

The strikes help Kyiv "negotiate from a position of strength," Oleksandr Merezhko, the head of Ukraine's parliamentary foreign affairs committee, told Newsweek.

Ukraine has developed, tested, and deployed the Sky Sentinel, a AI-powered turret that it says can down Russia's Shahed drones and cruise missiles.

A battle is shaping up in the skies over Ukraine and Russia, as the ingenuity of drone engineers on both sides opens up new opportunities and threats far behind the front lines.

The success of Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb, which destroyed more than 40 Russian bombers, will have elicited both delight and terror in the hearts of Kyiv’s allies.The homegrown operation to hide drones in false compartments within prefabricated sheds and unleash them simultaneously many thousands of miles apart – and many thousands of miles behind enemy lines – has clipped the wings of Vladimir Putin’s strategic air operations.

Ukrainian peace talks Monday amid heightened tensions after Ukraine's drone attack on Russian airfields, and unclaimed bridge explosions.

It was already hard to imagine a breakthrough emerging from the direct talks between Russia and Ukraine set to be renewed in Istanbul on Monday.