KYIV, July 9 (Reuters) - Russia targeted Ukraine with a record 728 drones early on Wednesday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to send more defensive weapons to Kyiv and aimed unusually sharp criticism at Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russia launched its largest drone and missile bombardment of Ukraine overnight into Wednesday, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

KYIV, Ukraine -- Russia fired more than 100 drones at civilian areas of Ukraine overnight, authorities said Monday, as the Kremlin dismissed the country’s transport chief after a weekend of travel chaos when Russian airports grounded hundreds of flights due to the threat of Ukrainian drone attacks.

One of those key frontline areas is Pokrovsk, a strategic hub in eastern Ukraine, which Moscow has been trying to capture for more than two years. According to the head of Ukraine's army Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, Russia has concentrated some 111,000 troops in that area.

Russia has recently sought to overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses with major attacks that include increasing numbers of decoy drones.