US President Donald Trump is said to have privately described Ukraine’s drone strike on Russian strategic bombers as “strong” and “badass.” The operation, carried out by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) on June 1, targeted four Russian air bases deep inside the country. According to Kyiv, 41 aircraft were struck in the raid, causing an estimated $7 billion in damage”He thought it was badass,” Axios reported citing a source familiar with Trump’s reaction, while another source said that Trump termed the strike “pretty strong.” One of Trump’s advisers reportedly likened the situation to a small but aggressive force managing to hurt a more powerful opponent. The Trump adviser, as per Axios, used the metaphor about a “chihuahua” attacking “a much bigger dog.”However, Trump also told people he met with in recent days that Putin would retaliate very significantly, making his ceasefire mission even harder. “We want this war to end. We want it to de-escalate. So if Putin goes crazy in response, yeah, the president has concerns,” another source who spoke to Trump said. n18oc_world n18oc_crux0:00 INTRODUCTIONRUSSIA SAYS MILITARY WILL RESPOND AT “APPROPRIATE TIME”RUSSIA TO “RESTORE EQUIPMENT DAMAGED” IN UKRAINIAN ATTACKBLAST DAMAGES RAILWAY TRACK, RUSSIA’S FSB SAYSRUSSIA STRIKES UKRAINIAN ARMY TRAINING SITE