Poland and Romania scrambled Nato fighter jets early on Wednesday as a series of explosions rang out across western Ukraine.
In Poland, two airports in its southeast were shut down as Russian airstrikes targeted the cities of Lviv and Ternopil. The Polish military said it was forced to act to ensure the safety of Polish airspace.
Romania scrambled two Eurofighters and two Romanian F-16 fighter jets as it warned citizens in the southeastern counties of Tulcea and Galati to take cover, the ministry said.
A drone had breached its airspace by 8 km, but there were no reports of a drone hitting the ground in Romanian territory.
This comes as Donald Trump’s administration was reported by Axios to be working in secret with Russia on a new 28-point plan to end the war in Ukraine, which would consist of “security guarantees, security in Europe, and future US relations with Russia and Ukraine”.
US envoy Steve Witkoff has discussed the plan with Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev and Volodymyr Zelensky’s security adviser Rustem Umerov, according to Washington and Kyiv officials.
Mr Witkoff will meet Mr Zelensky later on Wednesday in Turkey.
Poland will respond to railway sabotage, minister says
Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on Wednesday that Poland will respond to last weekend’s railway sabotage, not only by diplomatic means.
He added that he will inform about Poland’s response “in the next few days”.
An explosion damaged a Polish railway track near Mika village, a route crucial for delivering aid to Ukraine, with Warsaw saying it was the work of a “foreign state”.
Polish authorities have since said that two Ukrainian nationals collaborating with Russian intelligence were responsible for an explosion on the railway track used to transport weapons to Ukraine.
Large-scale fire breaks out in Lviv after Russian strikes
A large-scale fire has broken out in Lviv following a Russian strike early on Wednesday morning, amid its huge air attack on western Ukraine.
An energy facility, woodworking business, and warehouse have all been damaged
“There is a big fire in Lviv. It will take several hours to put out the fire. Close your windows as the air may be polluted,” city authorities warned,” said Ihor Zinkevych, a member of Lviv City Council.
Maksym Kozytskyi, the head of the region’s military administration, said that “emergency power outages have been introduced in the Lviv region”.
He added: “This is a forced step due to the fact that the enemy attacked a number of energy facilities throughout the country.
“If the system cannot be stabilized quickly, unfortunately, hourly outage schedules will have to be applied.”
Romania evacuates border village after Russian drone attack on gas tanker – ICYMI
Moscow says Kyiv used US-made ATACMS missile in Voronezh strike
Moscow has accused Ukrainian forces of firing four US-made ATACMS missiles at the southern Russian city of Voronezh in an attempted strike on civilian targets.
Ukraine’s military said on Tuesday it had attacked military targets in Russia with US-supplied ATACMS missiles, calling it a “significant development.”
Kyiv received the systems in 2023 but was initially restricted to using them only on its own territories, nearly a fifth of which are controlled by Russia.
“Russian S-400 air defence crews and Pantsir missile and gun systems shot down all ATACMS missiles,” Russia’s defence ministry said on Telegram.
Falling debris from the destroyed missiles damaged the roofs of a Voronezh retirement home and an orphanage, as well as one house, the ministry said adding that there were no casualties or injured among civilians.
Moscow has a history of strong responses to such strikes. After Ukraine fired ATACMS and British Storm Shadow missiles into Russia last year, Putin ordered a hypersonic missile be fired at Ukraine.
Three injured as Russia targets energy infrastructure in western Ivano-Frankivsk region
Earlier, we brought you the news that Russia had launched a huge overnight missile attack on Ukraine overnight.
Local authorities have reported that two children were among three people who were injured in a combined Russian strike targeting energy infrastructure in the Ivano-Frankivsk region.
“A difficult night for Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. The Russians have once again struck our oblast using different types of weapons,” said Svitlana Onyshchuk, the head of the region’s military administration.
“Energy infrastructure facilities were targeted. Early reports indicate that three people have been injured in the Ivano-Frankivsk district, including two children.”
One house was damaged and those injured are receiving medical treatment, Ms Onyshchuk said.
In Focus | Inside Putin’s plan to crush Ukraine this winter – and why it might work
Cold and darkness are the cruel weapons of Russia’s energy terror campaign aimed at crushing Ukraine this winter. The Kremlin has been attempting to systematically destroy Ukraine’s electricity, heating and transport systems for three years now – so far, without success. But this winter could be the one when Ukraine’s air defences are finally overwhelmed. Russia’s attack strategies have been honed to a peak of destructiveness, with a raft of devastating new tactics aimed at making whole cities and regions uninhabitable.
First, and most spectacularly, Russian forces are becoming increasingly adept at evading air defences by sending ballistic and cruise missiles and drones in unprecedentedly large swarms. Last week, for instance, Kyiv was kept under unrelenting bombardment for over five hours, with 430 drones and nearly 20 missiles hitting electrical grids, railway sidings and gas-fired power stations, as well as smashing into apartment buildings. At least eight civilians were killed.
Latest pictures of deadly Russian air attack
We can now bring you more images of the massive Russian air attack on Ukraine, which involved 518 drones and missiles in total, according to President Zelensky.
Romania scrambles jets after drone breaches airspace
Romania scrambled fighter jets on Wednesday when a drone breached its airspace during a Russian attack on Ukrainian infrastructure near the border, the defense ministry said.
The radar first picked up the signal of a drone 8 km inside national airspace near the villages of Periprava and Chilia Veche in Tulcea County, the military said.
The drone signal disappeared off the radar before reappearing intermittently for 12 minutes near villages in Galati county, it added.
Romania scrambled two Eurofighters – part of German air policing missions in Romania – and later two Romanian F-16 fighter jets and warned citizens in the southeastern counties of Tulcea and Galati to take cover, the ministry said.
The ministry added it received no reports of drones hitting ground in Romanian territory.
The European Union and Nato state, which shares a 650 km (400 mile) border with Ukraine, has had Russian drone fragments fall on its territory repeatedly as Moscow attacks Ukrainian port infrastructure across the river Danube from Romania.
Nine killed as Russia fires 518 drones and missiles in huge overnight attack
Russian forces fired more than 470 drones and 48 ballistic and cruise missiles at Ukraine in a huge overnight air attack, Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday morning
At least nine people have died and there are dozens of casualties in total, the Ukrainian president said in an update on Telegram.
All nine people died in the western city of Ternopil, where people may be trapped under the rubble after nine-storey residential buildings were hit resulting in“significant destruction”, Mr Zelensky added.
He said a “massive strike” was carried out on Kharkiv in the northeast, injuring dozens, including children. Further attacks in the Donetsk, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, Chernihiv, and Dnipropetrovsk regions.
“Each brazen attack against ordinary life shows that the pressure on Russia is insufficient,” he said.
“Effective sanctions and assistance to Ukraine can change this. The primary need is air defense missiles, additional systems, increasing the capabilities of our combat aviation, and the production of drones to protect life.”
Poland says airports in Rzeszow and Lublin resume operations
Polish airports in Rzeszow and Lublin have reopened after they were closed due to military aviation operations, the Polish Air Navigation Services Agency (PANSA) said.
Polish military commanders said earlier that Polish and allied aircraft were scrambled due to Russian attacks on facilities located in western Ukraine.
