Russian strikes have killed at least three people and wounded 30 in Kyiv after a night of explosions over the capital.
The attacks came just before a second round of peace negotiations was set to begin, as a renewed US-led push to end the war gathers steam this week.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that 600 drones and 35 missiles struck the nation in one of the largest bombardments in a while. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that falling debris from intercepted Russian drones hit residential buildings and the western part of Kyiv had lost power.
It comes as the president former chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has reportedly said he is going to the frontline after he resigned amid a $100m corruption scandal.
Often referred to as Zelenskyâs right-hand man, Yermakâs home and offices were raided yesterday and he said he was fully cooperating with authorities.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutorâs Office are leading the investigation involving top Ukrainian officials.
In a message to New York Post last night, he wrote: âIâm going to the front and am prepared for any reprisals,â he wrote, insisting he was âan honest and decent person.â
Russia says it launched ‘massive strike’ on Ukrainian military, energy facilities
Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Saturday that Moscow had launched a “massive” overnight strike on Ukrainian military-industrial and energy facilities overnight in response to what it called “terrorist attacks”.
While politicians wrangle over Trumpâs peace plan, soldiers are still dying, says Ukrainian filmmaker
Mstyslav Chernov, the Academy award winning director of 20 Days in Mariupol, gave The Independent an insight into morale on the frontline after the limited release of his latest documentary, 2000 Meters to Andriivka, put him straight on the battlefield with Ukraineâs armed forces.
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Russian attacks kills 2 in Kyiv as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine gain momentum
Russian drone and missile attacks on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, killed at least two people in the early hours of Saturday, local officials said.
The attacks came just before a second round of peace negotiations was set to begin, as a renewed US-led push to end the war gathers steam this week.
Writing on its official Telegram channel, the Kyiv City Military Administration said two people were killed in the strikes. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said 15 people were wounded, noting that falling debris from intercepted Russian drones hit residential buildings. He also said the western part of Kyiv had lost power.
The latest assault on Kyiv came as Ukrainian peace negotiators are due to meet their US counterparts in America this weekend, according to an official in Ukraine’s presidential administration who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
Fiona Hill: Russian expert on why Putin knows exactly how to get Trump on side
Vladimir Putin knows exactly how to get Donald Trump on side, a former White House adviser who observed meetings between the pair has said.
In an hour-long interview, Fiona Hill told world affairs editor Sam Kiley how the Russian president is in tune with how his American counterpart can be flattered just by being around world leaders.
The fluent Russian speaker also recalled the moment Putin could not resist the temptation to tease Trump, which translators hid from the US president.
Watch more here:
Fiona Hill: Russian expert on why Putin knows exactly how to get Trump on side
Ukrainian team heads to US for talks with Trump envoy Witkoff, report says
A Ukrainian delegation is heading to the US for further discussions over a peace plan pushed by president Donald Trump, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing a person familiar with the matter.
The Ukrainian group, including senior Ukrainian security official Rustem Umerov and first deputy foreign minister Sergiy Kyslytsya, is expected to meet with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trumpâs son-in-law Jared Kushner in Florida, Bloomberg News reported.
Recap: Trump âto hand occupied Ukrainian land to Putin in return for peace dealâ
Ukrainian forces fighting in Kupiansk, despite Russian claims, top commander says
Ukrainian forces are defending their positions and hunting down sabotage groups in the northeastern city of Kupiansk despite Moscow’s statements that its troops are fully in control of it, Ukraine’s top commander said on Friday.
Russia seized Kupiansk in the first weeks of the 2022 invasion, but Ukrainian troops recaptured it later that year.
Russian president Vladimir Putin said last week it was back in Moscow’s hands and on Thursday, while visiting Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, he said the city was “fully in our hands.”
Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskyi rejected the claims.
“Our soldiers continue to conduct both defensive and search and strike actions,” Syrskyi wrote on Telegram after visiting the area in Kharkiv region.
“These actions take place daily as part of comprehensive measures to stabilise the situation in Kupiansk. The scale of lies from the Russian leadership about the situation in Kupiansk is astonishing.”
He said Ukrainian forces were “holding designated lines and intensifying fire pressure to block the enemy’s supply routes.”
Who is Andrii Yermak? Zelenskyâs right-hand man who resigned after police raid in corruption probe
In an evening address, Zelensky said Yermak wrote a letter of resignation after officers raided his home.
Latest pictures show destruction in Kyiv
Vast Russian overnight attack on Ukraine kills two, wounds dozens
A vast Russian overnight attack on Ukraine killed two people and wounded two dozen, Ukraine’s foreign minister said on Saturday, adding that Moscow continued to “kill and destroy” while the world was discussing peace plans for the conflict.
“Russia shot dozens of cruise and ballistic missiles and over 500 drones at ordinary homes, the energy grid, and critical infrastructure,” Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X.
Explosions could be heard in the capital city, Kyiv, throughout the night.
