KYIV, Ukraine — Russia and Ukraine traded heavy aerial blows in a single day, with either side on Saturday reporting greater than 100 enemy drones over their respective territories.
The assaults come lower than 24 hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to debate particulars of the American proposal for a 30-day ceasefire within the war with Ukraine.
Putin instructed a press convention on Thursday that he supported a truce in principle however set out a number of particulars that have to be clarified earlier than it’s agreed. Kyiv has already endorsed the truce proposal, though Ukrainian officers have publicly raised doubts as as to if Moscow will decide to such a deal.
Chatting with reporters in Kyiv on Saturday, after virtual talks between Western allies hosted by U.Okay. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Zelenskyy voiced Ukraine’s assist for the 30-day full ceasefire proposal to debate a longer-term peace plan, however mentioned Russia would try to derail talks with situations and “buts.”
Starmer has instructed allies to “hold the strain” on Putin to again a ceasefire in Ukraine, hailing Ukraine because the “social gathering of peace.” Starmer mentioned Putin will “eventually” should “come to the desk.
In an announcement earlier on Saturday, Zelenskyy had accused Moscow of increase forces alongside the border.
“The buildup of Russian forces signifies that Moscow intends to maintain ignoring diplomacy. It’s clear that Russia is prolonging the conflict,” he mentioned.
Nevertheless, Zelenskyy burdened that if Russia didn’t agree with the U.S. proposal there can be “particular, harsh and simple” response from the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.
He additionally mentioned that Kyiv’s troops have been sustaining their presence in Russia’s Kursk region after Trump mentioned Friday that “1000’s” of Ukrainian troops had been surrounded by the Russian army.
“The operation of our forces within the designated areas of the Kursk area continues,” Zelenskyy mentioned. “Our troops proceed to carry again Russian and North Korean groupings within the Kursk area. There isn’t a encirclement of our troops.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke Saturday with Russian International Minister Sergei Lavrov. Within the name, they mentioned subsequent steps to comply with up on current conferences in Saudi Arabia and agreed to proceed working in direction of restoring communication between america and Russia, State Division spokesperson Tammy Bruce mentioned in an announcement.
Ukraine’s air drive mentioned Saturday that Russia had launched a barrage of 178 drones and two ballistic missiles over the nation in a single day. The assault was a combination of Shahed-type drones and imitation drones designed to confuse air defenses. Some 130 drones have been shot down, whereas 38 extra failed to succeed in their targets.
Russia attacked vitality amenities, inflicting important harm, placing vitality infrastructure within the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, Ukraine’s personal vitality firm DTEK mentioned in an announcement on Saturday. Some residents have been left with out electrical energy.
“The harm is critical. Vitality staff are already engaged on the bottom. We’re doing every little thing potential to revive energy to houses as quickly as potential,” the vitality agency mentioned.
Falling drone particles in Russia’s Volgograd area sparked a fireplace within the Krasnoarmeysky district of the town, near a Lukoil oil refinery, in keeping with Gov. Andrei Bocharov, who supplied no additional particulars. Close by airports briefly halted flights, native media shops reported. No casualties have been reported.
The Volgograd refinery has been focused by Kyiv’s forces on a number of events since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine greater than three years in the past, most lately in a drone assault on Feb. 15.
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