Several civilians were killed and more than 20 others wounded overnight as Russia and Ukraine exchanged waves of drone attacks, officials in both countries said. The strikes included two attacks near Ukraine’s border with NATO member Poland, where a border crossing briefly stopped operating before reopening.
The Ukrainian General Staff said Russia launched 863 drones at Ukraine over the previous 24 hours. Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces shot down 389 Ukrainian drones during the night across several Russian regions, Tatarstan and occupied Crimea.
Strikes reported near Poland and key Ukrainian routes
Polish and Ukrainian officials said a Russian drone struck a Warsaw-bound train near the Polish border in Ukraine, causing no casualties. The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces also hit Ukrainian logistics and energy facilities and infrastructure used to move military cargoes from Europe in western Ukraine. Read the context: Deadly Russian attack near Odesa and Ukrainian drone strikes on Moscow escalate conflict.
Ukraine relies on trade and arms shipments crossing its borders with Poland, Romania and Moldova. In Odesa, Ukraine’s main Black Sea port hub, officials said the latest attack injured at least nine people. Kyiv has accused Moscow of trying to choke off exports from the port.
Key points
- Two people were killed and 12 injured in a Ukrainian drone attack in Nizhnekamsk, according to authorities in Russia’s Tatarstan region.
- Two people were killed in strikes targeting fuel trucks near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, according to Rosatom chief Alexey Likhachev.
- At least nine people were injured in a Russian night-time attack in Odesa, according to city military administration head Serhiy Lysak.
- The Dorohusk-Yahodyn crossing briefly stopped after a truck was attacked about 0.8km from Poland, then resumed operations.
Officials discuss a possible October negotiation
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said three-way negotiations involving Russia, Ukraine and the United States could take place in October, according to Russian media reports. He said such a possibility was not ruled out and described it as being in the foreseeable future.
US negotiators have recently visited Kyiv and Moscow in an effort to advance negotiations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview that he would be willing to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in Miami in December. Previous US-involved negotiation efforts have failed.
What happens next
The possible three-way negotiations are identified as a potential October development, while Zelenskyy has proposed a meeting with Putin at the G20 summit in Miami in December.
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