Nine individuals have been killed in a Russian drone assault on a minibus carrying civilians on Saturday, Ukrainian authorities mentioned, a day after Moscow and Kyiv agreed a large-scale jail trade at talks in Türkiye.
At the tip of a tense week, Ukraine and Russia held their first direct talks in additional than three years however did not conform to a truce.
And regardless of the specter of new sanctions on Russia from Kyiv’s allies, there was no let-up in preventing.
“Unfortunately, as a result of a cynical attack by the Russians on a bus with civilians, there are dead,” the navy administration in Ukraine’s northern Sumy area mentioned in a Telegram put up.
“Unfortunately, the death toll has risen to nine,” it added later, alongside a photograph of a mangled blue minibus that had apparently been torn aside by the blast.
Four individuals have been wounded within the assault, the administration mentioned.
In the sooner put up, the authorities had mentioned that eight individuals have been killed.
The bus, which was attacked close to the town of Bilopillya whereas travelling in the direction of Sumy, was “targeted by the Russians”, the navy administration mentioned.
Ukraine’s Sumy border area has come underneath more and more lethal bombardments by Moscow since March when Ukrainian forces have been pushed out of Russia’s neighboring Kursk area, which that they had partially managed for the reason that summer season of 2024.
This newest assault got here after three individuals have been killed in Russian strikes on Friday on Ukraine’s japanese Donetsk and southeastern Kherson areas.
Little progress in talks
The first direct talks for the reason that spring of 2022 — shortly after Moscow’s full-scale invasion that February — between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul resulted in a concrete settlement to trade 1,000 prisoners every.
But there have been few indicators of any progress in the direction of halting the preventing that has dragged on for greater than three years, destroyed giant swathes of Ukraine and displaced tens of millions of individuals.
The two sides mentioned they’d “present their vision of a possible future ceasefire”, in response to Russia’s high negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky.
Ukraine’s high negotiator, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, mentioned the “next step” could be a gathering between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Russia mentioned it took notice of the request.
Putin had declined to journey to Türkiye for the assembly, with Zelenskyy accusing him of being “afraid” and Russia of not taking the talks “seriously”.
Zelensky attended a European summit in Albania alongside the leaders of France, Germany, Britain and Poland, amongst others, the place he urged a “strong reaction” from the world if the Istanbul talks failed, together with new sanctions.
French President Emmanuel Macron mentioned European nations have been coordinating with the United States on further sanctions in opposition to Russia ought to Moscow proceed to refuse an “unconditional ceasefire”.
Both Moscow and Washington have talked up the necessity for a gathering on the battle between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Trump has mentioned “nothing’s going to happen” on the battle till he meets Putin face-to-face.
During the Istanbul talks, a Ukrainian supply informed AFP that Russia was advancing hardline territorial calls for that Ukrainian overseas ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhy known as “unacceptable”.
Moscow claims annexation of 5 Ukrainian areas — 4 since its 2022 invasion, and Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.
Source: www.dailysabah.com