Russia attacked Ukraine with nearly two hundred drones overnight, targeting mostly the Kyiv region and energy facilities in the east, authorities said yesterday.

The Kremlin yesterday praised Washington’s “balanced position” after the US voted with Russia at the United Nations to avoid condemnation of Moscow’s campaign against Ukraine.

Russia said yesterday it was ready for talks on the three-year old war in Ukraine but would only stop fighting when a peace settlement “suits” Moscow.

Russia launched 267 drones on Ukraine overnight, a “record” since the February 2022 invasion, the Ukrainian air force said yesterday.

The United States urged UN members to back its “simple, historic” resolution on the Ukraine war, which diplomatic sources said omits mention of Kyiv’s territory occupied by Russia.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz has stressed his support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and defended Germany’s commitment to free speech in a pushback against recent broadsides from the Trump administration.

Kyiv and Washington are engaged in talks over a deal to hand the United States preferential access to Ukraine’s mineral deposits, a source in Kyiv told AFP yesterday -- despite a dramatic spat between leaders Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump.

Three years since the arrival of Russian forces drove her from her home in eastern Ukraine to Poland, Oksana Sapronova and other refugees fear their homeland’s battlefield losses could now end up being in vain.

The White House continued to press Kyiv yesterday with its efforts to bring an end to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, urging it to rein in criticism and quickly sign a minerals deal pushed by US President Donald Trump.

US President Donald Trump has effectively blamed Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky for Russia’s invasion, as French President Emmanuel Macron prepares for another round of talks with EU and non-European partners.

US President Donald Trump yesterday denounced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “a dictator without elections” and said he had better move fast to secure a peace or he would have no country left.

US President Donald Trump’s administration yesterday said it agreed to hold more talks with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine after an initial meeting that excluded Kyiv, a departure from Washington’s previous approach that rallied US allies to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday called for the creation of a European army, as he insisted Kyiv and its backers on the continent must be listened to in peace talks with Russia.

Donald Trump’s defence chief yesterday denied that the US president was betraying Ukraine by opening talks with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, as blindsided European powers insisted they and Kyiv must have a seat at the table.

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone yesterday and agreed to immediately start talks to end the Ukraine war, in an extraordinary thaw in relations that could leave Kyiv out in the cold.

US President Donald Trump said Friday he would “probably” meet Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky next week, as Russia said its forces had seized the key mining town of Toretsk in east Ukraine.

Ukrainian air defences downed 50 of 72 drones launched by Russia overnight and attacked one of Russia’s largest oil refineries, Ukraine’s military said yesterday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday said allies should work towards determining a format for any upcoming peace talks with Russia and that Kyiv must be involved for successful negotiations.

Kyiv said yesterday it had received the bodies of hundreds of Ukrainian troops killed in battle with Russian forces, in one of the largest repatriations since Russia invaded.

The Kremlin said yesterday it saw nothing new in US President Donald Trump’s calls for Russia to end its military offensive in Ukraine, and that Moscow was ready for “mutually respectful” dialogue with him.