At least six people were killed and more than 30 injured in separate Russian strikes across Ukraine on Wednesday, just hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump discussed potential peace efforts. The attacks targeted civilian infrastructure in the capital, Kyiv, and the frontline Donetsk region.
In Kyiv, local officials reported that a sustained daytime assault using high-speed, high-altitude jet drones struck multiple sites. The barrage, which lasted from morning into the early afternoon, damaged a nine-story non-residential building, a business center, and warehouses, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko.
The Ukrainian oil company Ukrnafta confirmed that Russian drones hit one of its petrol stations, marking the sixth such facility attacked in recent weeks. Authorities stated that a total of two petrol stations were targeted in the capital. Additionally, Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, chief executive of the state railway operator, confirmed that railway infrastructure was hit and that one employee was injured.
Zelenskyy criticized Russia for continuing to target critical civilian assets. “Russia continues to turn civilian and critical infrastructure into targets: pharmaceutical facilities, gas stations, railways, communications infrastructure, and shopping malls,” he wrote on the social media platform X. He noted that a large number of the drones deployed were jet-powered and harder to intercept.
In the Donetsk region, a separate aerial bomb attack killed at least four people and injured four others in a village, regional governor Vadym Filashkin said on Telegram.
The violence erupted shortly after Zelenskyy met with Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday. The two leaders discussed a potential bilateral ceasefire focused on energy-related targets. Zelenskyy also requested an increase in US Patriot air defense missile supplies to bolster defenses against anticipated Russian strikes on energy infrastructure during the winter months.
While Zelenskyy stated that no formal agreements were reached, he expressed readiness for “any format” of an energy ceasefire provided it halted attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. Reports from the Financial Times indicated that Trump had previously urged Zelenskyy to stop Kyiv’s strikes on Russian refineries due to concerns over global diesel shortages and rising prices.
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters ahead of discussions between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that there were currently no grounds for peace negotiations. “For now, there are no prerequisites for moving onto a peaceful negotiating track,” Peskov said, though he added that Russia remains open to talks.
Peskov stated that President Vladimir Putin was willing to meet Trump one-on-one if deemed necessary, but reiterated that any meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy would require the Ukrainian leader to travel to Moscow—a condition Kyiv has previously rejected, insisting on neutral ground for any talks. The spokesperson also dismissed the timing for a peace summit as premature, arguing that expert-level groundwork had not yet been laid.
Six dead for what? Diplomacy feels like a farce when civilians are bombed hours later. The world needs to wake up.
Peskov’s condition about Zelenskyy traveling to Moscow is a non-starter. Kyiv will never accept that as neutral ground.
Is an energy ceasefire even realistic when they’re targeting gas stations and railways? This seems completely disconnected from reality.
Jet drones are becoming impossible to stop. Patriot batteries alone won’t cut it anymore; we need better layered defenses.
The timing is absolutely chilling. Attacks right after peace talks feel like a deliberate message from Moscow.