Russia and Ukraine trade strikes as US-brokered peace talks show signs of progress
Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy sites cut power for more than 500,000 people, while Moscow says it downed 443 Ukrainian drones overnight.
At a glance
- Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities cut power for more than 500,000 people, Ukraine's Energy Ministry said.
- Russia's Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted and destroyed 443 Ukrainian drones overnight.
- Putin said Moscow is ready to resume US-mediated talks with Kyiv in November, after Witkoff met him in St. Petersburg.
Russia and Ukraine traded intense overnight strikes on civilian and energy infrastructure, less than a day after both sides signalled that US-brokered peace negotiations were moving forward.
Ukraine's Energy Ministry said Friday that a major Russian attack on the country's energy facilities knocked out electricity for more than 500,000 people, with strikes reported in the Zhytomyr, Volyn, Mykolaiv, Poltava, Khmelnytskyi and Rivne regions. Emergency restoration work has begun where the security situation allows, the ministry added.
DTEK, one of Ukraine's largest private energy companies, said an unspecified thermal power plant had stopped generating electricity after Russian shelling. In a Telegram post early Friday, the company said its thermal power plants have been attacked more than 230 times since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Russia says it downed 443 drones
Russia's Ministry of Defense said its air defense forces intercepted and destroyed 443 Ukrainian drones overnight.
The strikes came after US special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday for talks on how to end the conflict with Ukraine.
Following that meeting, Putin told Russian television that Moscow was ready to resume US-mediated talks with Kyiv in November. "The goal of these talks will be to ensure the security of Ukraine and Russia after reaching peace agreements, in their final form, not as a result of a temporary ceasefire for some short period of time," he said, according to Reuters.
Energy ceasefire yields no outcome
A so-called "energy ceasefire" announced by President Donald Trump on Oct. 11 has failed to yield any meaningful outcome.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said earlier this week that Ukraine had refrained from attacking Russian energy targets for three days before resuming strikes, citing Russia's continued attacks on its infrastructure. Speaking to CNN late Thursday, Zelenskyy said he was ready for a ceasefire, but that Ukraine needed strong security guarantees.
Source: CNBC.
Questions and answers
- Did Russia and Ukraine agree to a ceasefire?
- No. Both sides continued trading strikes overnight. Putin said any talks would aim for a final peace agreement rather than a short-term ceasefire, and Zelenskyy said he was ready for a ceasefire but needed strong security guarantees.
- How many people lost power in the Russian attack on Ukraine?
- More than 500,000 people lost electricity after strikes on energy facilities in the Zhytomyr, Volyn, Mykolaiv, Poltava, Khmelnytskyi and Rivne regions, according to Ukraine's Energy Ministry.
- What happened to the US-brokered peace talks?
- US special envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, after which Putin said Moscow was ready to resume US-mediated talks with Kyiv in November. A separate 'energy ceasefire' announced by President Donald Trump on Oct. 11 has produced no meaningful outcome.
