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| Russia targeted a railway depot in the town of Fastiv outside Kyiv. Image: Reuter/BBC |
At the same time that talks between the United States and Ukraine are set to enter their third day in Florida, Russia has launched a significant aerial bombardment against Ukrainian infrastructure targets. According to authorities, Russia launched 653 drones and 51 missiles overnight, the majority of which were destroyed. One strike damaged rolling stock and destroyed the main station building in the town of Fastiv, which is outside of Kyiv. The attack was "meaningless from a military point of view, and the Russians could not have been unaware of this," according to President Volodymyr Zelensky. After talks in Moscow failed to produce a breakthrough, earlier US and Ukrainian negotiators urged Russia to exhibit a "serious commitment to long-term peace."
In recent weeks, Moscow has increased its attacks on Ukraine's energy sector and infrastructure. The energy ministry of Ukraine reported on Saturday that Russian attacks had destroyed energy facilities in eight regions, resulting in blackouts. In the meantime, the UN's nuclear watchdog reported that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant temporarily lost all external power overnight. This is the 11th time this has occurred since Russia invaded its neighbor completely. In response to what the Russian defense ministry described as Ukrainian attacks on civilian targets, it said it had launched a "massive strike." According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, "Russia continues to disregard any peace efforts and instead strikes critical civilian infrastructure." "This demonstrates that no decisions regarding strengthening Ukraine and increasing Russian pressure cannot be postponed. And particularly not under the guise of the peace process," he continued. Two days of talks with Rustem Umerov, secretary of Ukraine's national security council, were described as "constructive" in a statement that was posted in Florida by US special envoy Steve Witkoff. According to their statement, Witkoff and Umerov "discussed necessary deterrence capabilities to sustain a lasting peace" and "agreed on the framework of security arrangements" that could lead to such an agreement. According to the statement, Russia's readiness to take "steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killing" was necessary for the war to be brought to an end. Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump, is also present at the negotiations, which will continue for a third day on Saturday. During the Florida talks, Ukraine's team was informed of a recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump's most senior overseas envoy, Witkoff.
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| The strike in Fastiv damaged locomotives (Image: Reuter/bbc) |
On Tuesday, Witkoff spent almost five hours in Moscow with Putin. After that, the Kremlin stated that "no compromise" had been reached on a draft plan for US peace. The Kremlin stated that Putin would be willing to meet with the Americans "as many times as necessary," but Ukraine and its allies in Europe have questioned the Russian leader's commitment to bringing about an end to the war. "Obtain full information about what was said in Moscow and what other pretexts Putin has come up with to drag out the war," Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, stated on Friday. When the initial version of the US peace plan leaked to the media, it was widely believed to be favorable to Moscow. Kyiv pushed for changes to the plan. An updated version has not been made available to the public. Security guarantees for Ukraine following the war and territorial concessions are two major areas of contention between the two sides. Nearly half of Ukraine is under Russian control at the moment, including large swaths of the eastern Donbas region, which includes the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. In an interview with India Today on Friday, Putin stated that Russia would "liberate these [Donbas] territories by force" if Ukrainian troops did not complete their withdrawal from the area this week. Ukraine and its European allies believe that granting Ukraine membership in NATO or providing comprehensive security guarantees is the most effective strategy for stopping Russia from attacking again in the future. Trump, as well as Russia, has repeatedly stated that he will not permit Ukraine to join the military alliance. The Kremlin stated on Wednesday that the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO was a "key question" that was discussed in Moscow. Trump claimed that the talks were "reasonably good," but he cautioned that it was too soon to predict the outcome because "it does take two to tango."
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