Ukraine and Russia attacked each other with a barrage of drones on Saturday, with Moscow regaining more of its territory in the Kursk region, as international efforts to end the three-year war between the neighbours intensify.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he has “serious questions” over a US-proposed ceasefire in Ukraine while Donald Trump said Washington and Moscow have held “productive” talks on the idea.
Saturday saw British Prime Minister Keir Starmer say Putin would “sooner or later” have to “come to the table and engage in serious discussion.”
Talks hosted in a call set up by Downing Street aim to urge around 25 participating countries to sign up to a coalition willing to protect any eventual ceasefire in Ukraine.
Ukraine said it had downed 130 Iranian-made drones launched by Russia across the country, while Moscow said it shot down 126 drones over its southern and border regions.
Moscow has pushed this week to retake a large part of the land that Ukraine originally captured in its western Kursk region.
The Russian defence ministry said troops took control over the villages of Zaoleshenka and Rubanshchina — north and west of the town of Sudzha, the main town that Moscow reclaimed this week.
Putin on Friday called on embattled Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region to “surrender”, while his US counterpart Trump urged the Kremlin to spare their lives.
“If they lay down their arms and surrender, they will be guaranteed life and dignified treatment,” Putin said Friday.
Russia’s defence ministry also said that military engineers were working to clear the areas that were held by Ukraine.