Ukraine: Russia launches largest strikes in weeks

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of playing for time over ending the war.

"He has no interest in sitting down at the table. This is all about time," Kallas told German broadcaster ZDF. 

The US, Europe, and Ukraine wanted peace, she said, but "what we've seen from the Russian side, however, is that they're just playing games and formulating obstacles."

US President Donald Trump said in his latest statement on Truth Socialthat Ukraine should take a more offensive stance in its war with Russia.

"It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invaders country. It’s like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offense. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia," Trump wrote in his post.

"Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND. How did that work out? Regardless, this is a war that would have NEVER happened if I were President — ZERO CHANCE," he continued. "Interesting times ahead!!!"

Two weeks after Trump's 2024 election victory, former President Biden authorized a major shift in US policy to allow Ukraine to use long-range US missiles to attack sites in Russia.

Trump had sharply criticized the decision at the time.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in the Kremlin on Thursday.

Jaishankar earlier on Thursday met with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. Jaishankar arrived in Russia at a time when India has been criticized by Washington for buying large amounts of Russian oil.

Writing in the Financial Times earlier this week, US President Donald Trump's trade advisor Peter Navarro described India's dependence on Russian oil as "opportunistic and deeply corrosive of the world’s efforts to isolate Putin’s war economy."

Indian officials, however, seemed to respond to US pressure with defiance. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to Putin as "my friend" in a social media post earlier this month, and invited the Russian leader to visit India.

Ukraine's military chief Oleksandr Syrskyi praised his troops after clashes near Dobropillia in Donetsk.

"Despite the enemy's numerical superiority, the units of the Armed Forces and National Guard of Ukraine are fulfilling their tasks with honor," he wrote in an online post, adding that "as a result of successful strike and search operations, six settlements have been cleared and hundreds of Russian occupiers have been destroyed."

The information could not be independently verified.

Dobropillia is located 12 miles (20 kilometers) north of the key strategic city of Pokrovsk, a crucial logistical hub in eastern Ukraine that has become a focal point in the three-year-long conflict.

Ukrainian officials last week conceded that their defenses near Dobropillia had been breached by small groups of Russian forces, but stressed that this did not mean Russia had taken control of territory. 

Russia's foreign minister has cast fresh doubt on peace talks, questioning the "legitimacy of the person" who signs future peace agreements.

Sergey Lavrov told reporters that President Vladimir Putin was willing to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, adding a caveat: "With the understanding that all issues that require consideration at the highest level will be well worked out, and experts and ministers will prepare appropriate recommendations."

"And, of course, with the understanding that when and if — hopefully, when — it comes to signing future agreements, the issue of the legitimacy of the person who signs these agreements from the Ukrainian side will be resolved," Lavrov said.

Moscow has repeatedly questioned Zelenskyy's legitimacy as head of state, with elections in Ukraine having been suspended after Russia's 2022 invasion. 

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy questioned Moscow's desire for peace after Russia launched 574 drones and 40 missiles at Ukraine, hitting a US electronics manufacturer in western Ukraine.

"The Russians carried out this strike as if nothing is changing at all. As if there are no efforts from the world to stop this war," Zelenskyy said. 

Lithuania's Defense Ministry told the Reuters news agency on Thursday that it had imposed a no-fly zone along part of its border with Belarus, near its capital Vilnius. 

The move comes after several drones crash-landed in Lithuania's after entering its air space from this direction.

"This was done with regard to the security situation and the threats to society, including risks to civil aviation due to airspace violations by unpiloted aircraft," a Defense Minister spokesperson said in an email to Reuters. 

It said the no-fly zone would allow the armed forces to react to possible future incursions, and that aircraft in the designated zone face the "risk of interception and/or engagement in the event of penetration." 

Lithuania's capital Vilnius is roughly 30 kilometers (around 18.5 miles) from its 679-kilometer shared border with close Russian ally Belarus.

The no-fly zone covers a 90-kilometer stretch of the border area and was first established on August 14, according to the spokesperson. It extends from the ground up to an altitude of 12,000 feet (3.7 kilometers). Commercial planes fly much higher at cruising altitude so may still be able to fly over the zone.

On July 28, a drone armed with a small quantity of explosives flew over Vilnius before crashing in a military training area used by Germany's miltiary around 100 kilometers from the border.

Prior to that, on July 10, another drone entered Lithuania from Belarus. This led to then-Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas and Speaker of Parliament Saulius Skvernelis being briefly taken to bomb shelters before authorities determined that the drone posed no threat.

Belarus, a close ally and neighbor of Russia, is looking into increasing its domestic production of missiles, and at the possibility of equipping its Polonez rocket launcher systems with nuclear warheads, according to senior politicians and defense officials quoted in state media.

Belarus' southern border leads to Ukraine, while to the west and north it borders NATO members Poland, Lithuania and Latvia; Russia lies to its east.

The country is not a nuclear power but it hosts Russian tactical nuclear warheads that remain under Moscow's control. 

Alexander Volfovich, head of the country's State Security Council, told reporters that the government was looking into the possiblity of arming its domestic-made Polonez rocket artillery system with nuclear warheads.

"Today, it is a state-of-the-art system," Volfovich was quoted as saying by state news agency Belta. "Questions are already being raised about equipping these missiles with nuclear warheads." 

He also said Belarus was looking at how it could integrate the technology of the Russian-made Oreshnik, an intermediate-range hypersonic missile which Russia has used against Ukraine. Upcoming joint military exercises between Minsk and Moscow are expected to incorporate drills involving the Oreshnik.

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in remarks released Thursday that he is willing to hold a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but questioned the Russian leader's willingness to meet. 

"I responded immediately to the proposal for a bilateral meeting: we are ready," Zelenskyy said.

"If the Russians are not ready, we would like to see a strong reaction from the United States," Zelenskyy added.

US President Donald Trump has pushed for a Zelenskyy-Putin summit, but despite reports of a meeting being planned, there has been no concrete statement from the Kremlin that Putin has accepted any meeting.

Trump in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday admitted that Putin may not "want to make a deal." 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a press conference on Thursday that Putin was "ready" to meet Zelenskyy, but added a caveat that any meeting would require "all issues that require consideration at the highest level will be well worked out."

This appeared to include acquiescing to Russia's claims that Zelenskyy is not the legitimate leader of Ukraine.

Lavorv said that any Ukrainian meeting with Putin comes "with the understanding that when and if ... it comes to signing future agreements, the issue of the legitimacy of the person who signs these agreements from the Ukrainian side will be resolved." 

Zelenskyy said that any meeting with Putin would need to come after there is more clarity on security guarantees from Ukraine's allies. 

"We want to have an understanding of the security guarantees architecture within seven to 10 days," Zelenskyy said.

"We need to understand which country will be ready to do what at each specific moment," he added

Any meeting with Putin should he held in a "neutral" European country, Zelenksyy added, ruling out any summit in Moscow.

He also rejected the idea of China playing any role in guaranteeing Ukraine's security, citing Beijing's alleged support for Moscow.

German prosecutors on Thursday reported that a Ukrainian man has been arrested in Italy for allegedly participating in undersea explosions in 2022 that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Germany. 

The Nord Stream 1 and the not-yet operational Nord Stream 2 were major conduits in the Baltic Sea for Russian gas into Europe, particularly Germany.

Their use was always controversial for their role in making the EU reliant on Russian energy, and became even more so after Moscow's February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The explosions attracted worldwide media attention, fueling speculation about who could be responsible. 

Russia and the West have accused each other of being behind the blasts. It was immediately suspected that Ukrainians were involved, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has strongly denied the state played a role.

In August 2024, German authorities concluded their initial investigation and issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian national named only as Volodymyr Z. due to German privacy laws.

Officials said that he had been living in Poland and had chartered a German yacht to carry out the attack.

However, a Thursday statement by German prosecutors listed the suspect arrested in Rimini, Italy as one Serhii K., who was "part of a group of individuals" that took part in the crime.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia's air strikes on Ukraine Thursday provide further proof that there is little prospect of peace negotiations with Moscow.

"So far, there has been no signal from Moscow that it is willing to engage in serious negotiations to end this war," Zelenskyy wrote on the short message service Telegram.

"Pressure is needed. Strong sanctions, strong tariffs."

There have been hopes of a breakthrough after a week of whirlwind diplomacy with US President Donald Trump meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, which was quickly followed by a gathering of European leaders and Zelenskyy in the Oval Office.

After the meeting with Putin, Trump said he preferred a comprehensive peace agreement, rather than an unconditional ceasefire. However, despite the attempts at mediation, the fundamental positions of both Ukraine and Russia appear to remain unchanged. 

In an interview with Fox News on Tuesday, Trump admitted it was possible that Putin does not want to make a deal.

"We're going to find out about President Putin in the next couple of weeks ... It's possible that he doesn't want to make a deal," Trump said, adding Putin would face a "rough situation" if peace efforts fall through.

US Vice President JD Vance said in a TV interview late Wednesday that Washington expects European countries to shoulder the "lion's share" of the burden of Ukraine's security guarantees.

"I don't think we should carry the burden here. I think that we should be helpful if it's necessary to stop the war and to stop the killing. But I think that we should expect, and the president certainly expects, Europe to play the leading role here," Vance told Fox News.

The vice president's comments come after a US President Donald Trump hosted a meeting at the White House on Ukraine attended by European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A major topic of discussion was how to shape a post-war security structure in Europe. Trump has already ruled out using US military assets on the ground in Ukraine. 

Trump, however, has made vague statements alluding to the US potentially providing air support to back up a security agreement, which would represent a major turnaround. 

Russian President Putin vehemently opposes any NATO military presence in Ukraine as part of a peace deal. 

Vice President Vance often makes statements addressing Trump's conservative base, which generally opposes increased US military intervention in Ukraine.

"No matter what form this takes, the Europeans are going to have to take the lion's share of the burden. It's their continent, it's their security, and the president has been very clear they're going to have to step up," Vance said.

During his inaugural trip to Asia, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul gave his assessment of the current state of Russia's war against Ukraine in a DW interview. While international efforts to find a peaceful solution are increasing, Wadephul remains skeptical about whether a direct meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place. 

The Polish military said Thursday morning that an air force deployment related to large scale Russian attacks on neighboring Ukraine ended without any violations of Polish airspace detected. 

"Due to the reduction in the threat level posed by Russian air force missile attacks on Ukrainian territory, the operations of the Polish and allied air forces in Polish airspace have been completed," the military posted on social media. 

Poland had earlier scrambled fighter jets in response to what it said was deployment of Russian long-range aircraft carrying out attacks on Ukrainian territory.

The deployment came after pieces of what appeared to be a Russian drone crashed into a corn field outside a village in eastern Poland on Wednesday. 

"Once again, we are dealing with a provocation by the Russian Federation, with a Russian drone," Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Wednesday. 

On Thursday, a regional prosecutor told reporters there was a "high probability" that the object in question was fired from neighboring Belarus. 

Russia attacked Ukraine overnight into Thursday with hundreds of drones and missiles, in the most intense assault seen in weeks. 

The Ukrainian Air Force said that Russian forces launched 574 drones and 40 missiles, of which 546 drones and 31 missiles were shot down by air defenses.

The Ukrainian military said Russia deployed aircraft, along with hypersonic, ballistic and cruise missiles during the assault. 

Hits were recorded at eleven locations, with debris striking three others. Explosions were reported in the capital Kyiv, along with the western city of Lviv. 

One person was reported killed in the strike on Lviv, with two others injured, according to regional governor Maksym Kozytskyi.

Dozens of residential buildings were damaged in the attack.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said a civilian factory belonging to a US electronics manufacturer in western Ukraine was hit and severely damaged. 

Air raid sirens had already sounded in Kyiv on Wednesday evening, and drone attacks had continued there throughout the night, with air defenses active, and residents were urged to stay in air raid shelters.  

No details of injuries or damage were immediately reported from Kyiv. 

Today, we are reporting on the largest Russian aerial assault on Ukraine in weeks, targeting primarily the capital, Kyiv, and the western city of Lviv, where at least one person was reported killed.

The scale of the attack prompted Poland to scramble jets as a precaution. 

The attack comes as the US tries to broker an end to the war, with Vice President JD Vance saying European states will need to do the heavy lifting on guaranteeing Ukrainian security.

But talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin to reach an agreement still look far from certain.