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By Mandy Taheri
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Russia launched dozens of missiles and hundreds of drones at Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force said on Telegram, just hours before officials from the United States and Ukraine were set to meet for a third day of talks aimed at ending the war.
Why It Matters
Senior Ukrainian officials held discussions with Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Miami on Thursday and Friday, debriefing on the pair's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and peace deal discussions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on Saturday that he spoke with Witkoff and Kushner via phone and is "grateful for a very focused, constructive discussion."
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Adding to his roster of international peace negotiations, President Donald Trump has proposed a plan to end the over three-and-a-half-year war between Russia and Ukraine, and has pushed forward negotiations.
Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty has been at the heart of the war since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and Putin ordered a full-scale invasion in February 2022. As peace talks continue, Kyiv fears it could be pressured to accept concessions that would leave parts of Ukraine under Russian control.
What To Know
Russia used over 650 drones and 50 missiles in an overnight attack, the Ukrainian Air Force said, adding that its forces took down 585 drones and 30 missiles. The strikes hit 29 locations, the post said.
Additionally, Russia hit Ukrainian power generation facilities, with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reporting Zaporizhzhia “temporarily lost all off-site power overnight.” The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, Europe’s largest, has repeatedly had power cut off, raising fears of overheating and a possible meltdown.
It was reconnected to external power by midday local time, IAEA reported. Russia and Ukraine have targeted each other’s energy infrastructure, especially in the fall and winter, to strain the other’s supplies during the season’s brutal cold. Nearly 9,500 customers were without heat and 34,000 without water in the southern Odesa region, Ukraine's ministry for development of communities and territories said, according to Reuters.
Ukrainian state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia said Russia's attack hit a railway hub near Kyiv.
Russia's Ministry of Defense said that it shot down over a hundred Ukrainian drones crossing into Russian territory overnight, according to the Associated Press.
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What People Are Saying
**Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an X post on Saturday: "**We covered many aspects and went through key points that could ensure an end to the bloodshed and eliminate the threat of a new Russian full scale invasion, as well as the risk of Russia failing to honour its promises, as has happened repeatedly in the past. Ukraine is determined to keep working in good faith with the American side to genuinely achieve peace. We agreed on the next steps and formats for talks with the United States. I thank President Trump @POTUS for such an intensive approach to negotiations. I am now awaiting Rustem Umerov and General Hnatov with a detailed in person report. Not everything can be discussed over the phone, so we need to work closely with our teams on ideas and proposals. Our approach is that everything must be workable – every crucial measure for peace, security, and reconstruction."
The Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces said on Saturday morning: "Due to the activity of the Russian Federation's long-range aviation, which is carrying out strikes on the territory of Ukraine, military aviation operations have commenced in Polish airspace... Fighter jets have been scrambled, and ground-based air defense systems as well as radar reconnaissance systems have reached a state of readiness.”
International Atomic Energy Agency said in an X post on Saturday: “ZNPP reconnected to 750 kV off-site power line at 12:13pm local time following overnight outage, DG @rafaelmgrossi said. ZNPP now again has two power lines available, which is crucial for nuclear safety.”
What Happens Next
Diplomatic meetings aimed at ending the nearly four-year war were to continue, even as ongoing routine missile strikes and large-scale attacks show no sign of letting up.
Zelensky is expected to head to London on Monday to meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to discuss ongoing peace talks.
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