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By Robert Birsel and Shane Croucher
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said 23 people were killed in the Russian strikes on Kyiv on Thursday, August 28, including four children. Eight other people remain unaccounted for.
Why It Matters
The Russian strikes on Ukraine come as President Donald Trump pushes for peace in Ukraine, urging Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet Zelensky and agree on a settlement that ends the war after his recent summits with the two leaders.
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The Russian attacks risk stoking Trump's anger. He has threatened to take firmer action against Russia, likely in the form of secondary tariffs against its trading partners if it does not make peace with Ukraine quickly.
What To Know
Zelensky said in a post on X that rescue operations at the site of a residential building that was hit, where all but one of the confirmed fatalities occurred, were now complete.
"The youngest girl was not even three years old," he said.
Zelensky said 53 people had been wounded in the strikes, which had also damaged buildings belonging to the European Union and the British Council.
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The Kremlin said it had struck military infrastructure. A drone factory in the Kyiv region was among the targets hit.
Russia's military had said in a Telegram post that it targeted "enterprises of the military-industrial complex and military air bases of Ukraine" during the attack.
Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters Russia's "special military operation" was continuing as Ukraine maintained its attacks on Russian infrastructure, "often on Russia's civilian infrastructure," the state news agency Tass reported.
Peskov added that Russia "maintains its interest in continuing the negotiation process in order to achieve the goals before us by political and diplomatic means."
Zelensky said Russia must be held accountable for the attacks it was launching despite the efforts to bring peace.
"When instead of diplomacy Russia chooses ballistics, continues to modernize 'shaheds' [Iranian-designed drones] for killing, and deepens cooperation with actors like North Korea, it means the world must respond accordingly," he said, referring to attack drones.
Progress on peace efforts appears to be stalled on two major issues: the concession of Ukrainian territory to Russia and the future architecture of Ukraine's security.
Russia has demanded recognition of the land its forces control in eastern Ukraine, which amounts to around a fifth of all Ukrainian territory, and that Kyiv also concede more territory that Moscow does not control. Kyiv has rejected this.
The Kremlin has also ruled out security guarantees for Ukraine that involve troops from NATO allies being deployed on the ground there, as proposed by Kyiv's European allies, including the U.K., France and Germany.
What People Are Saying
Zelensky said in his post: "Strong sanctions, strong pressure, strong steps are needed so that the murderers do not feel impunity. Russia only understands strength, and demonstrations of strength are needed now. The United States, Europe, and the G20 countries have this strength."
Peskov said on Thursday: "The Russian armed forces are also carrying out their tasks. As stated, they continue to hit military and paramilitary infrastructure. The strikes are successful, the targets are being destroyed."
What Happens Next
Trump last week set a two-week timeline for determining diplomatic progress, stating both sides will soon know "whether or not we're going to solve this or is this horrible fighting going to continue."
In the meantime, Ukraine's drone launches show that it intends to press on with its strikes on Russian military and energy sites, while the Kremlin shows no sign of easing up its attacks on Ukraine.
Update: 8/29/25, 3:40 a.m. ET: This article was updated with new comment and information.
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