Russia carried out a large-scale drone and missile attack targeting Ukraine’s two largest cities, Kyiv and Kharkiv, early Saturday morning, as American, Ukrainian, and Russian negotiators met in the United Arab Emirates for the second day of trilateral peace talks.
With Kyiv and other cities experiencing widespread disruptions to heating, water, and electricity following Russian strikes on energy infrastructure, officials in the capital said one person was killed and at least 15 others were injured in attacks that continued into the morning hours.
The Russian assaults, which coincided with the first round of trilateral war talks, come alongside Moscow’s insistence that it must control the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine—raising serious doubts about Russia’s commitment to peace, reports The Guardian, as cited by Sinjali.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said: “At this time, it is known that one person has died and four have been injured,” he wrote on social media, adding that three of the injured were hospitalized.
Firefighters reported that fires broke out in several buildings hit by drone debris, while heating and water services were cut in parts of the capital.
The attacks come amid a deepening energy crisis in the middle of winter, leaving many residents of Kyiv without heating and electricity for extended periods.
On Friday, Klitschko said that around 1,940 residential buildings in the capital were left without heating following renewed attacks, adding that “this may not yet be the most difficult moment.”
According to Klitschko’s office, approximately 600,000 residents temporarily left the city during the January energy crisis, which plunged entire neighborhoods into darkness.
Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, reported strikes in at least four districts. A medical facility was among the damaged buildings.
Kyiv has already endured two major overnight attacks this year, which cut power and heating to hundreds of residential buildings. Emergency crews were still working to restore services as nighttime temperatures dropped to −13°C.
In Kharkiv, a frequent target located about 30 km (18 miles) from the Russian border, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said that 25 drones struck several districts over a two-and-a-half-hour period, leaving at least 14 people injured.
Writing on Telegram, Terekhov said the drones hit a dormitory for displaced persons, a hospital, and a maternity ward.
The latest attacks followed the conclusion of the first day of peace talks between negotiators from Ukraine, Russia, and the United States, aimed at finding a resolution to a war that began nearly four years ago.
