Russian drone strike in north-eastern Ukraine kills nine, officials say
The incident was just hours after Moscow and Kyiv held their first direct peace talks in years.
Nine people have died and four others were injured after a Russian drone struck a passenger bus in Ukraine’s north-eastern Sumy region.
The attack came just hours after Moscow and Kyiv held their first direct peace talks in years which failed to yield a ceasefire.
Ukraine’s national police released photos showing the aftermath of the strike in Sumy’s Bilopillia city, around six miles from the front line and border with Russia.
“This is another war crime by Russia – a deliberate strike on civilian transport that posed no threat,” the Sumy regional administration said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
A period of mourning has been declared in Bilopillia from Saturday through until Monday, with local community chief Yurii Zarko calling the day of the attack “Black Saturday”.
The local media outlet Suspilne said the passengers on the bus were being evacuated from Bilopillia when the strike occurred. Authorities are working to identify some of the victims, most of them elderly women.
The injured were taken to a hospital in Sumy, the regional capital. Three people were reported to be in a serious condition.
It is not immediately clear how the strike would affect peace efforts.
The first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow’s 2022 invasion ended after less than two hours on Friday, and while both sides agreed on a large prisoner swap, they clearly remained far apart on key conditions for ending the fighting.
One such condition for Ukraine, backed by its Western allies, is a temporary ceasefire as a first step toward a peaceful settlement.
The Kremlin has pushed back against such a truce, which remains elusive.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he discussed the talks with US President Donald Trump and the leaders of France, Germany, the UK and Poland.
In a post on X from a European leadership meeting in Albania, he urged “tough sanctions” against Moscow if it rejects “a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to killings”.
Kyiv and Moscow agreed in Istanbul to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, according to the heads of both delegations, in what would be their biggest such swap.
Both sides also discussed a ceasefire and a meeting between their heads of state, according to chief Ukrainian delegate, defence minister Rustem Umerov.
An aide to President Vladimir Putin said both sides also agreed to provide each other with detailed ceasefire proposals, with Ukraine requesting the heads of state meeting, which Russia took under consideration.
Mr Zelensky was in Tirana, Albania, on Friday, meeting with leaders of 47 European countries to discuss security, defence and democratic standards against the backdrop of the war.
He met with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
“Pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war,” Mr Zelensky said on X, posting a photo of the leaders during the call, the second for the group since May 10.
