The overnight attacks hit Ukraine’s two largest cities, leaving one dead and 31 injured
Ukraine has condemned a “barbaric attack” by Russia on its major cities – as peace talks resume for the second day.
It comes as delegations from the US, Ukraine and Russia have been meeting in Abu Dhabi for the first trilateral peace talks since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Russia launched a wave of strikes on Ukraine’s two largest cities in the early hours of Saturday morning, killing at least one person and wounding 31 others.
Officials said the strikes left at least 1.2 million people without power amid sub-zero temperatures.
Kharkiv’s mayor, Ihor Terekhov, said that 19 people were injured during a sustained assault on the city in the early hours of Saturday morning, which damaged a hostel for displaced people and a maternity hospital.
The mayor of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, said one person had died and four had been wounded in the strikes on the city – and its critical infrastructure had been damaged, leaving 6,000 buildings without heating.
Firefighters extinguish flames in the snow in Kyiv (Photo: AFP)
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, condemned Russia’s attack, saying the “barbaric” overnight assault proved “that Putin’s place is not at the board of peace, but at the dock of the special tribunal”.
He added the “brutal” attack had “hit not only our people, but also the negotiation table”.
Regional energy company, Chernihivoblenergo, said hundreds of thousands of people were left without power, and an important energy facility was damaged in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region.
Volodymyr Zelensky claimed in a post on X that Russia’s main target was Ukraine’s energy infrastructure – something Russia has consistently targeted throughout the conflict.
Firefighters at the site of a damaged residential building in Kharkiv (Photo: AFP)
He also sent well wishes to the family of the person killed and praised the work of Ukrainian emergency services, including firefighters battling raging fires in the cities.
He said: “Tragically, this attack has claimed the life of one person. My condolences to their family and loved ones. All necessary services are now working at the sites of the Russian strikes, eliminating all consequences: rescuers, medical teams, municipal services, energy workers, and repair crews.
“I thank every person involved. I am also grateful to all the air defense personnel who repelled the attack.”
A firefighter attempting to extinguish a blaze on a petrol truck following an air strike in Kyiv (Photo: AFP)
Disturbing footage and photos have emerged showing firefighters scrambling to tackle flames in the cities amid snow.
The strikes come after Donald Trump said last week that Vladimir Putin had agreed to join his ‘Board of Peace’ – an organisation focused on promoting peacekeeping – but this has not been confirmed by the Russian leader.
Peace talks are expected to resume later today. Before this morning’s strikes, the US claimed they have been “productive” so far.
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Yesterday, Zelensky said: “The most important thing is that Russia should be ready to end this war, which it started.
“We’ll see how the conversation goes tomorrow and what the outcome will be.”
It was revealed yesterday that Putin has discussed a Ukraine settlement with Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner during marathon overnight talks.
The Kremlin insists that in order to reach a peace deal, Kyiv must withdraw its troops from the areas in the east that Russia illegally annexed but has not fully captured.
Russia, which occupies roughly 20 per cent of Ukraine, wants the nation to hand over large areas of territory in the east of the country. Kyiv has ruled this out.
Additional reporting by AP.