Ukraine Hit by Explosions as Talks with Russia and US Approach

Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, was hit by several explosions on Thursday, triggering a warning of air raids in the city, ahead of another round of talks with Russia and the US in Geneva. According to a report byAFP,the Ukrainian Air Force reported high-speed targets heading toward Kyiv shortly before Tymur Tkachenko, head of the capital’s military administration, said Russia was attacking the city with strike drones and ballistic missiles. “Air defence is operating. Stay in shelters until the alert is cleared!” he said on Telegram. The attacks were, however, not limited to Kyiv. Kharkiv’s mayor, Igor Terekhov, reported two blasts in the city as Russian Shahed drones targeted the area, warning residents to stay in shelters with “drones and missiles flying towards the city”. Terekhov later reported a “combined air attack” with impacts in the Shevchenkivsky and Kyivsky districts. At the same time, the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia also witnessed several explosions, wounding at least one person. In Kryvyi Rig, Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional administration, said a Russian strike wounded an 89-year-old man and sparked a fire that damaged a high-rise building. Washington is seeking to bring the war to a close following Russia’s full-scale invasion, a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and devastated vast areas of eastern and southern Ukraine. Russian state news agency Tass reported the Kremlin’s economic affairs envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, also plans to be in the Swiss city. “Dmitriev plans to arrive in Geneva on Thursday to pursue negotiations with the Americans on economic issues,” it cited an unnamed source as saying. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has acknowledged that the country, its people and its armed forces are “exhausted” after four years of war with Russia. The president, however, maintained that surrendering to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demands is not an option. “We can’t just give him everything he wants. Because he wants to occupy us. If we will give him all he wants, we will lose everything — all of us, people will have to run away or be Russian," Zelenskyy toldCNNas he gave an emotional interview on the fourth anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war. With inputs from agencies Prime Minister Modi received a warm welcome from Israeli PM Netanyahu, including a red carpet ceremony, shared laughs, and the unique honor of addressing the Knesset. Modi became the first leader to receive the Speaker of the Knesset Medal for strengthening India-Israel ties. Modi expressed strong support for the Gaza peace initiative and condemned terrorism, recalling the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and the October 7 Hamas attack. Get the latest stories delivered straight to your inbox.