Russia vows retaliation after Ukrainian drone strikes, but reaffirms commitment to peace talks
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia on Friday accused Ukraine of launching a massive wave of drone attacks against non-military targets in Moscow and other regions in the last three days and said it would respond, but said it was still committed to holding peace talks.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Ukraine had launched approximately 800 drones and Western-made missiles since May 20 at targets far from the frontline in an apparent attempt to disrupt direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, which have resumed with the assistance of the U.S.
The Defence Ministry has reported a spike in Ukrainian drone attacks aimed at Moscow in recent days, forcing the Russian capital's airports to suspend flights before resuming.
The Foreign Ministry said the Ukrainian attacks had also wounded eight people in a Russian-controlled part of eastern Ukraine and killed a young woman and injured four children in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine. A further eight people had been wounded in Russia's Lipetsk region and other civilians, including two children, had been hurt in a Ukrainian missile attack on Russia's Kursk region, it said.
Reuters could not verify those assertions.
The foreign ministry said Moscow would retaliate, but would only target military and defence industry facilities.
"But let us underscore this: our principled commitment to a constructive search for a peaceful settlement through dialogue remains unchanged," the foreign ministry said.
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