Russian attack hits American factory in Ukraine during US-led push for peace

Yahoo

8 hours ago

Russia has launched a rare drone and missile attack on western Ukraine, officials said, striking targets including an American-owned electronics plant and injecting further uncertainty into the US-led peace efforts.
The aerial assault on a part of Ukraine that has largely avoided such attacks was one of Russia's biggest this year and came amid Moscow's objections to key aspects of proposals that could end the fighting after Russia's February 2022 invasion of its neighbour.
US President Donald Trump discussed the war with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week before hosting Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders at the White House on Monday.
Mr Trump last month questioned Mr Putin's commitment to ending the war, saying the Russian leader 'talks nice and then he bombs everybody'.
In a social media post on Thursday, the US president criticised his predecessor, Joe Biden, for not providing Ukraine with the weaponry it needs to 'fight back'.
'It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invaders country,' Trump wrote. 'It's like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offensive. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia.'
Russia has fired nearly 1,000 long-range drones and missiles at Ukraine since Monday's White House talks, according to Ukrainian tallies.
European countries are discussing how they can deploy military assets to deter any post-war Russian assault on Ukraine, but the Kremlin will not accept the deployment of any troops from Nato countries, and foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday that making security arrangements for Ukraine without Moscow's involvement was pointless.
Mr Putin is ready to meet with Mr Zelensky to discuss peace terms, Mr Lavrov said on Thursday, but only after key issues have been worked out by senior officials in what could be a protracted negotiating process because the two sides remain far apart.
Ukrainian and European leaders have accused Mr Putin of stalling in the peace efforts in the hopes that his bigger army, which has been making slow advances, can capture more Ukrainian land.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio plans to host a conference call on Thursday with the national security advisers of European countries expected to play a role in future security guarantees for Ukraine, a senior US official said.
Military leaders from Ukraine, the US, the UK, Finland, France, Germany and Italy met on Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington to work out military options, said Joseph Holstead, a spokesman for the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.
A source said 'everything is being considered and nothing is being ruled out' regarding security guarantees for Ukraine, apart from US boots on the ground.
Military chiefs and their staffs are looking at options including 'how big' the security guarantee is and what happens if it is implemented with or without a ceasefire, the official said, noting that European defence chiefs acknowledged it is their 'responsibility to secure Europe'.
Russia launched 574 drones and 40 ballistic and cruise missiles overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force said. The attack mostly targeted western regions of the country where much of the military aid provided by Ukraine's western allies is believed to be stored. The strikes killed at least one person and injured 15 others, according to officials.
Mr Zelensky condemned the attack amid the push for peace, saying it was carried out 'as if nothing were changing at all'.
A US electronics plant near the Hungarian border was struck, according to Andy Hunder, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine. The Flex factory is one of the biggest American investments in Ukraine, he told the Associated Press.
At the moment of impact, 600 night shift workers were on the premises, and six were injured, Mr Hunder added. Russian attacks on Ukraine since it launched its invasion have damaged property belonging to more than half of the chamber's roughly 600 members, he said.
'The message is clear: Russia is not looking for peace. Russia is attacking American business in Ukraine, humiliating American business,' Mr Hunder said.
Russia's Defence Ministry said the strikes targeted 'enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex'. It claimed the attack hit drone factories, storage depots and missile launch sites, as well as areas where Ukrainian troops were gathered. Russia has repeatedly denied targeting civilian areas of Ukraine.
In the western city of Lviv, one person was killed and three were injured as the attack damaged 26 residential buildings, a nursery school and administrative buildings, regional head Maksym Kozytskyi wrote on Telegram. The regional prosecutor's office said three Russian cruise missiles with cluster munitions struck the city.
Moscow has shown no signs of pursuing meaningful negotiations to end the war, Mr Zelensky said. He urged the international community to respond with stronger pressure on Moscow, including tougher sanctions and tariffs.
On Wednedsay he said plans for security guarantees will become clearer by the end of next week, and he then expects to be ready to hold direct talks with Mr Putin for the first time since the full-scale invasion.
The talks could also be conducted in a trilateral format alongside Mr Trump, the Ukrainian president said.