10 Ukrainian civilians killed in Russian air strikes, while Zelensky slams Russia for ‘not serious' peace talks
A barrage of Russian drone and missile attacks killed at least 10 civilians in Ukraine Saturday — including a 9-year-old girl — as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sowed new doubt whether Monday's peace talks in Istanbul will even take place.
At least 32 people were injured in the attacks, as Russian troops launched more than 109 drones and five missiles across Ukraine overnight into Saturday, the country's air force said.
The young girl was killed by a Russian strike on the frontline village of Dolynka in the Zaporizhzhia region — a 16-year-old boy was also injured, regional officials confirmed.
Advertisement
5 Rescuers work to put out a blaze at the site of a Russian drone strike in the Odesa region.
via REUTERS
Moscow said Saturday it had gained control of a village in the Donetsk region and one in northern Sumy, leading to mandatory evacuations in 11 Ukrainian settlements near the Russian border – bringing the total number of Sumy settlements under evacuation orders to 213.
5 Ukrainian rescuers worked to extinguish a fire in a trolleybus depot following a drone strike in Kharkiv overnight.
AFP via Getty Images
Advertisement
Zelensky also warned this week that Moscow was amassing more than 50,000 troops nearby in a sign of a possible offensive.
In the southern region of Odesa, the attacks hit the town of Izmail, Ukraine's biggest port on the Danube River — infrastructure critical for the war-torn country's imports.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian leader cast uncertainty Saturday whether the planned peace talks scheduled for Monday in Istanbul, Turkey will happen, saying Kyiv is now preparing for 'new diplomatic steps' with Europe and the US.
'There is no clear information about what the Russians are going to Istanbul with. We don't have it, Turkey doesn't have it, the United States doesn't have it, and other partners don't either,' Zelensky said on Telegram.
Advertisement
'It doesn't look very serious,' he said of the talks.
5 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is still uncertain Ukraine will attend the talks Monday.
Getty Images
Zelensky also rebuked Russia for failing to turn over negotiating documents ahead of the Monday meeting – a nonstarter for Kyiv.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov unilaterally announced the talks Wednesday, saying Moscow would present a memorandum towards a cease-fire then.
Advertisement
But Zelensky countered that the Kremlin's plans should be offered up ahead of time — and accused Moscow of 'doing everything it can to ensure' the meeting is 'fruitless.'
5 Police officers carry a part of a Russian drone after the overnight air strike in Kharkiv.
REUTERS
'For a meeting to be meaningful, its agenda must be clear, and the negotiations must be properly prepared,' he wrote on X Friday after hosting Turkey's foreign minister in Kyiv, Ukraine's capital city.
Moscow had previously promised to present the document after last week's prisoner's exchange.
Ukraine has sent its proposals to the US and Russia, which centers on 'a full and unconditional ceasefire.'
5 Growing increasingly impatient, President Trump gave Putin two weeks to prove he's serious about ending the war.
POOL/AFP via Getty Images
President Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and on Wednesday gave the Russian leader two weeks to prove he's serious about ending the war.
Advertisement
The Kremlin's sweeping demands, according to sources, remain unchanged from even before Putin launched his brutal invasion in 2022 — barring Ukraine, and any country east of it, from joining NATO as well as lifting Western sanctions on Russia.
Delegations from the two countries last met in Istanbul on May 16 but the session yielded little other than an agreement for the war's largest prisoner swap.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Asian shares slide as Russia-Ukraine conflict, OPEC+ output plan push oil prices higher
HONG KONG (AP) — Asian shares sank on Monday and oil prices jumped as trade tensions and the Russian-Ukraine conflict ratcheted up geopolitical uncertainty. Hong Kong's Hang Seng plunged more than 2% as Beijing and Washington traded harsh words over trade. U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that he will double tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50% layered on still more worries for investors. A report over the weekend that China's factory activity contracted in May, although the decline slowed from April as the country reached a deal with the U.S. to slash President Donald Trump's sky-high tariffs, further undermined market sentiment. Markets in mainland China were closed for a holiday. Oil prices rallied after OPEC+ decided on a modest increase in output beginning in July. It was the third monthly increase in a row. U.S. benchmark crude oil gained $1.60 to $62.39 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, was up $1.41 at $64.19 per barrel. Moscow pounded Ukraine with missiles and drones just hours before a new round of direct peace talks in Istanbul and a Ukrainian drone attack destroyed more than 40 Russian planes deep in Russia's territory, Ukraine's Security Service said on Sunday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 2.2% to 22,778.45 as China and the U.S. accused each other of breaching their tariff agreement reached in Geneva last month. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 lost 1.6% to 37,356.97, while the Kospi in Seoul fell 0.4% to 2,686.17. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 retreated 0.2% to 8,416.00. On Friday, Wall Street closed its best month since 2023. The S&P 500 retreated less than 0.1% to end at 5,911.69 and the Dow industrials Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% higher to 42,270.07. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.3% to 19,113.77. Gap weighed on the market even though the retailer reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The company behind Banana Republic and Old Navy fell 20.2% after saying tariffs on imports from China and other countries could add up to $300 million to its costs this fiscal year. It has strategies set to mitigate up to half of that before it hits its profits. Hopes had largely been rising that the worst of such worries had passed, which in turn sent stocks rallying, after Trump paused his tariffs on both China and the European Union. A U.S. court then on Wednesday blocked many of Trump's sweeping tariffs. That all sent the S&P 500 in May to its first winning month in four and its best since November. But the tariffs remain in place while the White House appeals the ruling by the U.S. Court of International Trade, and the ultimate outcome is still uncertain. Friday's most influential losses came from several Big Tech stocks. Nvidia fell 2.9% to give back some of its gain from earlier in the week after it topped analysts' expectations for profit in the latest quarter. It was the single heaviest weight by far on the S&P 500. On the winning side of Wall Street was Ulta Beauty, which rose 11.8% after the retailer reported stronger sales and profit than analysts forecast. It also raised the top end of its forecasted range for revenue this fiscal year even though CEO Kecia Steelman called the operating environment 'fluid.' In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after a report showed that the measure of inflation that the Federal Reserve likes to use was slightly lower in April than economists expected. A separate report from the University of Michigan said that sentiment among U.S. consumers was better in May than economists expected. Sentiment improved in the back half of the month after Trump paused many of his tariffs on China. In currency trading early Monday, the U.S. dollar fell to 143.55 Japanese yen from 143.87 yen. The euro inched up to $1.1364 from $1.1351.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Could Trump pardon Diddy and end his trial?
Sean "Diddy" Combs is being tried in a New York courtroom for racketeering and sexual trafficking. Could that daily drama vanish instantly if President Donald Trump pardoned the embattled rapper? "Yes, it could," says Brian Kalt, law professor at Michigan State University College of Law, who focuses on legal issues and the presidency. According to Kalt, Trump — who appears to be in the middle of a pardoning spree — would be within his presidential rights to extend a preemptive pardon to fellow New Yorker Combs, who has been described by witnesses so far as violent and abusive. "These are federal charges (against Combs), so that's the main limit. The matter has be federal, it has to be criminal vs. civil, and related to something that's already been done," says Kalt. "But the person doesn't have to even be charged yet, or convicted. The Supreme Court has said preemptive pardons are OK." Trump weighed in on the possibility Friday, May 30, in the Oval Office. "Nobody's asked" about a pardon, the president said. "But I know people are thinking about it. I know they're thinking about it. I think some people have been very close to asking." Trump added, "I haven't spoken to him in years. He really liked me a lot." 'Nobody's asked': President Trump doesn't rule out pardoning Sean 'Diddy' Combs Typically, one of the last gestures from an outgoing president is a pardon. In President Joe Biden's final days in office, he famously pardoned his son, Hunter, convicted of federal gun felonies and federal tax charges. At the end of Trump's first term, he granted clemency to political allies such as Roger Stone, found guilty of obstructing a congressional investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and related offenses. But pardons can take place during a president's term, says Kalt. The right was established in Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution, which among other things gives the president "power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment." Kalt says the power to pardon is derived from the British monarch's historic right and stems from a recognition that criminal law was often too harsh, and it was important to have a safety valve. "The president was the best person to be that safety valve because of his political accountability," he says. But that's where things get murky, he adds, noting that Republican lawmakers "don't appear willing to hold the president accountable" for granting pardons, meaning they aren't costing him in terms of political capital. In contrast, President Gerald Ford's controversial pardoning of disgraced President Richard Nixon was perceived so negatively "that it probably cost Ford re-election in 1976," Kalt says. In just over 100 days since taking office, Trump has issued pardons to a broad range of personalities. They include Todd and Julie Chrisley, stars of the reality show "Chrisley Knows Best," who were convicted in 2022 of swindling $36 million from Atlanta banks and being tax evaders, and rapper NBA YoungBoy, who in 2024 was sentenced to two years in prison for weapons possession. He also pardoned former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, convicted of wire fraud and extortion, and Jan. 6 participant and "Bob's Burgers" actor Jay Johnston. The reason many presidents issue pardons at the end of their terms is precisely to avoid political fallout, says Kalt. In that sense, Trump's brash approach suggests he has no concerns about such ramifications. "I don't agree with these pardons on their merits, but the fact that he did them when he is politically accountable as opposed to slinking out the door does add some legitimacy to them in that sense," he says. "With pardons, you don't need Congress, you wave your magic wand and it happens. You can see the appeal for a president, particularly one like Trump." One can also see the appeal for those such as Combs, whose ordeal could end instantly should Trump's pardon "wand" wave his way. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will Trump pardon Diddy? Trial could end, experts say
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Russia attacks Kharkiv with ballistic missiles, drones, injuring at least 6, including child
Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated. Russia attacked the city of Kharkiv overnight with drones and ballistic missiles, injuring at least six people, including a child, local authorities reported in the early hours of June 2. Strikes on the city's Kholodnohirskyi district injured six people, including a 7-year-old boy, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported. Two Russian ballistic missiles also struck the Kyivskyi district, Terekhov said. One reportedly hit a road in the area while the other hit an area close to high-rise buildings, shattering windows and damaging facades. Information about casualties and damage is still under investigation. Several homes, a civilian enterprise, and vehicles have been damaged in the attack, according to Terekhov. Earlier in the day, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Russia may be preparing for another mass strike against Ukraine in the wake of Kyiv's successful operation against Russian military aircraft. "Even before the start of this operation, we had intelligence about the preparation of another Russian massive strike," Zelensky said in his evening address. "And it is very important for all our people not to ignore aerial alerts. Last night, there were almost 500 Russian drones, strike drones. Every week they increased the number of units per strike. Now they have also prepared Kalibr cruise missles from sea carriers." Russia has launched repeated large-scale aerial assaults against Ukraine in recent days. The city of Kharkiv and the surrounding region came under heavy attack the previous night during a mass Russian drone strike. Russia launched nearly 500 drones at Ukraine, shattering its previous record for the number of drones fired in a single night. Kharkiv Oblast in northeastern Ukraine is a regular target of Russian missile, drone, and glide bomb attacks. Russia has frequently attacked densely populated neighborhoods in the city of Kharkiv, hitting residential buildings and civilian infrastructure. Read also: As Trump fails to sanction Moscow, few expect breakthrough during upcoming Russia-Ukraine talks We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
