Latest news with #Klimovo-Moscow

Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia says blasts led to deadly train crashes in regions bordering Ukraine
Russian investigators said they believed 'explosions' had caused two bridges in the border regions of Kursk and Bryansk to collapse overnight, derailing trains, killing at least seven people and injuring dozens. In Bryansk, which borders Ukraine, a road bridge collapsed on to a railway line late on Saturday, derailing a passenger train heading to Moscow and killing at least seven people. A rail bridge in neighbouring Kursk also collapsed overnight, derailing a freight train and injuring the driver, officials said. Kursk also borders Ukraine. Separately, railway track on the Unecha-Zhecha section in Russia's Bryansk region was damaged without casualties, the national operator, Russian Railways, said. The twin bridge disasters came on the eve of possible peace talks in Turkey demanded by the US and aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine. Videos posted on social media from Bryansk showed rescuers climbing over the mangled chassis of a Russian Railways train, while screams could be heard in another video. State media said Russian investigators were investigating the bridge blasts as 'acts of terrorism'. The Kremlin said the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, had been briefed throughout the night. Russia has been hit by dozens of sabotage attacks since Moscow launched its offensive against Ukraine in 2022, many targeting its vast railroad network. Kyiv says railroads are targeted because they transport troops and weaponry to the Ukraine war. Ukraine, which Russia has blamed for previous incidents, did not immediately comment. However its military intelligence service, known by the Ukrainian abbreviation GUR, said a Russian military freight train carrying food and fuel had been blown up on its way to Crimea. It did not claim the attack was carried out by GUR or mention the bridge collapses. The GUR statement said Moscow's key 'artery' with the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region and Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, had been destroyed. Bryansk's acting governor said the catastrophe in his region was the result of an explosion. 'The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers onboard,' the Interfax agency quoted Alexander Bogomaz as telling Russia's public broadcaster. Russia's Investigative Committee, which investigates serious crimes, said later that both bridges collapsed due to explosions. Prosecutors said they had opened an investigation. 'There are seven dead as a result of the collapse of a bridge on to railway tracks,' said Alexander Bogomaz, the Bryansk region's governor. At least 69 others were injured, including three children, officials said. The train was travelling from the town of Klimovo to Moscow, Russian Railways said. It collided with the collapsed bridge in the area of a federal highway in the Vygonichskyi district of the Bryansk region, said Bogomaz, the Bryansk governor. The district lies 62 miles (100km) from the border with Ukraine. Separately, in the Kursk region a rail bridge collapsed, derailing a freight train that was going across. 'Last night … in the Zheleznogorsk district, a bridge collapsed while a freight locomotive was passing. Part of the train fell on to the road below the bridge,' said the Kursk region governor, Alexander Khinshtein. 'One of the locomotive drivers suffered leg injuries and the entire crew was taken to hospital.' Moscow Railways at first blamed the Bryansk collapse on 'illegal interference in the operation of transport' in a post online. It later appeared to have removed the reference to 'illegal interference'. An AFP reporter in central Moscow saw ambulances parked at Kievsky railway station awaiting the arrival of injured passengers. Russia's emergency ministry said a team was on site in Bryansk, while Russian Railways said it had sent repair trains. The blasts came after a week of escalation in the war amid fears of a large-scale summer offensive by Moscow, with deadly cross-border attacks and Russian troops massing along the front in eastern Ukraine. Russian politicians immediately blamed Ukraine for the explosions, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at undermining possible direct talks on Monday in Istanbul. 'This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services,' the chair of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. 'All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed.' The US president, Donald Trump, has pressured both sides to end the war and threatened to walk away if they do not, potentially leaving Kyiv entirely dependent on European aid. Ukraine has been non-committal about the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals for a ceasefire. Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 there have been continued back-and-forth clashes including shelling, drone and missile strikes, and covert raids from Ukraine into the Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod regions. With Reuters, Agence France-Presse and the Associated Press


Observer
01-06-2025
- Politics
- Observer
Seven killed by bridge blasts in Russian regions
MOSCOW: At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials said on Sunday. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10:50 pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Just four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukraine attacked Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers at a military base in Siberia on Sunday, the first such attack so far from the front lines more than 4,300 km away, according to pro-Russian bloggers. Unverified video and pictures posted on social media showed Russian strategic bombers - whose purpose is to drop nuclear bombs on distance targets - on fire at the Belaya air base north of Irkutsk. A Ukrainian intelligence official said that Ukraine's domestic security agency, the SBU, conducted a large drone attack on over 40 Russian military aircraft. The Ukrainian source, speaking on condition of anonymity to Reuters in Kyiv, said the struck aircraft included Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bombers, which Russia uses to fire long-range missiles at Ukraine. Igor Kobzev, the governor of Irkutsk, said that there had been a drone attack on a military unit near the village of Sredny in the Usolsky district, but did not mention strategic aviation. In video that he posted on Telegram, drones could be heard flying overhead and a giant plume of smoke rising into the sky. — Reuters


The Advertiser
01-06-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Seven killed by bridge blasts in Russian border regions
At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions.

USA Today
01-06-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Seven killed by bridge blasts in Russian regions bordering Ukraine on eve of peace talks
Seven killed by bridge blasts in Russian regions bordering Ukraine on eve of peace talks Show Caption Hide Caption Trump: Russia, Ukraine ceasefire talks to begin 'immediately' President Donald Trump said after a two-hour call with Vladimir Putin that peace talks would begin 'immediately" between Russia and Ukraine. At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials said on Sunday. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10:50 pm on May 31 night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Just four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighboring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on June 1 that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Sabotage? Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading U.S. senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new U.S. sanctions. (Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne and Guy Faulconbridge in Moscow, and reporters in Kyiv; Editing by Daniel Wallis, Saad Sayeed and William Mallard)


The Sun
01-06-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Seven killed by bridge blasts in Russian regions bordering Ukraine
MOSCOW: At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials said on Sunday. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10:50 pm (1950 GMT) on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Just four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. 'The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board,' Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. SABOTAGE? Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. 'This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services,' the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. 'All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed.' President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading U.S. senator warned Moscow it would be 'hit hard' by new U.S. sanctions.