Russian drone strikes killed two people in Ukraine on Sunday, according to officials, as world leaders convened in London to discuss increasing pressure on Moscow over its ongoing war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is scheduled to meet the leaders of France, Germany, and Britain to discuss next steps amid recent Russian military setbacks.
In Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region, a 56-year-old minibus driver was killed by a Russian drone strike, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine reported on Telegram. Separately, a 59-year-old man died in the central Dnipropetrovsk region after Russian drones and aerial bombs targeted two districts, according to regional military chief Oleksandr Ganzha. The attacks also wounded a 35-year-old man and damaged local infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear operator Energoatom said a Russian strike partially destroyed a spent nuclear fuel storage facility near Chornobyl, though the building was empty at the time and radiation levels remained normal. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga accused Moscow of repeatedly endangering nuclear safety.
Ukraine’s Air Force reported that Russia launched 236 drones overnight, with 215 intercepted. According to data analyzed by AFP from the Institute for the Study of War, Ukraine regained more territory than it lost to Russian forces in May for the second consecutive month.
Russia’s ongoing offensive has contributed to surging prices, increased taxes, two-decade-high borrowing costs, business closures, and labor shortages, placing the Russian economy under significant strain since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022.
Last Thursday, Zelensky proposed a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and expressed his readiness for a full ceasefire. However, at Russia’s flagship economic forum on Friday, Putin dismissed claims of economic collapse, asserting, “we have descended to the same level at which Eurozone countries have been experiencing growth for the past few years.”
