Russia and Ukraine Exchange Deadly Strikes Despite Peace Talks (Worthy News Radio)

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Authorities say Russia has launched a wave of attacks on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, killing at least seven people and injuring more than 20 others in strikes that hit residential buildings and energy infrastructure, despite peace talks.

At least three more people reportedly died in a Ukrainian attack on southern Russia that also damaged homes, Russian officials said.

The violence overshadowed a renewed U.S. push to end the war that has raged for nearly four years and ongoing talks over a proposed American-backed peace plan.

Emergency responders in Kyiv worked through smoke and darkness as a massive fire engulfed a residential complex following what Ukrainian officials described as one of the largest overnight assaults in months.

Russia reportedly fired more than 20 missiles and over 460 drones across the country.

Amid the destruction, there was a brief moment of relief: fire brigade personnel managed to rescue a child from a burning building, carrying the youngster down smoke-filled stairs as flames closed in, according to footage obtained by Worthy News.

Officials said the barrage knocked out water, electricity, and heat in parts of the capital, leaving residents struggling through freezing conditions.

UKRAINE STRIKES BACK HITTING RUSSIA

In response to ongoing assaults, Ukrainian drones targeted sites in Russia’s southern Rostov region. Local authorities there reported several fatalities and extensive damage, including to private houses, apartment blocks, a warehouse, a paint shop, and other facilities.

Moscow claimed it intercepted and destroyed nearly 250 Ukrainian drones overnight across multiple regions and occupied Crimea, many of them over the Black Sea.

The escalation occurred as U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll held hours-long talks with Russian officials in Abu Dhabi to discuss the terms of a U.S.-backed peace initiative.

Those discussions followed a U.S.–Ukraine meeting in Geneva on Sunday, where American and Ukrainian negotiators said they had narrowed their differences over a revised peace framework.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the negotiations had produced clearer steps toward ending the conflict.

“Fellow Ukrainians, today our delegation returned from Geneva after negotiations with the American side and European partners. Now the list of necessary steps to end the war can become doable,” he told his nation on a televised address.

CONTROVERSIAL PROPOSALS AND EUROPE’S REACTIONS

It remains unclear what compromises Kyiv may have made.

Washington’s earlier 28-point peace proposal was met with alarm in Ukraine and several European capitals because it included elements seen as aligning with Russian demands — including pressure on Ukraine to hand over territory, reduce its army, and accept that it would never join NATO.

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer told lawmakers that the revised draft now under discussion appears more balanced and contains provisions that could form the basis of a durable settlement. “The initial draft included points that were not acceptable, but also important elements essential for a just and lasting peace — such as steps on security guarantees from the U.S. and partners,” he told the House of Commons, the lower house of parliament.

Despite diplomatic movement, the continued bombardment has cast doubt on whether any agreement can be reached soon — especially before Christmas, as some negotiators had hoped.

Starmer shared a personal reflection after seeing images of a teenage girl pulled from rubble in Ukraine, moments after her mother had been killed. He said he saw the footage shortly after celebrating his own daughter’s 15th birthday. “It is a horror beyond belief — yet Ukraine lives this story every night in their cities and on the frontlines.”

As peace efforts continue, both the humanitarian suffering and the military pressure remain intense — underscoring the urgency and difficulty of ending the conflict.

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