Russian and Ukrainian forces traded strikes on Tuesday as diplomatic efforts to advance a US-brokered peace plan continued to draw international attention.
In Russia, officials said a “massive” Ukrainian drone attack struck the Krasnodar border region, wounding several people and damaging homes and apartment blocks. Governor Veniamin Kondratyev described the assault on Telegram as one of “the Kyiv regime’s most sustained and massive attacks,” saying six residents were wounded and at least 20 houses were damaged. The regional Operational Headquarters reported five high-rise residences and two private homes hit.
Russian authorities also reported strikes in the port city of Taganrog, where Mayor Svetlana Kambulova said one person was killed and three were wounded. She said two apartment buildings, a private home, an educational building, two industrial sites and a kindergarten sustained damage. The Russian Defense Ministry said air defenses shot down 10 drones en route to Moscow.
In Ukraine, Kyiv was hit by overnight Russian drone and missile strikes that set fires in at least two residential buildings and caused casualties. Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said a high-rise on the east bank of the Dnipro River was struck, causing at least one death and multiple injuries. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said a building in the central Pechersk district was being evacuated after being hit. Ukraine’s Air Force warned of a missile threat across the country, and the Energy Ministry said power facilities were being targeted; energy crews would assess and begin repairs when security allowed.
Casualty figures varied in initial reports, with Ukrainian officials citing one fatality and several wounded in the capital and Russian sources reporting injuries and at least one death in southern port cities.
On the diplomatic front, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer planned to chair a “Coalition of the Willing” call with more than 30 countries backing Ukraine. The meeting follows Geneva talks attended by US, Ukrainian and European officials on a 28-point peace plan advanced by the Donald Trump administration. The plan, which critics say favors Russia by proposing territorial concessions, limits on Ukraine’s military and bars Ukrainian NATO membership, has been controversial among Ukraine’s supporters.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the version discussed in Geneva contained fewer demands on Ukraine, while the Kremlin said it had not been briefed on the talks’ outcome despite earlier welcoming the original proposal.
The situation remained fluid, with strikes reported on both sides and diplomatic efforts ongoing as partners sought to negotiate terms while hostilities continued.