Ukraine and Russia exchanged strikes overnight hours after Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s call with Donald Trump.
Zelenskyy described the call as “positive, very substantive and frank”, and said he had also signed up to a limited ceasefire that Trump agreed with Putin the day before.
But attacks continued in the hours afterwards, with Ukraine’s air force saying in its morning update that it had shot down 75 of 171 drones launched by Russia overnight.
It added 63 of the drones had been “lost” – referring to the Ukrainian military using electronic warfare to redirect them.
In a post on X, Ukraine’s head of the presidential office Andriy Yermak wrote “this is what Putin’s ceasefire looks like”.
“Russia takes great pleasure in attacking civilians,” he added.
Meanwhile, an airfield is on fire in Russia’s Saratov region, according to the local governor.
Those living close to the airfield have been evacuated.
Pictures also show some damage to a local hospital in the area.
State of emergency in Russian district after ‘largest attack’ by drones
More to bring you from the strike on the Saratov region of southwestern Ukraine now.
A state of emergency has been declared in the Engels district after a Ukrainian overnight drone attack, according to Russian news agency Tass.
Local governor Roman Busargin said the region faced its “largest-ever attack by unmanned aerial vehicles”.
Emergency services are on high alert and are dealing with the aftermath of the incident.
After a fire at a nearby airfield, which we told you about earlier (see 7.30am post), Busargin said residents were being evacuated.
He said around 30 houses and summerhouses were damaged, with some residents receiving medical aid.
According to Moscow’s defence ministry, 54 drones were downed over the region.
Has the limited ceasefire been implemented?
Both Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to a limited ceasefire during their phone calls with Donald Trump this week – but has it actually been implemented?
The two countries have accused each other of breaking a pledge not to target energy infrastructure for 30 days, but it’s not clear exactly what would be covered by the agreement.
While the White House said “energy and infrastructure” would be covered, the Kremlin said the agreement referred more narrowly to “energy infrastructure”.
After his call with Trump yesterday, Zelenskyy said: “One of the first steps towards fully ending the war could be ending strikes on energy and other facility infrastructure.”
Work is still ongoing to resolve exactly what types of infrastructure would be protected under the agreement before it can be implemented.
The Ukrainian president told reporters that “technical” talks in Saudi Arabia this weekend would seek to provide clarity.
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