Kyiv

KYIV: Poland and Ukraine on Sunday denounced Russian strikes close to the Polish border, including on a Warsaw-bound train and near a frontier checkpoint — as an “escalation” in the war.

Ukraine’s rail operator said former British prime minister Boris Johnson and ex-US CIA director David Petraeus were at a border train station nearby around the time the train was hit.

But the strikes came as US President Donald Trump called on Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky to halt attacks on Russian refineries, saying it was causing a shortage of diesel fuel and “there are plenty of other targets”.

Ukraine has increasingly targeted Russian oil refineries in a bid to hurt Russia’s war effort.

Russia attacked western Ukraine with drones Sunday, just days after US envoys visited Kyiv and Moscow in a bid to revive talks to end Europe’s worst conflict since World War II. European nations are meanwhile worried by what they say is increased Russian-orchestrated sabotage acts on their soil.

Poland and Ukraine said a Kyiv-Warsaw passenger train was struck just two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Polish border, but reported no casualties.

“Shortly before the locomotive was hit at the Ukrainian-Polish border, a diplomatic train was at Yagodyn station. There were, among others, security advisers from several EU member states and former European leaders on board, including former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson,” said the Ukrzaliznytsia rail operator.

“In another train that was at Yagodyn station at the very moment of the attack was former CIA Director David Petraeus,” it added. The operator did not say how far the officials were from the train attacked.

Zelensky said Moscow had “deliberately” struck the locomotive.

“It is precisely to prevent these strikes from spreading further into Europe that Ukrainian men and women fight every day, give their lives, and do not allow the aggression to expand,” Zelensky said.

– Poland warns of possible more attacks –

Poland has been one of Ukraine’s main allies and, with Ukrainian airspace closed, trains to Poland have been one of the main routes out of the war-torn country, used by refugees.

Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk chaired an emergency meeting in Warsaw following the strikes, warning he expected Russia to escalate the war “in the coming weeks”. He added: “We cannot exclude that the escalation will also affect our territory… I hope not.”

Russia said it had hit “railway infrastructure used to transport military cargo” from European countries.

– Russia ‘knocking at Europe’s door’ –

Speaking in Kyiv, Poland’s foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said the “escalation” should lead to allies to “double” their support for Ukraine.

“This was just a few hundred meters from the Polish border; this affects the safety of my countrymen,” Sikorski said.

“I understand that nobody died this morning in that particular attack, but it could easily have happened.”

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said President Vladimir Putin considered Russia was “de facto” at war with Europe.

“Europe may consider, or reassure itself, that it is not at war with Russia, but Russia does not see it that way. De facto, it is already at war with the Euro-Atlantic space, carrying out various hostile actions,” Sybiga said.

“Putin’s terror is literally knocking at the door of the European Union and NATO.”

Russian attacks killed at least two people on Sunday in the frontline city of Kramatorsk.

Twenty people, including two children, were also wounded in a second day of attacks on the southern port city of Odesa, Ukrainian officials said.

– Three-way talks –

The Kremlin, meanwhile, said negotiations with Ukraine and the United States on the war could take place in October.

“We do not rule out such a possibility; we are talking about the foreseeable future,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, cited by Russia’s Ria and Tass news agencies.

Several rounds of negotiations have failed, while US-led efforts stalled during the Middle East war.

In an interview released on Saturday, Zelensky said he would be willing to meet Putin at the G20 summit in Miami in December.

But Peskov said that was “impossible”, speaking to AFP in New Delhi on Saturday, repeating Moscow’s demand that a meeting could only take place in the Russian capital.

Second day of strikes on fuel stations suggest a new campaign focused on civilian areas in the Ukrainian capital.

Russian drone attacks on two fuel stations in Kyiv have killed two people and injured others, as Moscow continues to target civilian areas.

They were struck early on Friday within ten minutes of each other in the capital’s Obolonskyi and Dniprovskyi districts, shortly after emergency sirens rang out, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a statement.

Russia also targeted fuel stations in Kyiv on Thursday, suggesting a new campaign focused on civilian areas in the capital. Ukrainian authorities have warned people to avoid filling up when air raid sirens sound.

One person died at the scene of one of the attacks, Klitschko said, while the other died in hospital. Six people required hospital treatment.

While fuel stations near the eastern and southern battle lines have been hit regularly for months, authorities have long warned that the attacks could extend to the capital as an intimidation strategy.

Russia and Ukraine both deny targeting civilians as the conflict – started with Moscow’s invasion in February 2022 – has developed into a series of daily attacks with missiles and drones.

Other Russian drone strikes overnight hit near a shopping mall in Pavlohrad, leaving five dead and 67 injured, while a mother and son were injured in Zaporizhzhia when a drone hit an apartment building and a mall.

Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andrii Sybiha, declared Friday a day of mourning.

On Thursday, he condemned Russia for attacking civilian areas in a bid to sow fear.

“Russia is systematically attacking places where it knows people will be spending their time going about their daily lives, seeking to maximise casualties, spread fear and put pressure on Ukrainian society,” he stated.

Ukraine unleashed its own large-scale drone attack through the night, with Russia’s Ministry of Defence reporting that its forces shot down 777 drones in 16 regions.

Two people were killed and three injured in Tula, to the south of Moscow, local authorities reported.

Ukraine launches one of its deepest strikes to date, targeting gas plants in Russia’s Arctic region.

Russian forces have launched attacks across Ukraine, killing at least seven people, according to Ukrainian officials, as Kyiv claimed responsibility for a drone attack that set off a fire at a natural gas plant deep in Russia’s Arctic region.

Four people were killed in a Russian attack in Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine overnight on Thursday, while three were killed in a drone attack on a shopping centre in the northeastern city of Sumy, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Heorhii ⁠Reshetilov, the acting governor of the Mykolaiv region, said the Russian strikes there hit both civilian and industrial infrastructure, killing two men and two women. At least 19 others were wounded, he said on Telegram.

The attack in Sumy left at least 14 people wounded, according to Oleh Hryhorov, head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration. Three of the victims were children, he said on Telegram.

The Russian Ministry of Defence confirmed the attack in Mykolaiv, but said it targeted a drone warehouse. The ministry said it also hit the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk and two vessels near Odesa on the Black Sea.

The targets of the strikes were being used for military purposes, the ministry claimed.

The attacks came after Russian authorities said Ukrainian forces had launched a drone attack on the country’s Yamal-Nenets region, which is located some 2,800 kilometres (1,700 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

Dmitry Artyukhov, the region’s governor, said the attack targeted an industrial facility in Novy Urengoy. The attack was repelled, but falling debris from the drone caused a fire, he said on Telegram.

“The main thing is that there were no deaths or injuries. The extent and nature of the damage are being determined,” he added.

Artem Zhoga, the Kremlin’s envoy to the Urals, said Wednesday’s strike was the first ever to hit the Arctic part of the region.

Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SOF) confirmed the attack in a series of posts on X.

“For the first time! Deepest strike of the war: Ukrainian SOF hit critical russian plants more than 3,000 km away,” it said. “Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces carried out the deepest strike inside russia since the beginning of the full-scale war.”

In the posts, the Ukrainian force claimed it “successfully struck” two gas plants, Novy Urengoy and Purovsky.

“Until today, the area was considered a safe rear zone for the aggressor,” it added.

The Ukrainian force said the facilities play a key role in Russia’s gas industry, processing large volumes of condensate from gas fields across the Yamal region, processing millions of tonnes of condensate per year.

Gazprom used ⁠to export gas from Yamal as far as Western Europe ⁠until relations broke ⁠down following the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine in 2022.

It estimated the region’s gas resources at ‌26.5 trillion cubic metres as of 2020, enough to cover global demand for more than ‌six ‌years.

Ukraine has escalated its long-range strikes on Russia in recent months, in retaliation for daily Russian bombardment of Ukrainian towns and cities.

Earlier this month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country’s drones would make Russian airspace “completely unsafe” for the duration of the war.

Strikes resume in Russia and Ukraine after a three-day pause during US envoys’ visits to the countries’ capitals.

Russia has struck Kyiv after a three-day pause in attacks on the Ukrainian and Russian capitals expired, following a visit by two US envoys that yielded no tangible progress towards peace.

Two residential buildings were damaged by Russian air raids early on Tuesday, city officials in Kyiv said. Drones hit buildings in the capital city as well as in the Boryspil and Fastiv districts on the outskirts of Kyiv, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.

An air raid alert, published by the Kyiv city military administration, urged residents to take shelter due to the threat of an “enemy” drone attack.

Following the reported attacks in Ukraine, Russian regional Governor Roman Busargin said a Ukrainian drone attack injured several people after hitting civilian infrastructure in Saratov, nearly 1000km from Moscow. The number of casualties from both incidents remains unconfirmed (621 miles).

Russia and Ukraine pledged to halt strikes on each other’s capitals for three days as Washington dispatched envoys to Moscow and Kyiv. However, fighting continued elsewhere.

Attacks paused after leaders Vladimir Putin of Russia and Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine announced the ceasefire during the visits by US President Donald Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, to Moscow and Kyiv over the weekend.

Russia’s state news agency TASS confirmed that the three-day suspension Putin had ordered for his forces expired on Monday evening local time.

Witkoff and Kushner held talks with officials in Moscow and Kyiv regarding ending the conflict. Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov called the more than three-hour meeting in Moscow on Saturday “highly useful”.

After talks with Ukraine’s Zelenskyy, Witkoff said: “We’ve had a very meaningful discussion, substantive, important, and we are very encouraged, and we look forward to continuing this as long as it takes.”

Witkoff also raised the prospects of reviving three-way negotiations to end the war.

A White House official told the Reuters news agency that the next steps regarding the war, which Russia began with a full-scale invasion of its neighbour in February 2022, would be announced in the coming weeks.

KYIV: US envoy Steve Witkoff said he and fellow emissary Jared Kushner held “important” talks Sunday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on ending the war with Russia — but offered no sign of a breakthrough.

The envoys met with the Ukrainian leader on their first trip to Kyiv, a day after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.

Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s business ally, and Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, have been to Moscow several times, but had never held talks in the Ukrainian capital — hit by deadly Russian strikes for more than four years.

“We’ve had a very meaningful discussion, substantive, important, and we are very encouraged and we look forward to continuing this as long as it takes,” Witkoff said after the talks.

“Hopefully this trip has come out with some new ways to advance forward. I think we’ve learned a lot from the trip,” Kushner said after the meeting with Zelensky.

Witkoff and Kushner traveled to the region hoping to revive the Trump administration’s push for peace in Europe’s worst conflict since World War II, after a summer of escalation.

Another round of talks in the presence of British, French and German representatives was still ongoing.

“We are grateful that the Europeans are with us today and that we are in such a coalition of countries,” Zelensky said.

“Here we are all on the same side.”

‘Peace Express’

Like all visiting officials, the American delegation arrived by train, with “Peace Express” written on the platform at Kyiv Central Station.

Zelensky said Kyiv had “prepared everything to make our airports operational,” but that Russian strikes made arriving by plane impossible.

Ukrainian airspace has been closed since Russia launched its invasion in 2022.

Russia and Ukraine have vowed not to strike each other’s capitals during the US envoys’ trip.

‘Substantive plans’

Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions.

A White House official said in a statement to AFP that in Moscow the envoys had “discussed substantive plans which will be announced in the coming weeks.”

The Kremlin said the Americans “put forward a number of ideas on possible routes to a settlement,” but did not elaborate.

Putin has repeatedly said Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine, and Russia increased deadly strikes this summer.

Since Putin launched the invasion in February 2022, the war has dragged on with no end in sight.

In Kyiv, many welcomed the fact the Americans even made it to Ukraine, but few believed in a breakthrough.

Nataliia Lipekh, 67, said it was “absolutely necessary (for them) to be here” and to see that “our land is already soaked with this blood and that we need some help.”

“At the moment, I have no grounds for hope,” said 29-year-old Yaroslav, saying he had seen “far too many of these negotiation processes.”

‘Idea for peace’

Putin on Saturday told the US envoys that Moscow would ensure their safety in Kyiv.

Just days ago, Russia struck the headquarters of the SBU security building in central Kyiv.

Trump has said his envoys were bringing a “proposal” to end the fighting.

“We have an idea for peace,” he said, without elaborating.

Undercutting Trump’s vow to end the war quickly, US peace efforts have stalled, in part because of Washington’s war with Iran.

‘Deceived us’

Despite the ceasefire pledges for the capital cities, fighting continued elsewhere.

Ukraine’s air force said Russia had attacked overnight with 108 drones and missiles, while Moscow said it had shot down 258 drones.

Ukraine said Saturday that 10 people were killed by Russian strikes, including an 11-year-old boy.

With the war in its fifth year and thousands dead, peace seemed out of reach for most.

Yulia, a 41-year-old who came from a town now occupied by Russia and worked as a cleaner in Kyiv, said it was a “positive step” the Americans were in Kyiv.

“But taking our opponent into account… I can’t put my hopes on this, because for thousands of years they have deceived us with their empire and imperial habits,” she said, adding:

“We want to believe in it, but it’s very difficult.”

Aug. 29 (UPI) — At least 37 people are dead and many more wounded after a Russian drone hit an ammunition warehouse, which then caused a large fire and several explosions in a residential area near Kyiv.

The attack on Friday, which was in Myla, in the Kyiv district, was part of a barrage of aerial attacks by Russia. But the ammunition depot made the attack much worse.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelinsky said he would punish those who allowed explosive materials storage so close to homes.

“Since yesterday evening and throughout the day today, I have been receiving reports on the situation in the village of Myla, Kyiv region, where detonation began following a Russian strike. A terrible situation and terrible negligence on the part of those who stored explosives right next to people,” Zelensky posted on X.

“I want to separately thank everyone who is there on the ground and at other sites of Russian strikes, doing everything possible to help and save people,” he added.

Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv region military administration, said that as of Saturday afternoon, 37 people were known to have died, and the toll could still rise. It is one of the deadliest Kyiv has seen since the start of the war more than four years ago, CNN reported.

“This is a terrible and irreparable loss. Our heartfelt condolences go out to the families and loved ones of those who have died,” Tkachenko said.

A home for older adults and disabled people was severely damaged, The New York Times reported officials said. On Sunday, the capital region will observe a day of mourning..

Taras Didych, the long-time head of the local municipality, was killed when he arrived at the scene to help, Ukrainian authorities said.

“He always stood by his people. He did not abandon them even during the Russian occupation — he was there, offering support and assistance, and keeping the community together during one of the most terrifying periods,” CNN reported Mykola Kalashnyk, Ukraine‘s Minister for Recovery, Infrastructure and Transport, said in a statement.

In another effort to advance robotic warfare, Ukraine is working to turn Soviet-era BRDM-2 armored reconnaissance vehicles into remotely controlled systems. The move comes as uncrewed ground vehicles (UGVs) are playing an increasing role on both sides of the conflict as movement along the front lines has been highly contested by the ubiquity of aerial drones.

This is one of the latest efforts by the Central Innovation Activities Directorate of the Ukrainian Armed Forces to help provide weaponry that will keep troops out of harm’s way, the head of that unit told the Ukrainian Ukrinform news outlet on Friday. Ukraine is using UGVs mainly for logistics and casualty evacuation, but they are also increasingly engaging in ground combat as well air defense.

Col. Vladyslav Voloshyn said work is currently underway “to enable remote control of the vehicle from a distance of up to 1,000 km. In addition, the BRDM-2 is planned to be fitted with a powerful foreign-made diesel engine, with General Motors and Mercedes engines among those being considered, replacing the Soviet-made GAZ gasoline engine. An automatic transmission is also planned.”

“The platform will have expanded capabilities for integrating a remotely controlled combat module equipped with an automatic weapon of at least 12.7 mm caliber,” Voloshyn explained. “This is expected to enhance the capabilities of Ukrainian units and their effectiveness in carrying out combat missions while helping preserve the lives of service members.”

The directorate is also installing additional mine protection for the vehicle’s hull bottom, tubeless high-mobility tires, a backup remote-control system inside the hull, and anti-fragmentation protection, the colonel added. Equipped this way, the vehicles would likely be used to assault front line Russian positions where troops can’t go on foot or as a remote option to provide fire control and support Ukraine’s often porous front line defenses. Uncrewed ground vehicles have also been used heavily in medical evacuations and general logistics to the front lines.

Unlike having to build a totally new vehicle, this project aims to take advantage of the large supply of BRDM-2s Ukraine has in storage, Voloshyn added.

Ukrainian BRDM-2 Armored Vehicle Conducts Indirect Fire #warinukraine

The vehicles will be equipped with day/night cameras to assist with guidance and will be remotely controlled from beyond line-of-sight. A vehicle this size would be able to more easily accommodate robust satellite links for that kind of operation. Beyond these features, the colonel provided few details about how the vehicles would be operated.

The head of Ukraine’s Brave1 defense technology hub previously provided some insights about how this works for purpose-built UGVs.

“I can tell you that combat UGVs without artificial intelligence do not work at appropriate effectiveness,” Brave1 CEO Andrii Hrytseniuk told us in May in a discussion about Ukraine’s burgeoning UGV industry. “All combat turrets that we are using have elements of artificial intelligence, and it allows them to be as effective as they are.”

The UGVs use machine vision for “object recognition, identification, classification, tracking and providing recommendations for the operator on what to do,” he added.

These systems communicate through Ukraine’s Delta command and control system, the Brave1 CEO noted.

Without the Delta system, “all these advanced technologies on the battlefield will not be working,” Hrytseniuk suggested. “The Delta command and control system, which is number one in the world, is absolutely crucial. And this is for all our drones, multi-domain operations, everything.”

War in Ukraine: An advanced digital map. The Delta system #shorts #warinukraine #united24media

The Ukrainian company ArmSpetsTekhnolohiya unveiled the BRDM-2M in June during the Defense Builder Accelerator Demo Day. Now the directorate is preparing this system for deployment to the front lines, Voloshyn stated without providing timelines. If it does turn out to be a viable option, it will join tens of thousands of other Ukrainian UGVs on the battlefield.

The Latest

On the battlefield, both sides are making small advances, however, the front lines are largely static. Here are some key takeaways from the latest Institute for the Study of War analysis. 

• Sumy: Russian forces recently advanced in northern Sumy Oblast. 

• Kharkiv: Russian forces continued offensive operations in northern Kharkiv Oblast on August 19 and 20 but did not advance as Ukrainian forces counterattacked. However, Russian forces are reportedly intensifying strikes in the Kupyansk direction, likely in preparation for future ground attacks.

• Donetsk: Russian forces continued offensive operations in the Kostyantynivka-Druzhkivka tactical area on August 19 and 20 but did not make confirmed advances. Ukrainian forces recently advanced south of Dobropillya while Russian forces recently advanced southwest of Pokrovsk.

• Zaporizhzhia: Russian forces continued offensive operations in the Hulyaipole direction and western Zaporizhzhia Oblast on August 19 and 20 but did not advance.

• Kherson: Neither Russian nor Ukrainian sources reported ground activity in the Kherson direction on August 20.

In an update to a story we reported earlier this month, North Korea is reportedly sending KN-30 missiles, also known as the Hwasong-11C, to Russia.

“Ukraine’s Main Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) confirmed on August 20 that North Korea transferred around 50 KN-23, KN-24, and KN-30 (Hwasong-11C) ballistic missiles to Russia as of July 2026,” the Institute for the Study of War reported on Thursday, citing Ukrainian media.

The KN-30 is an enlarged derivative of the original Hwasong-11 and designed to carry larger warheads. North Korea has previously said it has tested subvariants of the Da/C type with 2.5-ton and 4.5-ton conventional high-explosive warheads, and that it can also be fitted with a nuclear warhead.

ISW says Russia deployed six KN-30 heavy North Korean missile launchers near Ukraine’s border, enough for up to 120 launches. From Voronezh region, they could potentially reach Kyiv and the Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.… pic.twitter.com/im4b3bRWPn

— WarTranslated (@wartranslated) August 21, 2026

North Korea has also sent a new wave of about 8,500 North Korean troops to Russia, CNN reported. This includes “a drone unit that could attack targets inside Ukraine,” the network stated, citing Major General Vadym Skibitskyi, Deputy Head of Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (GUR).

Thousands of North Korean engineers and bomb disposal experts are mostly dispersed across Kursk Oblast, Skibitskyi stated. The North Korean forces deployed in Russia also include 400 drone operators. Many gained previous experience fighting against Ukraine. Their drones are likely to be used both for reconnaissance and attacks on Ukraine, CNN noted.

Around 25,000 North Koreans have so far either been part of the forces deployed in Russia or passed through the Russian armed forces, the GUR leader added. He said that Russia could request up to 50,000 more troops during a meeting between Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in September.

BREAKING:

North Korea has deployed 8,500 more troops to Russia, including 400 drone operators, according to Ukrainian intelligence.

The drone unit is expected to conduct reconnaissance and strikes against targets in Ukraine, while 1,000 engineers and sappers will reinforce… pic.twitter.com/qr2qlsvLlc

— Current Report (@Currentreport1) August 21, 2026

Ukrainian officials have made it clear that they cannot defend against Russian ballistic missiles because they are out of Patriot missile interceptors. In the latest bid to offset that and hit missiles before they can be launched, Ukraine is seeking help from Elon Musk, the Financial Times reported.

“Ukraine is seeking approval to use Starlink-equipped drones against ballistic missile launchers up to 200km inside Russia,” the publication reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Such a move, if approved, would provide Ukrainian drones with beyond line-of-sight connectivity and resistance to jamming, increasing their ability to strike deeper into Russia against dynamic targets, giving them the ability to hunt for missiles deep inside Russia and strike them when they are found. This use of Starlink helped Ukraine with its mid-range strikes against Russian logistics.

The introduction of Starlink to the battlefield in Ukraine has revolutionized how war is waged, giving users high bandwidth, relatively secure communications basically anywhere, all in a small, off-the-shelf package. This has impacted everything from high-level command and control, to basic communications and data exchange between troops across the entire battlespace. The antennas have also been reduced in size enough so that they can now fit onto relatively small one way-attack drones.

There is a major catch, however, in any bid to use Starlink in offensive weapons beyond how it is currently employed. While he wouldn’t sign off on similar requests in the past, Musk is now allowing Ukraine to use Starlink to hit targets deep behind enemy lines and, apparently, ships in the the Sea of Azov as well, though we don’t know for sure.

Musk would need to sign off on the kinds of strikes deep into Russia that Ukraine is currently seeking. While his Starlink service is helping Ukraine now, he also shut it off earlier in the war during Ukrainian attacks on Crimea, fearing there could be a nuclear response from Moscow.

Complicating matters, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently fired defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who was Ukraine’s most direct connection to Musk.

TWZ cannot independently confirm FT’s reporting. We’ve reached out to SpaceX, Musk’s company providing Starlink service, for clarification.

Russia attacked a shopping mall in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih. The attack killed at least 14 and wounded more than 100 others, the Ukrainian president stated on X.

A rescue operation is currently underway in Kryvyi Rih following a strike on a shopping mall. There are many casualties. As of now, 14 people have been reported killed. My condolences to their families and loved ones. More than 100 people have been injured, among them 11… pic.twitter.com/gX2kL1LZnd

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 21, 2026

“The attack drones struck in two waves – half an hour after the first hit and the fire, there was a second strike targeting the emergency responders,” Zelensky stated on earlier on X. “Attacks like these are nothing less than terrorist acts. And the world must respond to them accordingly – with real pressure on the aggressor. For peace to be possible, Russia must face real accountability.”

This Friday afternoon, Russian forces bombed a busy shopping mall in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih.

The initial drone strike and a follow-up double tap targeting first responders killed at least 14 Ukrainians and wounded over 100, including 11 children. pic.twitter.com/apT6hFHMUV

— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) August 21, 2026

Russia also struck the Tabaky crossing at the Ukraine-Moldova border.

“The attack damaged buildings and structures at the crossing, and fires broke out at the site,” according to Ukrainian border guards. “Traffic through the Tabaky crossing is currently suspended. Vehicles are being redirected to other border crossing points.”

Last night, Russian forces carried out drone strikes on the “Tabaky” international border crossing linking Ukraine’s Odesa Oblast with Moldova.

As a result of the attack, the buildings and structures of the checkpoint were damaged. The traffic through the checkpoint has been… pic.twitter.com/BBBMO6HFBG

— Status-6 (War & Military News) (@Archer83Able) August 21, 2026

For its part, Ukraine is continuing its long-range strike campaign against Russian energy and military targets. This campaign has severely crippled Russia’s oil infrastructure in particular, causing widespread domestic gasoline shortages and a drastic reduction in oil exports.

“Last night, our deep strikes hit an oil refinery in Perm, more than 1,600 kilometers from the border, and the Marinovka military air base in the Volgograd region,” Zelensky claimed. “There are also results in the Black Sea.”

“We also have confirmed results from previous strikes: a Russian Su-34 aircraft was damaged at the Akhtubinsk air base, about 600 kilometers from the front line,” the Ukrainian leader added. “And in Primorsko-Akhtarsk, nearly 180 kilometers away, a facility used for storing, preparing, and launching attack drones that the Russians use to strike our people was hit.”

TWZ cannot independently verify these claims.

We continue, through our long-range sanctions, to bring the consequences of the war back to where it came from.

Last night, our deep strikes hit an oil refinery in Perm, more than 1,600 kilometers from the border, and the Marinovka military air base in the Volgograd region.… pic.twitter.com/EhQ518kUZp

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 21, 2026

Ukraine’s campaign against Russian air defenses continues as well.

A Russian S-300 surface-to-air missile system (SAM) was located and destroyed, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry (MoD) claimed on X.

Russian air defense keeps going up in flames.

The 15th Brigade “Black Forest” found and destroyed an S-300 transporter-loader loaded with missiles. The missiles detonated, completely burning out the launcher. pic.twitter.com/TQl3t8BsYl

— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) August 21, 2026

Video emerged on social media showing a Ukrainian MiG-29 chasing a Russian Shahed drone, which eventually crashed apparently without being fired on. Based on the quality of the video and the distance from which it was shot, it is hard to say exactly what caused the drone to crash.

Russia has introduced a new method of attack. It involves using a drone that lies in wait until a microphone picks up the sound of a passing vehicle and activates the weapon.

Ukraine’s mid-range strike drone campaign against Russian logistics, especially fuel trucks, has relied heavily on AI for terminal guidance and target recognition. Now Russia is supposedly testing a new method of trying to defend against those strikes.

Russian forces have reportedly fitted a UAZ-452 “Bukhanka” vehicle with mirrored panels as a potential countermeasure against drones using optical or AI-assisted guidance.

The improvised modification, which makes the van look like a rolling disco, appears intended to interfere with the drone’s ability to visually identify and track the vehicle by altering its appearance and creating reflections. However, whether this works is not known.

Russian forces have reportedly fitted a UAZ-452 “Bukhanka” vehicle with mirrored panels as a potential countermeasure against drones using optical or AI-assisted guidance.

The improvised modification appears intended to interfere with the drone’s ability to visually identify and… pic.twitter.com/hbAafR5ZJb

— Drone Wars (@Drone_Wars_) August 14, 2026

Earlier in this piece, we touched on Ukraine’s Delta battle management system. It turns out the country’s SBU state security service arrested a commander of a National Guard special purpose group for giving Russia access to his Delta account in return for $1,000 in cryptocurrency, a serious security breach.

The SBU arrested an officer who was serving as a commander of a special purpose group in Ukraine’s National Guard for serving as an agent of Russia’s GRU since July. According to law enforcement, for $1,000 in cryptocurrency, he gave the GRU access to his personal account on… pic.twitter.com/YJkhykn234

— Rob Lee (@RALee85) August 21, 2026

That’s it for now. We’ll update this again at a later date.

Contact the author: howard@twz.com

A wave of overnight Russian missile strikes has killed at least five people in the capital Kyiv and the surrounding region, Ukrainian authorities say.

Apartment blocks and warehouses were targeted in the “massive attack” on Thursday, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (DSNS). At least least 23 people were injured in the strikes.

Authorities are scrambling to rescue anyone trapped underneath the rubble of demolished buildings, with crews already pulling one survivor from debris.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said a children’s hospital had been damaged in the overnight strikes, where windows were broken and cars set ablaze nearby.

An industrial centre in the Solomyanskyi district, south-west Kyiv, was also hit by missiles, the mayor said.

An attack in Brovary district of the broader Kyiv region killed one man and wounded another, Kyiv regional governor Tymur Tkachenko said.

The regional administration issued an alert earlier in the night warning residents to take shelter. It continued: “Air defense operations are possible in the area”.

More missile alerts were issued from regional authorities, citing warnings from the Ukrainian air force.

The Russian airstrikes cut power to thousands of properties overnight, plunging parts of the Kyiv region into darkness, with technicians racing to repair the damaged energy grids.