Deadly Russian strikes hit Ukrainian regions hours before US-backed Geneva talks, as Zelenskyy urged the world to hold Moscow accountable for continued attacks.
Russia launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles at targets across Ukraine overnight on Tuesday, killing one and injuring 25, hours before Ukrainian and Russian envoys were due to sit down for a new round of US-mediated peace talks in Geneva.
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Ukraine's air force said Russia fired 396 drones and 29 missiles at critical infrastructure during the night of 17 February, with four ballistic missiles and 18 attack drones hitting their targets at 13 locations. Damage from debris was recorded at a further eight sites.
One person was killed and six others injured, including two children, in drone strikes on the Sumy region.
In the Kharkiv, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, nine people were injured and residential buildings and infrastructure were damaged, according to regional authorities. A further 10 people were injured in other regions of Ukraine.
Poland scrambled military aircraft and said the measures were precautionary, aimed at protecting its airspace. There was no violation of Polish airspace, Warsaw said.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Ukraine's partners to respond. "Russia must be held to account for its aggression," he wrote. "For peace to be real and just, action must target the sole source of this aggression – because it is Moscow that continues the killings, massive attacks, and assaults."
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha accused Moscow of showing contempt for diplomacy.
"The extent to which Russia disregards peace efforts: a massive missile and drone strike against Ukraine right before the next round of talks in Geneva," he said in a post on X.
Ukrainian and Russian delegations are meeting in Geneva on Tuesday and Wednesday for a third round of US-brokered negotiations, following two previous rounds held in Abu Dhabi which produced no breakthrough on the central issue of Russian-occupied territory.
US President Donald Trump said on Monday he would be involved "indirectly" in the Geneva talks and urged Ukraine to move quickly toward a deal. "I think they want to make a deal," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, referring to Russia.
The fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine is one week away, falling on 24 February.