Crimea attack kills one as Putin and Zelenskyy hold separate Trump calls
A Ukrainian strike in northern Crimea killed one person as Donald Trump held separate calls with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The twin developments underscored how active fighting and renewed diplomacy are unfolding side by side.
One person was killed and two others were injured in a Ukrainian attack on Russian-occupied Crimea early on Sunday, Moscow-installed officials said, as Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held separate calls with US President Donald Trump on efforts to end the war, now in its fifth year.
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russia-installed governor of the region, said on Telegram that the attack hit northern Crimea and that one of the injured was in a serious condition. He did not give details of the strike. The attack came amid stepped-up Ukrainian strikes on key infrastructure in Crimea, as Kyiv's military seeks to isolate the peninsula.
Crimea was seized by force and illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014. Ukraine's growing use of long-range strikes has underlined its ability to cause damage inside Russian-held territory and increase pressure on the Kremlin, while recent Russian advances have slowed, according to Western analysts and officials cited by AP.
The latest attack followed Zelenskyy's call with Trump. Writing on X, Zelenskyy said he had called to congratulate Trump on the 250th anniversary of American independence and that they discussed the situation on the front line. He said, "There is a real prospect of ending this war, and America's determination will be crucial. We agreed to continue the conversation in person during the NATO summit in Ankara."
The Kremlin said Putin and Trump discussed the conflict in Ukraine in a "constructive" phone call on Saturday. Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said Putin congratulated Trump and the American people on the 250th anniversary of American independence during the call, which lasted nearly an hour and a half and was their fourth conversation this year.
Ushakov said Trump reaffirmed his "readiness to help achieve a quick cessation of hostilities and search for peaceful solutions to settle the crisis" in Ukraine. He added that Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would continue mediation efforts and were ready to visit Moscow.
According to Ushakov, Putin again stressed Russia's "preference for a diplomatic settlement of the conflict, provided that Russia's well-known, fundamental positions are taken into account". At the same time, he accused Kyiv and its European allies of "betting on prolonging, and even escalating the conflict", and argued that "the European party of war' proceeds from a flawed perception of the overall situation and the state of things along the line of contact".
Ushakov also said Putin told Trump about the "real situation on the battlefield, where Russian armed forces are confidently advancing, liberating one settlement after another". He said Putin specifically mentioned the capture of the Ukrainian stronghold of Kostyantynivka as a key step towards the "liberation" of the entire Donetsk region. Kyiv has denied the Russian claim of capturing Kostyantynivka.
The developments brought together fresh fighting in Crimea and renewed diplomatic contacts involving Trump, with Moscow and Kyiv each setting out their positions as the war continued.
With PTI Inputs
One person was killed and two others were injured in a Ukrainian attack on Russian-occupied Crimea early on Sunday, Moscow-installed officials said, as Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held separate calls with US President Donald Trump on efforts to end the war, now in its fifth year.
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russia-installed governor of the region, said on Telegram that the attack hit northern Crimea and that one of the injured was in a serious condition. He did not give details of the strike. The attack came amid stepped-up Ukrainian strikes on key infrastructure in Crimea, as Kyiv's military seeks to isolate the peninsula.
Crimea was seized by force and illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014. Ukraine's growing use of long-range strikes has underlined its ability to cause damage inside Russian-held territory and increase pressure on the Kremlin, while recent Russian advances have slowed, according to Western analysts and officials cited by AP.
The latest attack followed Zelenskyy's call with Trump. Writing on X, Zelenskyy said he had called to congratulate Trump on the 250th anniversary of American independence and that they discussed the situation on the front line. He said, "There is a real prospect of ending this war, and America's determination will be crucial. We agreed to continue the conversation in person during the NATO summit in Ankara."
The Kremlin said Putin and Trump discussed the conflict in Ukraine in a "constructive" phone call on Saturday. Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said Putin congratulated Trump and the American people on the 250th anniversary of American independence during the call, which lasted nearly an hour and a half and was their fourth conversation this year.
Ushakov said Trump reaffirmed his "readiness to help achieve a quick cessation of hostilities and search for peaceful solutions to settle the crisis" in Ukraine. He added that Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would continue mediation efforts and were ready to visit Moscow.
According to Ushakov, Putin again stressed Russia's "preference for a diplomatic settlement of the conflict, provided that Russia's well-known, fundamental positions are taken into account". At the same time, he accused Kyiv and its European allies of "betting on prolonging, and even escalating the conflict", and argued that "the European party of war' proceeds from a flawed perception of the overall situation and the state of things along the line of contact".
Ushakov also said Putin told Trump about the "real situation on the battlefield, where Russian armed forces are confidently advancing, liberating one settlement after another". He said Putin specifically mentioned the capture of the Ukrainian stronghold of Kostyantynivka as a key step towards the "liberation" of the entire Donetsk region. Kyiv has denied the Russian claim of capturing Kostyantynivka.
The developments brought together fresh fighting in Crimea and renewed diplomatic contacts involving Trump, with Moscow and Kyiv each setting out their positions as the war continued.
With PTI Inputs
