Kyiv strikes wound 15 as Russia reports drone barrage after US envoy talks
Overnight attacks wounded people and disrupted traffic in Kyiv, while Russian officials reported injuries and a large drone barrage after Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin.
Kyiv authorities said Russian strikes wounded 15 people and damaged metro infrastructure in Ukraine's capital overnight into Thursday, October 22, as Russia and Ukraine exchanged attacks following US envoy Steve Witkoff's talks with President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg. Russian officials also reported a large drone barrage and injuries near Moscow. The violence continued despite renewed discussion of US-mediated talks to end the war.
Kyiv bridge damage restricts traffic
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said eight of the 15 wounded people needed hospital treatment. He said strikes damaged metro infrastructure at the Pivdennyi, or Southern, Bridge over the Dnipro River, restricting traffic between parts of the city. Ukraine's Air Force warned that more ballistic missiles were heading towards Kyiv and told residents to remain in shelters.
The overnight strikes followed a separate attack on Kyiv on Wednesday evening that wounded six people, according to city authorities cited by Reuters. Elsewhere in Ukraine, Kharkiv regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said a Russian strike killed a woman and injured four other people. A local official said a drone hit energy infrastructure in the Kremenchuk area of Poltava region, without giving further details of the damage.
Russian officials report drones and injuries
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 630 drones were sent towards Moscow during the night and two people were wounded near the capital. He said most of the drones were downed at long range. In Lipetsk, south of Moscow, regional governor Igor Artamonov said a man was injured when drones hit apartment buildings and a medical facility. The drone count and reported effects are the officials' accounts.
Talks proposed after Witkoff's Putin meeting
Witkoff met Putin on Wednesday as the United States sought to mediate an end to the war. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Russia was ‘in principle, ready to resume’ three-way talks with Ukraine and the United States in mid-November, after the US midterm elections, with a focus on postwar security. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv supported holding the proposed meeting as soon as possible: ‘The American side is proposing to organise this meeting as soon as possible. We are in favour of it.’
The overnight attacks are a new development since the earlier account of Putin's willingness to renew talks. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022; Moscow annexed Crimea in 2014. The reported injuries in Kyiv, the Kharkiv region and Russia, along with damage to transport and energy infrastructure, show the immediate civilian impact as both governments discuss another round of negotiations.
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Sources and context
- Russia and Ukraine trade attacks following US envoy visitAFP, republished by RTÉ
- Russia, Ukraine exchange strikes as US envoy leaves after talksReuters, republished by The Straits Times
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.