On this picture offered by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, rescuers recuperate the our bodies of passengers after a Russian drone struck a passenger bus on the village of Bilopillya within the Sumy area, Ukraine, Saturday, Could 17, 2025.
AP/Ukrainian Emergency Service
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AP/Ukrainian Emergency Service
KYIV, Ukraine — A Russian drone hit a bus evacuating civilians from a front-line space in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy area Saturday and killed 9 individuals, Ukrainian officers stated, hours after Moscow and Kyiv had held their first direct peace talks in years that didn’t yield a ceasefire.
Seven individuals have been additionally injured within the assault in Bilopillia, a city round 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border with Russia, three of them critically, in accordance with native Gov. Oleh Hryhorov and Ukraine’s nationwide police. The Related Press could not independently confirm the report and there was no speedy remark from Moscow.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the assault as “deliberate killing of civilians” and help in a submit on Telegram messaging app that “Russians may scarcely not understand what sort of automobile they have been hitting.”
He lamented the missed alternative from the peace talks on Friday, saying that “Ukraine has lengthy proposed this — a full and unconditional ceasefire with the intention to save lives.”
“Russia solely retains the power to proceed killing,” Zelenskyy added.
A city in mourning
In Bilopillia, a interval of mourning was declared via Monday. Local people chief Yurii Zarko calling the day “Black Saturday.” The injured have been taken to a hospital in Sumy, the regional capital.
The native media outlet Suspilne stated the passengers on the bus have been being evacuated from the city when the strike occurred. Authorities are working to determine a few of the victims, most of them aged ladies.
Russia’s protection ministry claimed its forces hit a army staging space within the Sumy area on Saturday morning, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) southeast of Bilopillia, with out mentioning another assaults there.
In line with a Washington-based assume tank, Ukrainian forces have been inching ahead into Russian territory within the Kursk area, simply north of Bilopillia. In line with the report final week by the Institute for the Research of Conflict, Kyiv’s troops had superior south of the Russian border village of Tyotkino.
Russia stated final month that its forces had absolutely reclaimed the Kursk area, almost 9 months after a lightning incursion by Kyiv captured greater than 100 settlements there and promised handy Ukraine a bargaining chip in doable negotiations with the Kremlin. Ukrainian officers claimed preventing in Kursk is ongoing.
Influence on peace efforts?
Russian and Ukrainian officers met Friday in Istanbul in an try to succeed in a brief ceasefire, however the talks ended after lower than two hours with no breakthrough. It was the primary face-to-face dialogue between the 2 sides for the reason that early weeks of Moscow’s February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Whereas either side agreed on a big prisoner swap, they remained far aside on key situations for ending the preventing.
One such situation for Ukraine, backed by its Western allies, is a brief ceasefire as a primary step towards a peaceable settlement. The Kremlin has pushed again in opposition to such a truce, which stays elusive.
Zelenskyy stated he had mentioned the end result of the Istanbul talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of France, Germany, Britain and Poland. In a submit on X from a European management assembly in Albania on Friday, he urged “robust sanctions” in opposition to Moscow if it rejects “a full and unconditional ceasefire and an finish to killings.”
Kyiv and Moscow agreed to change 1,000 prisoners of struggle every, in accordance with the heads of each delegations, in what could be their greatest such swap. The perimeters additionally mentioned a ceasefire and a gathering between their heads of state, in accordance with the chief Ukrainian delegate, Protection Minister Rustem Umerov.
Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, stated either side additionally agreed to offer one another with detailed ceasefire proposals, with Ukraine requesting the heads of state assembly, which Russia took into consideration.
The Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, on Saturday held open the potential for Putin holding talks with Zelenskyy, offering the agreed prisoner swap goes forward and if Russian and Ukrainian delegations reached unspecified additional “agreements.”
Peskov additionally advised reporters that Moscow will current Ukraine with a listing of situations for a ceasefire however gave no timeframe, or say what wanted to occur earlier than Zelenskyy and Putin can meet.
European backing
In Tirana, Albania, Zelenskyy met with leaders of 47 European nations to debate safety, protection and democratic requirements in opposition to the backdrop of the struggle., together with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, U.Okay. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
“Strain on Russia have to be maintained till Russia is able to finish the struggle,” Zelenskyy stated on X.
Macron in Tirana on Saturday accused Putin of “cynicism” and stated that Russia has didn’t “respect” ceasefire proposals backed by the U.S. and different Western nations.
Following a name on Friday between Trump, Zelenskyy, Starmer, Merz, Tusk and Macron, the French president reiterated {that a} European “coalition of the prepared” is able to give Ukraine safety ensures and “put stress on Russia,” one thing he stated he anticipated Trump would help.
“Confronted with President Putin’s cynicism, I imagine that … in truth, I am certain that President Trump, involved in regards to the credibility of the US of America, will react,” he stated.
