Ukraine Conflict: 2,300 drones hit Kyiv as November talks date set

Ukraine has confirmed that nearly 2,300 drones were launched at its cities over the past seven days. This volume of attacks coincides with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announcing a specific timeframe for restarting peace negotiations with Russia and the United States.

Zelenskyy stated on Sunday that a trilateral meeting involving Kyiv, Washington, and Moscow will occur in November. The goal of these talks is to restart the stalled peace process. He emphasized that Ukraine is prepared to discuss territorial issues at the leadership level. Other technical matters will be handled by specialized working groups.

The path to this scheduled meeting involved recent diplomatic shifts. In early October, the US throttled access to Starshield satellite internet for Ukraine. This service, provided by SpaceX, had been operating at speeds of up to 420km/h since Saturday. The restoration followed a meeting between Zelenskyy and US special envoy Steve Witkoff in Oslo. The US had previously warned that Russian ballistic missile strikes were critical to Ukraine’s air defenses.

Zelenskyy outlined specific boundaries for the upcoming November discussions. Ukraine will not accept limits on the size of its armed forces. The country also rejects the concept of enforced postwar neutrality. Kyiv continues to seek entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, despite hesitation from some member states regarding that goal.

The US is currently pressuring Ukraine to suspend strikes on Russian oil refineries. Washington argues that these attacks push global energy prices higher. Zelenskyy countered that Kyiv will only stop these strikes under three conditions. Moscow must stop hitting Ukrainian power infrastructure. The US must allow Ukraine to use Starshield over Russia to detect ballistic missile launch sites. Or, the US must supply Ukraine with additional Patriot missiles.

On the battlefield, Russian forces intensified their offensive during the same week the political timeline was set. Zelenskyy reported that Russia launched approximately 1,600 guided bombs in the last seven days. This included 48 missiles of various types, some of which were ballistic. He urged Western allies to accelerate the delivery of interceptor missiles to help Ukraine defend against this volume of attacks.

Russian military strikes targeted logistics and shipping infrastructure on Sunday. The Russian defense ministry claimed its drones hit a cargo vessel bound for the Black Sea port of Chornomorsk. Another cargo vessel en route to Odesa was also struck during the day. Russian forces additionally hit a logistics center, a distribution center, and a logistics terminal in Kharkiv overnight. Reuters was unable to independently confirm these specific strikes.

In southern Russia, a Ukrainian drone attack on the border city of Belgorod resulted in civilian casualties. Local authorities reported three deaths and 13 injuries from an overnight strike. A separate drone strike later that day killed another person. Regional governor Alexander Shuvayev stated that the overnight attack damaged 30 apartment buildings in the city.

Political developments also played out in neighboring Bulgaria on Sunday. The presidential election ended without a clear winner, setting up a runoff vote. Andrey Gyurov, a pro-Western reformist candidate, will face incumbent Iliana Yotova. Yotova favors dialogue with Russia and opposes military aid to Ukraine. Gyurov has expressed strong support for Kyiv. The vote took place amid security concerns following a series of drone attacks on ships in the Black Sea.