KIEV -- At least five people were killed and dozens others injured in a fresh Russian massive drone and missile attack on Ukraine on Wednesday, local authorities said.

Kiev was hit the hardest in the strikes that targeted six Ukrainian regions, according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.

At least four people were killed and 40 others injured in the Ukrainian capital when debris from a missile hit an 18-storey building in the southern Holosiivskyi district, said the National Police.

Three people were injured and 58 private houses damaged in the Kiev region, said the regional military administration.

One person died and six others were wounded in the attack in the city of Mykolayiv in southern Ukraine, the regional police said in a statement.

Two people were also injured in the eastern Kharkiv region, said the State Service for Emergencies.

Russia fired 44 missiles, including cruise and ballistic missiles, and 20 Shahed combat drones at Ukraine, said the Ukrainian Air Force.

According to it, 29 missiles and 15 drones were downed by the air defense.

WASHINGTON -- The US State Department on Wednesday announced this year's final package of weapons and equipment to aid Ukraine, exhausting existing funding still at the Biden administration's disposal.

The arms and equipment in the package are worth up to $250 million and are being provided "under previously directed drawdowns for Ukraine," Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

"Capabilities provided in today's package include air defense munitions, other air defense system components, additional ammunition for high mobility artillery rocket systems, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, anti-armor munitions, and over 15 million rounds of ammunition," Blinken said.

Assistance packages such as this just-announced one fall under the Presidential Drawdown Authority, which allows weapons to be pulled directly from the stocks of the Department of Defense so that they can be delivered to Ukraine in a swift manner.

The United States has already used up funds from another form of assistance for Ukraine, the congressionally-appropriated Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which enables the Department of Defense to purchase weapons for Kiev by signing contracts with arms manufacturers.

In his statement, Blinken reiterated the urgent need for Congress to get their work done. "It is imperative that Congress act swiftly, as soon as possible, to advance our national security interests by helping Ukraine defend itself and secure its future," he said.

Warning that the funding Congress previously approved for providing assistance to Ukraine would soon dry up, the Biden administration said last week that lacking lawmakers' renewed commitment to further appropriation meeting the White House's over $60 billion supplemental budget request for Ukraine, the administration would be able to announce but one additional package for Kiev before year's end.

"We are still planning one more aid package to Ukraine later this month," John Kirby, the National Security Council's Coordinator for Strategic Communications, told reporters on Dec. 18.

"However, when that one's done ... we will have no more replenishment authority available to us, and we're going to need Congress to act without delay, as we have been saying," Kirby said.

On Capitol Hill, Republicans are withholding their votes for new money for Ukraine, conditioning their approval on Democrats making compromise to satisfy the GOP's demand for tighter control measures on the border to keep incoming migrants at bay.

Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out in February 2022, the United States has committed more than $44.2 billion in military aid to Ukraine, the Pentagon said in a fact sheet published Wednesday.

KYIV -- At least five people were injured here overnight Saturday as Russian forces carried out a large-scale drone attack against the city, authorities said.

Russia attacked Ukraine with 75 kamikaze drones Shahed-131 and Shahed-136, and most of them were launched against Kyiv, the Air Force Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said on Telegram.

The Ukrainian air defense destroyed 71 of the drones, it said.

The drone strike, which lasted for six hours, marked the fourth attack on Kyiv this month, the Kiev City Military Administration said in a statement.

The attack disrupted the electricity supply to 77 residential buildings and 120 institutions, it said.

Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said four adults and an 11-year-old child suffered minor injuries in the attack.

Private houses, apartment blocks and a kindergarten in Kyiv have been damaged by the falling drone parts, Klitschko wrote on Telegram.

KYIV -- The Ukrainian government spent more than 1.031 trillion hryvnias (28.2 billion US dollars) to cover the country's defense needs this year, the cabinet press service reported Friday, citing Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

Out of the sum, 682 billion hryvnias (18.66 billion dollars) were used to pay salaries for military personnel, and some 349 billion hryvnias (9.55 billion dollars) purchase military equipment, armor, ammunition, and other defense industry products, Shmyhal said.

The defense sector, he said, was Ukraine's budget priority in the first nine months of this year, followed by social programs and healthcare.

Next year, Ukraine will direct "all possible resources" to support defense and security forces, Shmyhal said.

Ukraine's draft budget for 2024 envisages that next year the country will allocate at least 1.69 trillion hryvnias (46 billion dollars), or 21.6 percent of its GDP, for defense.

Russia on Thursday called the US decision to send to Ukraine armor-piercing shells containing depleted uranium for US-made Abrams tanks "a criminal act".

"This is not just an escalatory step, but it is a reflection of Washington's outrageous disregard for the environmental consequences of using this kind of ammunition in a combat zone. This is, in fact, a criminal act, I cannot give any other assessment," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said, according to state news agency Tass.

After the Pentagon announced Wednesday that for the first time the US will send the armor-piercing ammunition containing depleted uranium, the Russian embassy in Washington denounced the decision as "an indicator of inhumanity".

"The US is deliberately transferring weapons with indiscriminate effects," the embassy said. "It is fully aware of the consequences: explosions of such munitions result in the formation of a moving radioactive cloud. Small particles of uranium settle in the respiratory tract, lungs, esophagus, accumulate in kidneys and liver, cause cancer and lead to the inhibition of the whole organism's functions."

US officials say the munitions are common and don't present a radioactive threat. The use of depleted uranium shells isn't banned under international law. But their use has been fiercely debated, with opponents such as the International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons saying there are dangerous health risks from ingesting or inhaling depleted uranium dust, including cancers and birth defects.

The United Nations Environment Program said in a report last year that the metal's chemical toxicity presents the greatest potential danger, and "it can cause skin irritation, kidney failure and increase the risks of cancer".

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday that the ammunition isn't radioactive and "not anywhere close to going into" the sphere of nuclear weaponry.

"This is a commonplace type of munition that is used particularly for its armor-piercing capabilities," he said

The Pentagon announcement said that an unspecified number of depleted-uranium tank rounds are part of a new military aid package for Ukraine worth up to $175 million. It is part of more than $1 billion in civilian and defense support that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Wednesday.

The 120 mm rounds will be used to arm the 31 M1A1 Abrams tanks that the US plans to deliver to Ukraine this fall. The armor-piercing rounds were developed by the US during the Cold War to destroy Soviet tanks, including the T-72 tanks that Ukraine now faces in its counteroffensive.

Russia also reacted angrily when the UK announced in March it was sending depleted uranium shells to Ukraine for its Challenger 2 tanks.

When Russian President Vladimir Putin described the weapons as having a "nuclear component", the UK Ministry of Defense said it had used depleted uranium in its armor-piercing shells for decades and accused Moscow of deliberately spreading misinformation.

The move to send the depleted-uranium weapons comes following the White House's decision to send Ukraine cluster munitions, which are banned by more than 100 countries because of their devastating effects, sometimes years later, on children and other civilians who mistakenly disturb and detonate unexploded rounds.

The New York Times reported Thursday that three American officials, who were not named, said that the Biden administration is planning to send more cluster munitions and soon because they were key to helping Ukrainian troops gain momentum.

In March, the Pentagon said it wouldn't be sending any depleted uranium munitions to Ukraine. But last week Reuters reported that the US had decided to send the munitions. A Department of Defense

official told the Politico website that the US decided to send the weapons because they were thought to be the best way of arming Abrams tanks in Ukraine.

The reversal comes after months of debate over the armor-piercing rounds at the White House, where some officials expressed concern that sending the rounds might open Washington to criticism that it was providing a weapon that may carry health and environmental risks, The Wall Street Journal reported in January.

US officials cite studies by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, showing "the existence of depleted uranium residues dispersed in the environment does not pose a radiological hazard to the population of the affected regions".

WASHINGTON -- The United States will begin training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets in September at US Air Force bases in two southern states, the Department of Defense announced Thursday.

The training, which will include "several pilots and dozens of maintainers," will start in September with English-language classes to be offered at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder told a press briefing.

After the trainees grasp the necessary language skills, they will then be trained on how to actually fly the F-16, and this process will begin in October at Morris Air National Guard Base in Arizona, Ryder said.

The training in the United States "will be the fundamental fighter pilot training," he said, adding that the exact curriculum for the Ukrainian pilots will depend on their levels of experience, of which an assessment is also part of the training program.

On the duration of the training, Ryder said it typically takes eight months for a new F-16 pilot with not a lot of training on the US side to complete the process, and "within the five-month range" for an experienced pilot receiving "upgrade training."

Currently, European countries are leading the effort to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16s and other advanced fighters made by Western countries, with Demark and the Netherlands now prepared to undertake the task. The US government previously said it would do its part to provide training on US soil if and when Europe reached the full capacity.

Without giving a specific timeline of F-16 deliveries, Ryder said it could be months ahead, adding that European countries are looking to provide the aircraft "and the United States will support that effort through the third-party transfer process."

The Netherlands and Denmark welcomed the US approval for them to deliver F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine but the training of pilots and delivery of the planes are unlikely to be completed until next year.

The two European countries, both members of NATO, confirmed on Friday that they received the US green light after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent letters to his counterparts in the two capitals assuring them of the approval.

Blinken expressed that the approval would allow Ukraine to take "full advantage of its new capabilities as soon as the first set of pilots completes their training".

Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren welcomed the US decision "to clear the way for delivery of F-16 jets to Ukraine", which she said would allow the international coalition "to follow through on the training of Ukrainian pilots".

A coalition of 11 countries agreed at the NATO summit in July to train Ukrainians to fly F-16 jets, which will start this month in Denmark and then in Romania after a training center is built. But the Netherlands Times reported on Friday that the first Ukrainian pilots will probably complete their training in the summer of next year and Ukraine is unlikely to receive any F-16s until next year.

"We welcome Washington's decision to pave the way for sending#F16 Fighter Jets to Ukraine ….Now we will further discuss the subject with our European partners," Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday.

"The government has said several times that a donation is a natural next step after training. We are discussing it with close allies, and I expect we will soon be able to be more concrete about that," Danish Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen told Ritzau news agency on Friday.

Ukraine has been seeking F-16 jets for months to help it counter Russian air superiority in the conflict that began in February last year.

US President Joe Biden, worried about a major escalation with Russia, had ruled out sending F-16 jets to Ukraine in late January. However, he changed his stance in May, agreeing to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 planes.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko earlier warned Western nations of "enormous risks "if Ukraine is provided with F-16 jets.

"It involves enormous risks for themselves. In any case, this will be taken into account in all our plans, and we have all the necessary means to achieve the set goals," TASS news agency quoted him as saying.

Agencies contributed to this story.

chenweihua@chinadaily.com.cn

KYIV -- At least seven people were killed and 90 others injured Saturday when a missile fired by Russia hit the city of Chernihiv in northern Ukraine, the country's Ministry of Internal Affairs said.

Ten police officers and 12 children were among those injured in the attack, the ministry said in a Telegram post.

According to a statement on the ministry's website, the missile hit a theater in the central square of the city.

Ukraine's UNIAN news agency reported that the theater had hosted a drone exhibition at the time of the attack.

MINSK -- Belarus will not participate in the armed hostilities in Ukraine unless Ukrainians cross the state border, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday.

"If Ukrainians do not cross our border, we will never participate in this war, in this full-scale war, but we will always help Russia," Lukashenko told the media in an interview.

The Belarusian president also denied reports that Moscow allegedly persuades Minsk to participate in its special military operation in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Lukashenko said that the conflict in Ukraine could have been avoided, and it is still possible to end it.

Any peace negotiation should be proceeded without pre-conditions, he added.

MOSCOW/KYIV -- Two Ukrainian missiles attempting to attack the Crimean Bridge have been shot down by the air defense system in the Kerch Strait, Russia's Defense Ministry said on Saturday.

Ukraine on Saturday launched two S-200 missiles to strike the Crimean Bridge, but they "were detected in a timely manner and were intercepted in the air by Russian air defense systems," Russia's Tass news agency reported, citing the country's defense ministry.

The failed attack caused no damage or casualties, said the ministry.

However, the Ukrainian government-run Ukrinform news agency said that two explosions were heard on Saturday near the bridge, citing Ukraine's Center of national resistance.

The 19-km Crimean Bridge that links Crimea to Russia consists of two parallel routes for automobiles and trains over the Kerch Strait.

The United States' flow of military and economic aid to Ukraine will rise by more than $20 billion if Congress approves a request that the White House made on Thursday.

The $20.3 billion — part of a larger $40 billion request — includes $13 billion in military aid for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia and $7.3 billion in economic and humanitarian assistance. It also includes $3.3 billion for infrastructure projects in regional countries impacted by the war.

Since the start of the conflict in February 2022, Congress has authorized $113 billion in overall funding related to Ukraine. If the new package is approved, that total will reach about $137 billion.

The wider bill also includes money to counter China's Belt and Road initiative; about $12 billion for natural disaster recovery in the US; and billions of dollars more to protect the US southern border, along with funds to stem drug trafficking.

The White House reportedly was expected to include aid to Taiwan to the bill, but that was not included.

The $40 billion in funding will be in the form of an "emergency" supplemental package, a type of spending not limited by the debt-ceiling deal reached between the White House and House Republicans in June.

Shalanda Young, director of the White House's Office of Management and Budget, in a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, urged swift action on the US "commitment to the Ukrainian peoples' defense of their homeland and to democracy around the world".

"We don't know how much longer this war is going to go on, or how much more assistance we might need to support Ukraine. We won't be bashful about going back to Congress beyond the first quarter of next year if we feel like we need to do that," a senior administration official told CNN.

The Biden administration's request came after a poll from CNN found that 55 percent of Americans are against more spending on the conflict in Ukraine. Also in the CNN poll, 51 percent said the US already has done enough to help the Eastern European nation, which is not a member of NATO.

Partisan cracks are emerging over the continuing funding to Ukraine, with support dropping among Republicans. The aid request sets up a potential battle with Republicans in Congress, some of whom have been skeptical over providing Ukraine any more money.

McCarthy has said he doesn't support a "blank check" for Ukraine. After the debt-ceiling deal passed, he said he wasn't prepared to support additional funding for Ukraine, arguing that it would be a violation of the deal.

"Working [on] a supplemental right now is only blowing up the agreement. That's all about spending more money," McCarthy said. "So, no, I do not support a supplemental."

Seventy House Republicans voted in July on an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act to strip Ukraine of all America military aid. The measure failed, but revealed substantial opposition.

"This should be a non-starter for the @HouseGOP. It's time to stand up for Americans and against the uniparty," Representative Chip Roy of Texas, a member of the House Freedom Caucus that has often clashed with McCarthy, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.

There is a difference of opinion between House and Senate leadership on Ukraine funding.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell both support continuing aid to Ukraine.

McConnell, speaking Wednesday in Louisville, Kentucky, said: "People think, increasingly it appears, that we shouldn't be doing this. Well, let me start by saying we haven't lost a single American in this war.

"Most of the money that we spend related to Ukraine is actually spent in the US, replenishing weapons, more modern weapons. So it's actually employing people here and improving our own military for what may lie ahead."

Mick Wallace, a member of the European Parliament from Ireland, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, in response Thursday to McConnell's comments: "A lot of Politicians and Mainstream Media are happy to continue supporting and fueling the #US #NATO Proxy War in Ukraine - these are not the people dying in this stupid War. How much do these people really care about the Working Class Ukrainians who are dying..?

Canadian journalist Aaron Mate wrote on X: "Biden admin encouraged Ukraine to integrate into NATO & assault Donbas. It refused to seriously address Russia's Dec. 2021 proposals. After the invasion, it blocked a peace deal. It then pushed Ukraine into a counteroffensive it knew had no chance. Then it told Ukraine it won't join NATO anyway. Now it wants another $20.6 billion to prolong the war it provoked."

Warren Davidson, a former Army Ranger, wrote on X: "Again, without a defined mission how can we ever say 'mission accomplished'? We can't keep sending aid without clear rationale for its intended purpose. And no, 'as long as it takes' is NOT a sufficient answer."

Agencies contributed to this story.

Saudi Arabia security talks to help solve Russia-Ukraine crisis lauded

The meeting of several national security advisers hosted by Saudi Arabia in Jeddah over the weekend to explore pathways to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict sends a signal that the world is witnessing a multipolar order characterized by more flexibility, analysts said.

"Saudi Arabia wants to play a mediator role in this conflict. This role has been in line with Saudi foreign policy," Mehmet Rakipoglu, a Turkiye-based Gulf analyst and coordinator of academic studies at Dimensions for Strategic Studies, a think tank based in London, told China Daily.

Rasha Al Joundy, a senior researcher at the Dubai Public Policy Research Center, told China Daily that the meeting's context in general indicates that almost all parties "are tired from this conflict and having harsh political bills domestically".

The two-day talks on the Russia-Ukraine conflict — chaired by Saudi Minister of State and National Security Adviser Musaad bin Mohammed Al-Aiban — were attended by security advisers and representatives from over 40 countries and international organizations, including China and the United Nations.

They called for continuing international efforts to build a common ground for peace. The participants also welcomed the importance of benefiting from different views and suggestions.

Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui attended the meeting.

Before the meeting, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said that China stands ready to work with the international community to continue to play a constructive role in seeking a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

"China contributes to global efforts in terms of mediation. The presence of China into this meeting proves that Riyadh-Beijing ties are based on mutual trust," said Rakipoglu.

The presence of China gave the meeting an important weight and gave the moderate states a powerful position on the table, which would help to convince Russia, as well as Ukraine, to accept a peaceful deal, said Al Joundy.

'Productive consultations'

Andriy Yermak, chief of staff of Ukraine's presidential office, said in a statement that the meeting's participants had conducted "very productive consultations on the key principles on which a just and lasting peace should be built", Xinhua News Agency reported.

The dialogue did not include a representative from Russia. "The absence of Russia is not intended in a negative way. On the contrary, I think Saudi Arabia is betting on its good relations with both parties to push for peace, and it wants to set the international political scene before suggesting any meeting between Russia and other players hostile to Russia," said Al Joundy.

"What is clear is that after the Ukraine crisis, the world (would be) witnessing a multipolar world order characterized by more flexibility and political freedom. Similarly, power in this order is more fluid and it is an opportunity for regional powers such as Saudi Arabia to play their part in the new order," Mohammad Salami, an associate researcher at the International Institute for Global Strategic Analysis in Islamabad told China Daily.

He said Saudi Arabia was pursuing two economic and political targets at the same time. On the economic aspect, the new order "helps Riyadh pursue its Vision 2030" by relying on more countries "that are characterized by being non-Western and Eastern".

Russia vows response as Saudi summit to find peace settlement to conflict starts

MOSCOW/KYIV — Moscow strongly condemns Kyiv's "terrorist attack" on a Russian civilian ship in the Kerch Strait, Russia said on Saturday, as a summit on finding a peaceful settlement to the conflict kicked off in Saudi Arabia.

A Ukrainian drone attacked a Russian oil tanker in the Kerch Strait, causing damage to the engine room of the tanker, but no casualties, the Maritime Rescue and Coordination Center of Novorossiysk said on Saturday.

The attack "not only threatened the safety of the crew, but also posed the threat of a large-scale environmental catastrophe," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.

The Kyiv administration "facing no condemnation from Western countries and international organizations, is busy applying new terrorist methods, this time in the waters of the Black Sea", she added.

"Such barbaric actions cannot be justified and they will not remain without response, while their authors and perpetrators will inevitably be punished," she said.

The Black Sea is becoming an increasingly important battleground in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, observers say.

Last month, the Black Sea grain deal collapsed after Russia's withdrawal. Ukrainian authorities have been exploring alternative trade routes for grain export, such as establishing a new "grain corridor "through the territorial waters of Romania, Turkiye and Bulgaria. Other options for companies seeking to bring Ukrainian grain to the global market are exports via rail, road and the ports of the Danube River.

Ukraine on Friday struck the Olenegorsky Gornyak vessel at the Novorossiysk base, a Ukrainian security source told Agence France-Presse, "to show that Ukraine can attack any Russian warship in that zone".

Russia said it had repelled the attempted attack.

In other developments, Russia's Defense Ministry said Saturday it captured a settlement in Ukraine's easternmost Lugansk region. "In the area of Kupiansk … the settlement of Novoselivske was liberated," the ministry wrote on Telegram.

Meanwhile, a meeting on the Ukraine crisis began on Saturday in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah.

A source from the Ukrainian delegation told Al Arabiya News that during the meeting, the 10-point peace plan proposed by Ukraine was backed by several countries.

The meeting, attended by security advisers and representatives from some 40 countries, aims to work out a solution that will achieve permanent peace and reduce the humanitarian repercussions of the Ukraine crisis, according to Al Ekhbariya News.

Through the meeting, the Saudi government looks forward to reinforcing dialogue and cooperation at the international level.

Solution sought

It also aims to ensure a solution to the crisis through political and diplomatic means and in a way that strengthens international peace and security.

Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui attended the meeting at the invitation of Saudi Arabia.

It comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday promised a fresh round of institutional "cleaning".

"Next week will be a continuation of our work on cleaning state institutions of those who tried to drag from the past all those old habits, old schemes that weakened Ukraine for a very long time, for decades," he said in his nightly address.

Zelensky gave no details about who might be a target. He has recently expressed indignation at corruption uncovered during an audit of Ukraine's military recruitment centers, but is anxious to root out graft in general as he presses to join NATO and the European Union.

On Saturday he vowed "no more old formats" in Ukraine. "Whoever a person is, a military commissar, a deputy, or an official, everyone must work only for the interests of the state," he said.

Agencies - Xinhua

BEIJING -- Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin announced on Friday that at the invitation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui will travel to Jeddah to attend the meeting on the Ukraine issue.

Wang said China stands ready to work with the international community to continue to play a constructive role in seeking a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

MOSCOW - Ukraine launched an attack on Moscow and the Moscow region with three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), with two of them shot down and the third having crashed after being jammed by electronic warfare, said Russian authorities on Tuesday.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the attempt was foiled by air defense systems that destroyed two Ukrainian UAVs over the Odintsovo and Naro-Fominsky districts of the Moscow region.

One more drone, affected by electronic warfare, had lost control and crashed into the non-residential Moscow-City building complex, said the ministry.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin confirmed on his Telegram channel that several drones had been shot down by air defense systems while attempting to fly into Moscow.

Emergency services were working at the scene, he added.

Emergency services confirmed that Vnukovo airport, previously closed due to the attack, has now resumed normal operations.

MOSCOW -- Ukraine attempted to launch an attack on targets in Moscow with three drones but failed to achieve its goal, said the Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday.

According to the ministry, Kyiv launched three unmanned aerial vehicles at Moscow early morning on Sunday. One was shot down by air defense forces over the Odintsovo district in the Moscow region, while the other two were jammed by electronic warfare systems and crashed onto a complex of non-residential buildings in Moscow.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on his Telegram channel that the Ukrainian drones caused minor damage to the facades of two office towers in Moscow.

The Russian state-owned TASS news agency reported that the attack injured a security guard and caused the temporary suspension of flights at Moscow's Vnukovo International Airport.

Russian and Belarusian leaders meet as Ukraine accused of firing cluster bombs

A drone attack on an ammunition depot in Crimea prompted authorities to evacuate an area within a radius of 5 kilometers and briefly suspend road traffic on the bridge linking the peninsula to Russia on Saturday, a day after Russian officials accused Ukraine of firing cluster munitions at a village near the border.

Ukraine said its army had destroyed an oil depot and Russian army warehouses in central Crimea.

The attack caused an ammunition depot to explode, said Governor Sergey Aksyonov, adding that there was no reported damage or casualties.

In a video shown by state media, a thick cloud of gray smoke could be seen at the site. Aksyonov ordered people living within 5 kilometers of the zone to be evacuated.

"To minimize risks, it was also decided to halt rail traffic on Crimean railways," Aksyonov said.

The brief halt to traffic on the Crimea bridge, about 180 km to the east of the drone attack, came five days after explosions there killed two people and damaged a section of roadway, the second major attack on the bridge since the start of the special military operation.

"The goal is to return Crimea," Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said, according to a transcript published by his office on Saturday of a speech addressing the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado on Friday.

Kyiv considers the Crimea bridge, opened by Russia's President Vladimir Putin in 2018, as an "enemy object" and says it wants it to be "neutralized".

Russia said on Sunday it hit all intended targets in Ukraine's port city Odesa, claiming the sites were being used to prepare "terrorist acts" against Russia.

"At night the armed forces of the Russian Federation carried out a strike … on facilities where terrorist acts against the Russian Federation using unmanned boats were prepared," the Russian army said.

The historic Transfiguration Cathedral, a landmark Orthodox cathedral in the city, was damaged, media reported.

Zelensky promised to strike back.

It came as Putin met Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday, for the first time since the latter helped broker a deal to end a mutiny by Wagner fighters last month.

'Strategic partnership'

Lukashenko paid a working visit to Russia and will talk to Putin about further development of the countries' "strategic partnership", the Kremlin said.

A video posted on Sunday by Lukashenko's press service showed the two leaders arriving at Saint Petersburg's Konstantinovsky palace together before scheduled talks.

The governor of Russia's Belgorod region Vyacheslav Gladkov has said Ukraine fired cluster munitions at a village near the Ukrainian border on Friday, but that there were no casualties or damage.

"In Belgorod district, 21 artillery shells and three cluster munitions from a multiple-launch rocket system were fired at the village of Zhuravlevka," Gladkov said on Saturday.

Ukraine received cluster bombs from the US this month, but it has said it will use them only to dislodge concentrations of enemy soldiers.

Belgorod, bordering Ukraine, has been repeatedly targeted by what Russia says is indiscriminate shelling by Ukraine's armed forces.

It was the first time Russia had reported the weapons being used on its territory. Putin has said Moscow has enough cluster munitions to respond if Ukraine uses the weapons.

Ukraine does not claim responsibility for attacks inside Russian territory and denied it was involved in the cross-border raids.

Russia also alleged that Kyiv had used cluster munitions on settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region and that they had killed one of its journalists and injured three.

Russia's Defense Ministry said a reporter, Rostislav Zhuravlev, "died from his wounds that resulted from the cluster munitions exploding "during the evacuation.

"Other reporters' conditions are medium, stable," the ministry said.

The death of a Russian journalist in Ukraine was "a heinous, premeditated crime" committed by Western powers and Kyiv, Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Saturday, and it said there would be a "response "against those responsible.

Agencies contributed to this story.

Russia warned that any ships traveling to Ukraine's Black Sea ports from Thursday will be seen as possibly carrying military cargoes after Ukraine said it was setting up a temporary shipping route to try and continue its grain exports.

The moves by both countries on Wednesday came just days after Russia quit a grain deal — brokered by the United Nations and Turkiye — that allowed the safe passage of Black Sea exports of Ukrainian grain for the past year.

Ukraine claimed it wanted to try and continue its Black Sea grain shipments and told the UN shipping agency International Maritime Organization that it had "decided to establish on a temporary basis a recommended maritime route".

But Russia's Defense Ministry then said it would deem all ships traveling to Ukraine to be potentially carrying military cargo and "the flag countries of such ships will be considered parties to the Ukrainian conflict".

The Defense Ministry did not say what actions it might take but announced in a statement on Telegram that the move would start at midnight Moscow time.

Russia also declared the southeastern and northwestern parts of the Black Sea's international waters to be temporarily unsafe for navigation, the ministry said, without giving details about parts of the sea that would be affected.

"It underscores that we're trying to work and continue to work in what is effectively a war zone," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday when asked about the Russian warning.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin met Turkish Ambassador to Russia Mehmet Samsar on Wednesday and explained why the grain deal was terminated.

The Russian side once again stressed that the lack of progress in the implementation of the Russia-UN memorandum was one of the key reasons behind the principled decision to terminate the Black Sea Initiative on exporting Ukrainian food after its expiration on July 17, the Russian foreign ministry said.

During a meeting with government officials on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia is ready to return to the grain deal immediately if all previously agreed-upon conditions for its participation in the initiative are met and the arrangement's "original humanitarian essence" is restored.

Essence 'twisted'

Putin said Western countries entirely twisted the essence of the grain deal, resulting in profits for European companies and losses for Russian businesses.

"The grain deal turned into direct losses and losses for Russian agricultural producers, for enterprises producing fertilizers," Putin said. "Because of a 30-40 percent discount on Russian grain on global markets, the losses of Russian farmers amounted to $1.2 billion."

On Thursday, Chinese Foreign spokeswoman Mao Ning said in a daily briefing: "We hope that parties concerned will properly resolve international food security issues through dialogue and consultation."

China's position on the Ukraine crisis is consistent and clear-cut and "we will continue to play a constructive role in facilitating the political settlement of the crisis", Mao said.

Separately, a video released on Wednesday appears to show Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin for the first time, since he led an attempted mutiny last month. He was seen telling his troops they would spend some time in Belarus training its military before going to Africa.

Russia's Defense Ministry said on Tuesday it had hit military targets in two Ukrainian port cities overnight as "a mass revenge strike" following a "terrorist attack" on a key Crimea bridge.

The ministry said it had struck Odesa, where the Ukrainian navy has its headquarters, and Mykolaiv, near Ukraine's Black Sea coast.

"At night, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation delivered a group retaliation strike with high-precision sea-based weapons at facilities where terrorist acts against Russia had been prepared using unmanned boats," it said in a statement.

On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised meeting that the Defense Ministry was "preparing relevant proposals "and Russia will "of course" respond to the "terrorist attack" against Crimea's Kerch Bridge.

He called on the authorities, including the Federal Security Service, to investigate the incident and asked for measures to secure the "strategically important transport facility" from future strikes.

Putin also claimed there was no military significance to hitting the bridge because it "has long not been used for military transport". It is also a "brutal" crime since innocent civilians have been killed, he said.

The incident happened as Moscow announced the termination of the Black Sea grain deal. However, the Kremlin said the decision was unrelated to the bridge incident.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres signaled that Russia's withdrawal meant the related pact to assist Russia's grain and fertilizer exports was also terminated.

Profound impact

Shashwat Saraf, emergency director in East Africa for the International Rescue Committee, said the impact would be profound in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya, which have been facing the Horn of Africa's worst drought in decades.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a briefing on Tuesday that Moscow rejected a United States' criticism of its withdrawal from a grain deal backed by Turkiye and the UN. Russia would continue supplying grain to poor countries, he said.

He added that the grain deal zone "is used by the Kyiv regime for combat purposes".

Also on Tuesday, Russia's Defense Ministry said on Telegram that a total of 28 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles targeting Crimea were intercepted by air defenses, but there were no casualties or damage from what it described as a "terrorist attack".

Russia has been accusing Ukrainian forces of striking its supply lines, while Kyiv said Russia had amassed "over 100,000 troops and more than 900 tanks" in northeastern Ukraine's Kupiansk city.

Agencies contributed to this story.

A Chinese envoy to the United Nations on Monday said that the crisis in Ukraine stems from an "outbreak of security conflicts in Europe" and proves that pursuing absolute security, provoking confrontation and expanding military blocs "brings only turmoil and unrest to Europe and the world".

"The evolving situation on the battlefield demonstrates that military means cannot resolve the Ukrainian crisis," Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN said at a Security Council meeting on the Ukraine crisis on Monday.

Geng said the continuation of the armed conflict will bring only more suffering to civilians and may even lead to unpredictable and irreparable scenarios. No matter how long the crisis lasts, it will eventually be resolved through political means, he emphasized.

The envoy pointed out that "rational voices" supporting the resumption of peace talks have become stronger and stronger. Developing countries from Asia, Africa, and Latin America all have put forward peace initiatives. They all reflect a strong will to resolve the crisis politically, said Geng.

He called on both parties to the conflict to meet each other halfway and explore solutions that accommodate each other's concerns, conform to regional realities and help bridge differences.

Geng also called for controlling the spillover effects of the crisis. It has made global food, energy and financial security more vulnerable, and developing countries will face more difficulties in achieving sustainable development goals, he said.

"Relevant countries should immediately stop imposing excessive unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction, ensure the safety and smoothness of global industrial and supply chains, increase support and assistance to developing countries, and do more things that are conducive to world economic growth.

"China appreciates the important role of the Black Sea grain transport package agreement in stabilizing the global grain market and hopes that relevant parties can properly resolve the issue of Black Sea grain transport through dialogue and consultation," said Geng.

On Monday, Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack on the bridge linking the Russian mainland and Crimea, alleging involvement from the UK and the US.

On the same day, Russia suspended participation in the Black Sea grain deal just as it was set to expire.

"Unfortunately, the part of these Black Sea agreements that concerns Russia has not been implemented so far, so its effect is terminated," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Russia had been complaining that its demands to improve its own grain and fertilizer exports have not been met, Xinhua News reported.

"As soon as the Russian part is fulfilled, the Russian side will immediately return to the implementation of that deal," Peskov said.

While the grain initiative is out, the controversial weapons banned in more than 100 countries are now in Ukraine, which last week said it has already received cluster munitions from the US.

"The irresponsible transfer of cluster bombs can easily lead to humanitarian problems. Humanitarian concerns and legitimate military security needs should be addressed in a balanced manner, and an attitude of prudence and restraint should be exercised in the transfer of cluster bombs," Geng said.

Geng also said that nuclear safety and security needed to be ensured. "We once again call on both parties to the conflict to exercise maximum rational restraint, abide by nuclear safety conventions and other international laws, and resolutely avoid man-made nuclear accidents," he said.