Ukraine-Russia live: Kyiv outraged by UN chief’s ‘trip to meet Putin’ as Russian commander killed with hammer

Ukraine‘s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha met with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan in Ankara on Monday to discuss cooperation between their countries. According to Ukraine‘s Foreign Ministry, the meeting focused on strengthening strategic relations, defence cooperation and addressing global food security through Black Sea grain shipments from Ukraine that pass through Turkey’s Bosphorus Strait.

“We welcome with great appreciation the contributions of Turkish companies to the reconstruction of Ukraine. We eagerly anticipate even greater involvement from them in the future,” Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.

Russia conducted a ballistic missile strike at Zelenskyy’s hometown, Kryvyi Rih, injuring five people, city administration head Oleksandr Vilkul wrote on social media.

According to Vilkul, Russia has conducted ballistic missile attacks on Kryvyi Rih for three consecutive days, injuring a total of 21 people and damaging dozens of residential buildings and civilian infrastructure. Machine gunfire and the noise of drones’ engines were also heard in Kyiv’s centre throughout the night. Authorities reported minor damages to civilian infrastructure caused by falling drone debris in three districts.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed the situation in Ukraine at length during a dinner on Sunday.

Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said on Monday: “The Ukrainian crisis was discussed quite thoroughly during an informal dinner between President Putin and the President of the UAE in the Novo-Ogaryovo residence yesterday.”

He added that the situation in the Middle East was discussed during formal talks on Monday in an expanded format, where the foreign ministers of both countries took part.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday he had discussed air defences and the topic of striking deep into Russia with the US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin during his visit to Kyiv.

“Additionally we focused on efforts to increase the production of strike drones, cruise missiles, artillery shells, and air defence systems,” Zelenskiy wrote on X.

He added that Austin shared plans with him about convening the next Ramstein meeting after one scheduled for October was postponed.

A Russian strike against the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia on Monday morning has killed two people and injured 15, Governor Ivan Fedorov reported.

“The body of a dead man was taken out of the rubble in Zaporizhzhia. Fourteen injured, three of them in serious condition, and one dead man - these are the consequences of an enemy attack on the regional center,” Fedorov wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

Some reports say a nursery was hit, it is not know whether it was in this attack or another one.

The US Defense Secretary has announced $400 million in new arms for Ukraine during a visit to Kyiv today, as the future of US aid to Ukraine hangs in the balance with imminent US elections.

"The United States understands the stakes here, Mr. President," Lloyd Austin told Zelensky during a meeting, as he announced the new cash for additional munitions, armoured vehicles and anti-tank weapons.

He continued: “Under President Biden’s leadership, the United States remains committed to keeping up this support. And so I’m pleased to announce today a commitment of a $400 million presidential drawdown package to provide your forces with additional munitions, armored vehicles and anti tank weapons.”

Donald Trump has signalled he would be more reluctant than Biden to continue to support Ukraine, which could deprive Kyiv of its biggest military and financial backer.

Austin played down such concerns saying he has seen “bipartisan support for Ukraine” over the last two and a half years and he fully “expects that we’ll continue to see the bipartisan support from Congress.”

Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv with several waves of drones for the second night in a row, damaging residential buildings and injuring at least one civilian, Ukrainian officials said on Monday.

One civilian was killed and 14 were injured in a separate ballistic missile attack on Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine on Monday morning, local authorities said.

The Ukrainian military said air defences downed 59 out of 116 Russian drones launched overnight. The military lost track of 45 drones that likely fell into Ukrainian territory, it said.

"Another night, another worry," Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv's military administration, said on Telegram. "The enemy does not reduce the intensity of air attacks on Ukraine and Kyiv."

The military said several attacks hit civilian infrastructure.

About 10 drones targeting the capital in several waves and from different directions were destroyed, Popko said. While none of the weapons hit their target, falling debris injured at least one man, he added.

Debris fell onto three of Kyiv’s main districts, damaging some roofs and the facades of several residential buildings and power cables, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram.

The roof of a multi-storey residential building was damaged, windows were smashed and one apartment was partially destroyed, Kyiv regional administration said.

The air raid alerts in Kyiv lasted more than five hours before the air force declared skies clear at around 0215 GMT.

United Arab Emirates president Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has told Russian President Vladimir Putin that he is ready to support efforts to find peace in Ukraine.

The pair met for talks last night, at Putin’s residence outside Moscow, which concluded at midnight

Sheikh Mohammed told Putin: “We continue to make efforts to mediate the exchange of prisoners. And I assure you that we will continue to work in this direction. We are ready to make any efforts to resolve crises and in the interests of peace, in the interests of both sides.”

Ukrainian officials released a video earlier today purporting to show dozens of North Korean recruits lining up to collect Russian military fatigues.

The video published by the Centre for Strategic Communication and Information Security appears to show the soldiers waiting to pick up bags, clothes and other items from Russian service personnel.

Ihor Solovey, the head of the centre, told the Associated Press that they received the video from their “sources”, adding that he was unable to provide additional verification due to security concerns.

The European Union is “very concerned” about the ongoing reports of military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, a spokesman said today.

Peter Stano said at a press briefing that if the reports are confirmed, then it “would mark another level of escalation and significant increase in their cooperation.”

He continued: “This only illustrates how Russia is determined to escalate its illegal actions against Ukraine, that Russia is absolutely not interested to look for peaceful solutions.”