Russian Strike on Minibus in Northern Ukraine Kills Nine People
A Russian strike on a minibus carrying civilians in northern Ukraine killed nine people and wounded four, regional authorities reported today, a day after talks between Russians and Ukrainians failed to reach a ceasefire agreement.
“An enemy drone hit a bus near Bilopillia, killing nine people and wounding four,” the military administration of the Sumy border region wrote on Telegram, alongside photos of the minibus wreckage on the road.
The vehicle was heading towards Sumy, the source said, after previously announcing a Russian attack on a bus transporting civilians.
In the Sumy region, which borders Russia, Russian shelling has intensified since Ukrainian forces were expelled from Russia's Kursk region in early March. In the summer of 2024, Ukrainians had briefly captured a small part of that territory opposite Sumy.
Yesterday in Istanbul, Russians and Ukrainians, during their first peace talks since spring 2022, agreed to exchange a thousand prisoners each, according to Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky.
The meeting ended without the announcement of a ceasefire, which Kyiv and its allies have designated as a priority.
Both sides now need to draft a detailed proposal for such a ceasefire, Vladimir Medinsky said in a brief statement to reporters.
The head of the Ukrainian delegation, Rustem Umerov, and Medinsky also mentioned that the Ukrainian side raised the possibility of a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which would be their first meeting since the start of the Russian invasion. Russian negotiator Medinsky said that "Moscow has taken note of this request."
