A Ukrainian strike in Russian-occupied Crimea left one person dead as President Donald Trump spoke separately with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy about efforts to end the war.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
One person was killed and two others were injured in a Ukrainian attack on Russian-occupied Crimea, Moscow-installed officials said early Sunday, as President Donald Trump held separate calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about ending the war.
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russia-installed regional governor of Crimea, said on Telegram that the attack struck northern Crimea. He said one of the two injured people was in serious condition but did not provide additional details about the strike.
Ukraine has increased attacks in recent weeks against key infrastructure targets in Crimea, the peninsula Russia seized by force and illegally annexed in 2014. Kyiv’s long-range strikes are intended to put pressure on Moscow and isolate the Russian-held territory as the war enters its fifth year.
Western analysts and officials say Ukraine’s expanded use of long-range attacks has shown its ability to damage Russian assets while Moscow’s advances have slowed to a near halt.
The latest Crimea attack came as both Zelenskyy and Putin spoke separately with Trump.
Zelenskyy wrote on X that he called Trump to congratulate him on the 250th anniversary of American independence. He said the two leaders also discussed the battlefield situation.
“There is a real prospect of ending this war, and America’s determination will be crucial. We agreed to continue the conversation in person during the NATO summit in Ankara,” Zelenskyy said late Saturday.
The Kremlin described Putin’s Saturday call with Trump as “constructive.” Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said the call lasted nearly an hour and a half and was the fourth conversation between the two leaders this year.
Ushakov said Putin congratulated Trump and the American people on the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence.
According to Ushakov, Trump reaffirmed his “readiness to help achieve a quick cessation of hostilities and search for peaceful solutions to settle the crisis” in Ukraine. Ushakov said Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, will continue mediation efforts and are prepared to visit Moscow.
Ushakov said Putin again stressed Russia’s “preference for a diplomatic settlement of the conflict, provided that Russia’s well-known, fundamental positions are taken into account.”
The Kremlin adviser also said Putin accused Kyiv and its European allies of “betting on prolonging, and even escalating the conflict.” Putin argued that “the European ‘party of war’ proceeds from a flawed perception of the overall situation and the state of things along the line of contact,” Ushakov said.
Ushakov said Putin described Russian forces as advancing on the battlefield and “liberating one settlement after another.”
Putin specifically cited Russia’s claimed capture of Kostyantynivka, calling it an important step toward what Moscow describes as the “liberation” of the entire Donetsk region.
Ukraine denied that claim. Ukraine’s General Staff said Sunday on Telegram that Kostyantynivka remains under Ukrainian control. Zelenskyy had said a day earlier that Russia’s claim to have captured the city was “just another Russian lie.”
The competing battlefield claims and the Crimea attack underscore the difficult state of negotiations as Trump seeks to mediate a possible end to the war while both Moscow and Kyiv continue military operations.
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