Russian attacks wounded civilians and damaged infrastructure across Ukraine, while hundreds of Ukrainian drones targeted Russian territory ahead of negotiations over security guarantees, reconstruction funding and a possible end to the nearly five-year war.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia and Ukraine exchanged extensive overnight drone attacks Thursday, Nov. 5, damaging energy and industrial infrastructure and causing civilian casualties as American, Ukrainian and European officials resumed negotiations in Brussels over postwar reconstruction and security arrangements.
The latest attacks came ahead of U.S.-brokered peace negotiations scheduled for Nov. 10-11 in Abu Dhabi, where representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the United States are expected to discuss proposals for ending the conflict that began with Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
According to The Associated Press, Ukraine’s military reported intercepting or suppressing 105 of 128 Russian attack drones launched overnight and into early Thursday. Russian strikes nevertheless wounded at least four people in the Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv regions.
Three people were injured in the city of Dnipro after Russian drones struck six locations across the surrounding region, damaging homes, garages and other infrastructure, regional administrator Oleksandr Hanzha said.
West of Kyiv, another Russian drone strike hit logistics infrastructure, triggering a warehouse fire and injuring one person. Emergency crews worked to extinguish flames amid twisted metal and debris at the damaged facility.
Ukraine responded with one of its largest reported drone operations against Russian territory.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed its air defenses destroyed 496 Ukrainian drones overnight across 13 Russian regions, the occupied Crimean Peninsula and areas over the Black and Azov seas. The figures could not be independently verified.
More than 200 drones reportedly targeted the Ryazan region southeast of Moscow, where Governor Pavel Malkov said one person was wounded and falling debris damaged electrical lines and ignited a fire at an industrial facility.
Russian media reported that the Ryazan oil refinery was among the locations affected, publishing images showing flames and heavy smoke rising into the night sky.
A warehouse operated by Russian online retailer Wildberries was also reportedly damaged, although the company had not immediately confirmed the extent of the destruction.
The overnight attacks followed another deadly incident in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine.
Moscow-backed officials in the Luhansk region said a Ukrainian strike hit a passenger bus traveling between the regional capital and a nearby town, killing five people and injuring 13 others.
Leonid Pasechnik, the Russian-installed regional leader, said two teenagers were among the wounded. Ukrainian authorities had not immediately commented on the allegation, and the circumstances could not be independently confirmed.
Meanwhile, emergency personnel continued searching through the wreckage of a former school and nearby shelter in Komyshuvakha, close to the front line in Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region.
Russian guided bombs struck the location Monday while civilians were reportedly waiting for humanitarian assistance.
Ukrainian authorities said 42 bodies had been recovered by Thursday, while more than 30 people were believed to remain trapped or missing. Investigators were using DNA samples from relatives to identify some victims.
The attack was among the deadliest reported in the region since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.
Despite the continuing violence, diplomatic discussions proceeded at NATO headquarters in Brussels, where representatives of Ukraine and its Western partners were examining proposals for security guarantees and economic recovery.
Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, said the meetings focused on reconstruction, financial assistance for 2027 and arrangements intended to prevent renewed Russian military aggression after a peace agreement.
Participants included officials from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, the European Union and NATO, along with representatives of the World Bank and investment firm BlackRock.
“We separately discussed the threats from Russia to Ukraine and all of Europe, as well as joint steps to counter them,” Umerov said in an online statement.
NATO spokesperson Allison Hart confirmed that the discussions would continue Thursday, with participants seeking an agreement on future security arrangements.
The meetings were intended “to discuss the way forward on bringing about a just and sustainable end to the war in Ukraine,” Hart said.
According to Ukrainian reporting on the negotiations, Umerov described the discussions as a continuation of earlier meetings in Florida and Oslo involving Ukraine’s economic recovery and long-term security.
The Ukrainian delegation included representatives from the ministries of economy, finance and defense, as well as the president’s office.
The talks centered partly on a proposed postwar economic recovery framework intended to rebuild damaged infrastructure, restore industrial activity and strengthen Ukraine’s ability to finance public services.
“Security, recovery and development must be parts of a single plan for Ukraine after the war,” Umerov said.
The Brussels negotiations precede a new round of direct talks involving Washington, Kyiv and Moscow scheduled for next week in the United Arab Emirates.
According to Reuters, American negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to represent the United States during the Abu Dhabi discussions.
A senior American official said the negotiations would address ending the war, postwar security arrangements, humanitarian concerns and measures to reduce military tensions.
The meeting follows renewed diplomatic efforts by President Donald Trump’s administration, which has sought an agreement between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Russia and Ukraine remain divided over territorial control, security guarantees and conditions for a ceasefire, leaving major obstacles to a comprehensive settlement.
Zelenskyy said Wednesday that he had spoken for approximately 90 minutes with Witkoff and Kushner about proposals for advancing the negotiations.
“The negotiations must move forward at full throttle to bring this war to an end as quickly as possible,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “Ukraine is ready to take the necessary steps. Our proposals are clear, and we have given them to the American side.”
Kushner emphasized that American efforts were intended to establish a durable security arrangement rather than merely suspend fighting temporarily.
He said negotiations were focused not only on “ending this terrible war, but on the broader security architecture needed to ensure that when the fighting stops, it never starts again.”
The Trump administration’s diplomatic initiative has also included discussions about possible territorial compromises, although Ukrainian officials have repeatedly emphasized the need for credible security protections.
The approaching negotiations come as political changes in Washington could influence future American assistance to Ukraine.
In an interview with German broadcaster ZDF scheduled to air Friday, Zelenskyy expressed hope that Democratic victories in Tuesday’s U.S. midterm elections would strengthen cooperation between Washington and European governments.
“We have support from two parties — support from both parties. I am also grateful to the Republicans,” Zelenskyy said.
He added that Democrats “speak of renewing the ties between the U.S. and Europe, which have been somewhat lost in recent years. And that is very important to us.”
The European Union also announced additional financial assistance to Ukraine Thursday, providing approximately 4.36 billion euros through a previously established 90 billion-euro loan arrangement.
The financing is intended to support government services, defense requirements, energy infrastructure and air defense procurement.
The latest negotiations follow months of discussions about reconstruction financing and security guarantees, including proposals for European-led security arrangements backed by American support.
Western officials have argued that any settlement must address Ukraine’s vulnerability to renewed attacks, while Moscow has maintained objections to certain Western military commitments.
With Russian and Ukrainian forces continuing strikes across the border and along the front lines, the diplomatic meetings are proceeding without a general ceasefire.
The immediate objectives in Brussels are to establish a coordinated Western position on Ukraine’s reconstruction and security needs before the November 10-11 negotiations.
Whether those discussions produce progress toward ending the war will depend on the willingness of Moscow and Kyiv to resolve their remaining disagreements over territory, security and the conditions for lasting peace.
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