Ukraine War News Today - Top Stories and Breaking Updates from Kyiv Post

The Ukrainian nighttime raid by less than two dozen aircraft came in the wake of a massive Russian Thursday strike with more than 600 weapons that killed 23 Ukrainian civilians.

Ukrainian drones hit the usually peaceful Russian city of Oryol early on Friday morning, Aug. 29 in a possible retaliation attack for a deadly Russian strike the night before.

The Ukrainian strike against Russia’s Oryol was less than 20 aircraft, observers said. Four Russian civilians reportedly were injured. The city is some 220-240 kilometers (137-149 miles) from probable Ukrainian drone launch sites.

Canadian Ambassador Natalka Cmoc and UNHCR’s Karolina Lindholm Billing reflect on displacement, partnerships, resilience, and gratitude in Ukraine’s time of crisis.

Russia’s attacks damaged the premises of two banks and an economics research center, while a restaurant was almost completely destroyed.

Russia’s latest missile strike on central Kyiv damaged the  premises of major Ukrainian businesses, including two banks, a restaurant, and an economic think tank – all located along the same street.

Russia launched a massive overnight attack on Ukraine’s capital early on Thursday, Aug. 28, striking Kyiv with ballistic and cruise missiles, Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, and waves of Iranian-made Shahed drones.

A new cultural bridge from Ukraine into Western Europe is built. Kyiv’s Victoria Museum opens a new branch in Barcelona, where the Ukrainian collection enters into a dialogue with Europe.

The owner of a Ukrainian early modern costume museum in Kyiv is opening a sister museum in Barcelona, Spain.

The opening will take place on Saturday, Aug. 30, in the heart of Barcelona, at Carrer de la Junta de Comerç, 17.

Speaking before talks with US officials, President Zelensky outlined Ukraine’s three-tier security strategy, emphasizing diplomacy, sanctions, and international support.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia will never occupy Ukraine but acknowledged that Kyiv currently cannot reclaim all its internationally recognized territories by military means. Speaking at a press conference before talks with US officials in New York, Zelensky emphasized that diplomacy, international sanctions, and security guarantees are key to protecting the country.

“We all understand that today Ukraine cannot fully restore all its territories by force of arms. They don’t have enough strength, and we don’t have enough strength. Therefore, when we talk about what society and people believe in, I consider that today the diplomatic path means fewer killings, fewer losses, and is faster than the path of war,” the channel My-Ukraine reports reports Zelensky saying.

Discover Kyivan Rus like never before: Language Lab’s lecture series unveils its people, culture, and lasting legacy, challenging myths and celebrating Ukraine’s medieval roots.

Language Lab is set to launch an ambitious lecture series that delves into one of the most fascinating and influential states of the European Middle Ages: Kyivan Rus. Moving beyond traditional histories of rulers and battles, the series promises a fresh, thought-provoking perspective on this formative civilization.

Attendees will explore who truly shaped Kyivan Rus, the methods they employed to govern, and the enduring legacies they left – not only in politics, but in culture, identity, and values. The lecture series aims to challenge long-standing myths and stereotypes, particularly those shaped by imperial narratives or modern distortions, and to reveal little-known facts that offer surprising insights into the era.

Russian shelling and drone attacks damage towns while Ukraine hits a critical facility pumping diesel to Russian forces.

While Russian forces continue to attack civilian areas in Donbas and Kyiv, Ukraine has struck back at key logistical targets inside Russian territory, including a strategic fuel facility in the Bryansk region that supplies diesel to Russian troops.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine struck the facility, which pumps diesel fuel through main pipelines for the needs of the Russian army. This was reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook later Friday afternoon, Aug. 29. According to the report, the station’s pumping capacity is about 10.5 million tons per year.

Drone commander Robert Brovdi responded by saying that Hungary is “elbow-deep in Ukrainian blood.”

Hungary will ban the commander of a Ukrainian military unit involved in the recent attack on the Druzhba oil pipeline from entering both the country and the broader Schengen Area, the Hungarian Foreign Minister said.

Peter Szijjártó wrote on X: “In response to the latest Ukrainian strike against the Druzhba oil pipeline, the Hungarian government has decided to ban the commander of the military unit responsible from entering Hungary and the entire Schengen Area.”

Aerial bombs, drones, and artillery hit Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, and Kostyantynivka overnight, injuring residents and damaging homes, infrastructure, and cultural sites.

Russian forces continued to target civilian infrastructure in Donbas overnight Thursday to Friday, Aug. 28-29, using aerial bombs, drones, and artillery, according to local authorities and monitors. Communities in Kramatorsk, Kostyantynivka, and the Sloviansk district bore the brunt of the attacks“At night, at 01:40, the Kramatorsk community came under shelling. Using an FPV drone with a warhead, Russian forces struck the Regional Landscape Park. An administrative building was damaged. Fortunately, there were no casualties,” wrote Oleksandr Honcharenko, head of the Kramatorsk military administration, on Facebook.

Meanwhile, local Telegram channel Kramatorsk Guy Writes reported several wounded civilians and widespread damage to apartment buildings in frontline areas.

The meeting, called for in the wake of international outrage over Russia’s attack on civilians in the heart of Kyiv, is expected to take place Friday at the UN in New York.

Ukraine called a UN Security Council meeting on Friday, Aug. 29, to discuss Russia’s latest mass drone and missile attack on Kyiv.

According to Ukrinform, the emergency meeting will provide an opportunity for the Ukrainian delegation to brief the international community on the fatal attack, which has so far claimed the lives of 23 people, including 4 children. 

The Russian leader is said to have become increasingly paranoid about attempts on his life in recent years, even demolishing a treasured palatial residence in Sochi for fear of being attacked there.

A Ukrainian drone attack sparked a forest fire on the night of Wednesday, Aug. 27, just 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the Russian president’s Black Sea mansion known as “Putin’s palace,” Russian officials said.

Emergency crews battled a huge blaze spread across three separate locations near the village of Krinitsa, Russia’s Ministry of Civil Defense, Emergencies and Disaster Relief wrote on Telegram. Krinitsa is just east of the Russian president’s seaside mega-villa.

Ukraine’s special operators recently were kitted out with a drone called “Shark” specifically designed to hunt down and destroy air defense radars and anti-aircraft missiles.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have received a new batch of Shark-M reconnaissance drones, transferred by the Serhiy Prytula Foundation to the 423rd Separate Battalion of Unmanned Systems.

According to the Special Operations Forces (SSO), the Serhiy Prytula Foundation, on Aug. 21, transferred 30 Shark-M reconnaissance drones to the 423rd separate battalion of unmanned systems.

Rescuers ended search operations in the Darnytskyi district, where 22 victims were found. In total, 23 people were killed across Kyiv, and eight remain missing.

Ukrainian rescuers have completed search operations at the site of a Russian missile strike on a residential building in Kyiv’s Darnytskyi district, President Volodymyr Zelensky reported on Telegram. Crews will now move to dismantling damaged structural elements of the building.

The strike, which hit the capital early Wednesday, Aug. 27, left at least 23 people dead across the city, including children. At the Darnytskyi site alone, 22 victims have been confirmed, among them four children. “The youngest girl was not even three years old,” Zelensky said, offering condolences to the victims’ families.

The three Moldovan men are accused of participating in a plot to disrupt Moldova’s elections.

Three Moldovan nationals have been arrested for allegedly training in Russian-run subversion camps in Bosnia’s Republika Srpska, authorities said, amid growing concerns over foreign attempts to destabilize the country.

The Moldovan Office for Combating Organized Crime and Special Cases (PCCOCS)  alleges that the three men – aged 27, 36, and 50 – attended the camps in August 2024, as per Balkan Insight.

The Portuguese president said publicly that Donald Trump was “objectively a Russian asset” and warned European leaders about consequences of “downplaying Trumpism.”

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said that US President Donald Trump, “the supreme leader of the world’s greatest superpower, objectively, is a Soviet or Russian asset.” .

The Portuguese head of state added: “Europe has downplayed Mr. Trump and Trumpism.”

Kyiv’s intelligence units reported the destruction of radar, missile launchers, and electronic warfare assets worth billions, striking deep inside occupied Crimea.

Ukrainian commandos and drone operators working behind enemy lines destroyed 17 major Russian air defense systems in four days of strikes, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) stated.

In a Thursday, Aug. 28 announcement, the SBU credited special operators from Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, HUR, with carrying out the attacks. The strikes reportedly destroyed anti-aircraft missile launchers, radar stations, and electronic warfare systems in Crimea and along the southern front.

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Ukrainska Pravda’s offices were damaged in the attack, though no journalists were injured.

A deadly Russian missile attack on Kyiv that killed at least 23 people on Thursday, Aug. 28 also damaged the offices of two media outlets  – Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Ukrainska Pravda.

RFE/RL is an international media outlet with offices in 23 countries, while Ukrainska Pravda reports online news about Ukraine. Both offices sustained broken windows as well as some damage to the buildings themselves.

Volodymyr Mykolayenko recounts being abducted, beaten daily, and pressured on camera by Russian propagandists during more than three years in detention.

Volodymyr Mykolayenko served as mayor of Kherson from 2014 to 2020, a period of major reforms in Ukraine. With decentralization, local communities began managing their own budgets for the first time in decades. Under his leadership, Kherson saw significant improvements in infrastructure and the introduction of modern public transport.

When Russia invaded in 2022, Mykolayenko joined the local territorial defense. After Kherson fell under occupation, he was abducted and spent more than three years in Russian captivity, enduring repeated torture. After three years, on Aug. 24, he was released as part of a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine.

The proposal is reportedly one of several being considered as Europe grows increasingly desperate to see a peace deal brokered between Kyiv and Moscow.

European leaders are considering the creation of a 40 kilometer (25 mile) buffer zone between the Russian and Ukrainian front lines as part of a postwar or ceasefire agreement in Ukraine, Politico reported on Friday, Aug. 28.

Citing five unnamed European diplomats, Politico wrote that the buffer zone proposal is one of several being mulled by military and civilian officials as they become increasingly desperate to find a resolution to the conflict.

Brussels explores turning more than €200 billion in seized funds into investments to support Ukraine’s reconstruction after the war.

The European Commission is exploring ways to channel more than €200 billion in frozen Russian assets into rebuilding Ukraine after the war, Politico reports.

 Such a mechanism is viewed as an alternative if Russia refuses to pay reparations for the destruction caused by its invasion. European officials see the potential use of these funds as a form of “punishment” for Moscow should it decline to take responsibility.

Europe to define the shape of security assistance for beleaguered Ukraine.

The biggest story in Europe in the coming days will be Ukraine. After months of cajoling, pandering, and flattering, Europeans sense they’ve convinced Donald Trump to muck in on protecting Ukraine from further Russian attacks after the war.

Debate over the post-war security guarantees Europe might extend to Ukraine has intensified in recent weeks, fueled in part by this month’s US-Russia summit in Alaska, which stirred tentative hope for a peace deal.

Ukraine calls for a stronger response from Western allies to Russia’s terror from the skies.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Western allies on Thursday to send a “strong joint signal” to Vladimir Putin, after Russia killed 23 people in one of its deadliest attacks on Kyiv since the start of the war.

Russia has rained down aerial strikes on Ukrainian cities despite US President Donald Trump’s push for a ceasefire and even as Moscow talks up the importance of ending the conflict ignited by its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

On Aug. 29, Ukraine pays tribute to soldiers and volunteers who fell in battle, beginning with the encirclement at Ilovaisk in 2014.

Aug. 29 is Ukraine’s Day of Remembrance for Fallen Defenders, honoring the soldiers and volunteers who gave their lives protecting the country from Russian aggression.

On this day 11 years ago, during the Russian invasion of Donbas, more than a thousand soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and volunteer battalions defending the city of Ilovaisk in the Donetsk region were encircled.

Russia continues ignoring calls for peace negotiations and keeps up its deadly strikes on Ukrainian civilians.

Ukraine said on Friday that Russian overnight strikes had killed two people in Dnipropetrovsk, days after Kyiv admitted for the first time that Moscow’s army was advancing into the region.

“Unfortunately, two people died – a man and a woman. Sincere condolences to the relatives,” Sergiy Lysak, the head of the regional military administration, wrote on Telegram.

On both sides of the aisle, lawmakers call for more aid and sanctions, as a new poll reveals the scale of public pessimism over the chances of a peace deal.

WASHINGTON DC – Leading US senators from both sides of the aisle are condemning Russia’s deadly overnight attack on Kyiv, accusing President Vladimir Putin of rejecting peace and deliberately escalating the conflict.

The missile and drone strikes hit civilian buildings and the EU delegation headquarters, killing at least 23 and injuring dozens, including children.

Trump “was not happy about this news, but he was also not surprised,” his press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

Russian missiles and drones ripped through apartment blocks in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Thursday, killing at least 23 people including four children, authorities said, in an attack the United States warned undermines peace efforts.

Russia has rained down aerial strikes on Ukrainian cities despite US President Donald Trump’s push for a ceasefire and even as Moscow talks up the importance of ending the war launched by its full-scale invasion in February 2022.