After murdering 21 civilians in Kyiv, Russia says it 'remains interested' in Ukraine peace negotiations
Russia has said it "remains interested in continuing negotiations" with Ukraine, just hours after it launched a mass missile and drone attack that killed at least 21 people including four children in Kyiv.
Russia launched a large-scale aerial strike on Ukrainian cities overnight on Aug. 28, attacking Kyiv with missiles and drones, and targeting regions far from the front lines.
In the capital, several districts were hit with multiple residential buildings damaged. Most of the fatalities occurred in the Darnytskyi district where a five-story building was hit directly, causing the structure to collapse from the first to the fifth floor.
After the attack, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claimed that "the Russian Armed Forces are successfully striking Ukraine's military infrastructure, but Russia remains interested in continuing negotiations," Russian state-controlled media reported.
Russian state media never shows the consequences of Russian attacks, claiming that Russian forces target military infrastructure.
Russia launched 598 drones overnight, including Shahed attack drones and decoys, as well as 31 missiles, among them two Kh-47 Kinzhal ballistic missiles, nine Iskander-M or North Korean KN-23 ballistic missiles, and 20 Kh-101 cruise missiles, Ukraine’s Air Force reported.
Russia has increased the frequency and intensity of aerial attacks on Ukrainian cities since the start of 2025. On July 29, Russia launched its deadliest attack against Kyiv this year, killing 32 civilians in a massive combined strike.
As the White House pushes for a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine, Russia continues to exert additional pressure on Kyiv through constant attacks on cities and escalating ground offensives.
Putin avoids meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky because "he doesn't like him," U.S. President Donald Trump said on Aug. 25. Zelensky repeatedly said he is ready to meet Putin and hold peace talks with Russia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Aug. 22 that a meeting between the two leaders is "not ready at all," claiming that Zelensky had rejected "several principles" needed for future peace talks and questioning his legitimacy.
"They (Russians) think Russia is winning the war, they are ready to make peace on their terms, and they are still optimistic that Donald Trump will either persuade the Europeans to accept those terms, or that he will walk away and leave the Europeans to defend Ukraine on their own," Peter Rutland, a Professor of Government at Wesleyan University, told the Kyiv Independent.
