European and U.S. officials, including Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, reportedly convinced Zelensky that attending the peace talks would reflect positively on Kyiv, diplomats told the Washington Post.
"We discussed in detail the logic of further steps and shared our approaches... It is critical that Russia reciprocate Ukraine's constructive steps. So far, it has not. Moscow must understand that rejecting peace comes at a cost," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.
"I am waiting to see who will come from Russia, and then I will decide which steps Ukraine should take. So far, the signals from them in the media are unconvincing," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The air raid was announced at around 2:30 p.m. local time, while the explosion sounded around 2:50 p.m. The number of victims killed rose to three, Sumy Oblast Governor Oleh Hryhorov reported at 8:42 p.m.
If confirmed, the decision would mark the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion that President Volodymyr Zelensky is absent, either physically or virtually, from a NATO summit.
The disclosure follows a warning from Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, who on May 6 said Moscow was carrying out an "unprecedented" interference campaign.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
Earlier reporting from the Washington Post cited a former Russian official who claimed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, would represent Moscow in the talks.
An exterior view of the first Soviet 13-story skyscraper, the architectural monument in the constructivist style on July 11, 2023 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. (Photo by Valentyna Polishchuk/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) approved a request from Ukraine to add 20 landmarks to the international list of cultural heritage sites under enhanced protection, Deputy Culture Minister Anastasiia Bondar said on Sept. 7.
The list includes the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, an important monastery famous for its complex cave systems, Lviv's historic center, Taras Shevchenko's grave, and the Derzhprom building in Kharkiv, which was the first skyscraper built in the Soviet Union.
The list also includes numerous wooden churches in the Carpathians, according to the Culture Ministry.
In 1999, UNESCO established a mechanism to grant cultural heritage sites enhanced protection as a way to deter attacks during conflicts.
Individuals who do not respect the enhanced protection granted to such sites can face criminal sanctions, according to UNESCO.
Ukrainian cultural heritage has been under attack by Russia since the first day of the full-scale invasion.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture has documented over 1,600 cultural facilities damaged or destroyed by Russian forces, but the actual number may be even higher.
After Russian strikes against Odesa's historical center, which was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site earlier this year, the organization highlighted that the intentional destruction of cultural sites may amount to a war crime.
