Nearly 2,300 drones strike Ukraine as Zelenskyy locks in November trilateral talks

Nearly 2,300 strike drones targeted Ukrainian cities in the past week, according to Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Ukrainian president released the figures on Sunday, citing the high volume of attacks to justify urgent requests for faster delivery of air defense interceptors from Western allies.

Zelenskyy confirmed on Sunday that a trilateral meeting between Kyiv, Washington, and Moscow will take place in November. The summit aims to restart peace talks that have stalled. In an interview, the president stated that Ukraine is ready to negotiate. He specified that territorial questions require discussion at the leadership level, while other matters fall to technical groups.

The November session will not cover limits on the size of Ukraine’s armed forces, nor will it address enforced postwar neutrality. Zelenskyy said Kyiv continues to seek entry into NATO. He also renewed his demand for a direct meeting with Vladimir Putin, arguing that the Russian leader is the only official capable of making decisive moves to end the war.

Technological support from the United States has been restored. Zelenskyy told TSN television that SpaceX’s Starshield satellite internet has operated at speeds up to 420 kilometers per hour since early Saturday. This capacity was throttled earlier in October during diplomatic friction. The restoration followed a meeting between Zelenskyy and US special envoy Steve Witkoff in Oslo.

Washington has pressed Kyiv to pause strikes on Russian oil refineries to stabilize energy prices. Zelenskyy said Ukraine will stop those attacks only if Moscow halts strikes on Ukrainian power infrastructure. Alternatives include the US allowing Starshield usage over Russia for missile detection or supplying additional Patriot missile systems.

Russian attacks continued on Sunday. The Russian defense ministry reported that drones struck a cargo vessel bound for Chornomorsk and another en route to Odesa overnight and during the day. Moscow said the ships were supplying the Ukrainian army. Forces also hit a logistics center, a distribution center, and a logistics terminal in Kharkiv. Reuters did not confirm the reports.

In Russia, a Ukrainian drone attack on the border city of Belgorod killed three people and injured 13 on Sunday. A separate strike later that day killed another person. Regional governor Alexander Shuvayev said the overnight attack damaged 30 apartment buildings. Meanwhile, Bulgaria’s presidential election ended in a runoff, with pro-Ukraine candidate Andrey Gyurov facing incumbent Iliana Yotova.