Extract from ABC News
The Ukrainian president says he will meet with Donald Trump next week. (Reuters: Kevin Lamarque)
In short:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he will meet US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly next week.
Russia intensified attacks across his country on Saturday, firing 40 missiles and some 580 drones at Ukraine in a barrage that killed at least three people and wounded dozens.
What's next?
The United Nations General Assembly takes place in New York on September 23 and runs through to September 29.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he will meet US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly next week, as Russia intensifies attacks across his country.
Russia carried out one of its largest aerial attacks overnight, firing 40 missiles and some 580 drones at Ukraine in a barrage that killed at least three people and wounded dozens, Mr Zelenskyy said on Saturday local time.
He said he would hold "a meeting with the President of the United States" to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine and sanctions on Russia.
The United Nations General Assembly takes place in New York on September 23 and runs through to September 29.
Ukraine has insisted on Western-backed security guarantees to prevent future Russian attacks.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has meanwhile warned that any Western troops in Ukraine would be unacceptable and legitimate targets.
A US-led push for a quick end to the war has stalled and Russia effectively ruled out a meeting between Mr Putin and Mr Zelenskyy.
"We expect sanctions if there is no meeting between the leaders or, for example, no ceasefire," Mr Zelenskyy said in comments released by the Ukrainian presidency on Saturday.
"We are ready for a meeting with Putin. I have spoken about this. Both bilateral and trilateral. He is not ready."
Russia is terrorising civilians, Zelenskyy says
Mr Zelenskyy said "Ukraine was under a massive attack by Russia" all night.
"Every such strike is not a military necessity but a deliberate strategy by Russia to terrorise civilians and destroy our infrastructure," he said.
In a statement on the Telegram app, the Ukrainian president said Russia had launched about 580 drones and 40 missiles overnight.
Air defences shot down 552 of the drones and 31 missiles, Ukraine's air force said.
Russia denies targeting Ukrainian civilians.
Cars burn on the outskirts of Kyiv during the Russian strike. (Reuters: Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Kyiv region/Handout )
In the central city of Dnipro, a missile with a cluster munition hit a residential apartment building, Mr Zelenskyy said.
One person was killed, and at least 26 people were injured in Dnipro, regional officials said.
Two people were also killed in the Chernihiv region in the north and the Khmelnytskyi region in the west of the country, regional officials said.
The Russian defence ministry said on Saturday its air defence alert systems "intercepted and destroyed" 149 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 27 over the Saratov region and 15 over the Samara region.
Russia announced on Saturday its troops had captured the village of Berezove in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
In the north-eastern Kharkiv region, "intense actions" were ongoing in the key area of Kupiansk, Mr Zelenskyy said, referring to a rail hub Ukraine recaptured in its 2022 offensive.
AFP/Reuters
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