'War Crime': Russian Drone strike claims nine lives in the northeast of Ukraine hours after 'Failed' Peace Conversations | Today news

Hours after Russia and Ukraine held their first direct discussions in years that did not produce a ceasefire, a Russian drone hit a passenger bus in the northeastern Sumy region of Ukraine on Saturday and killed nine people. “This is another war crime by Russia -a deliberate strike on civil transport that poses no threat,” the Sumy regional administration said in a post about the telegram messages, the Associated Press reports. Earlier Friday, Russian and Ukrainian officials held Russian and Ukrainian officials, in Turkey to establish a temporary ceasefire, which was their first direct meeting since the early weeks of Russia’s full scale in February 2022. However, the discussions ended in less than two hours without any significant breakthrough. It should be noted that although both parties have agreed to a large prisoner exchange, they have sharply divided them over the core conditions needed to bring the conflict to an end. One such condition for Ukraine, backed by its Western allies, is a temporary ceasefire as a first step towards a peaceful settlement. The Kremlin pushed back against such a ceasefire, which remains elusive. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said he discussed the discussions with US President Donald Trump and the leaders of France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Poland. In a post about X of a European leadership meeting in Albania, he urged “tough sanctions” against Moscow if it “rejected a complete and unconditional ceasefire and an end to murders.” Medinsky, an assistant of President Vladimir Putin, said that both Russia and Ukraine agreed to exchange detailed ceasefire proposals. He also noted that Ukraine had requested a meeting between the two countries’ heads of state – a proposal that Russia considered, AP reports. Zelenskyy was in Tirana, Albania, on Friday and met with leaders of 47 European countries to discuss safety, defense and democratic standards against the background of the war. He met French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. “The pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war,” Zelenskyy said on X and posted a photo of the leaders during the call, the second for the group since May 10. During these discussions, he emphasized that he strengthened the pressure on Russia and emphasized that a ceasefire is the first step to bring about peace. The discussions also focused on strengthening military support, improving the air defense and defense abilities of Ukraine and the acceleration of Ukraine’s path to membership of the European Union. With the Russian troops occupying about a fifth of Ukraine, Russian President Putin demanded that Kyiv surrender the area, give up his endeavor to join NATO and adopt a neutral attitude, according to reports. It is another war crime by Russia – a deliberate strike on civil transport that poses no threat. (With input of agencies) ___