Conflict & Security
Kyiv attack kills three, mayor says; Zelensky seeks talks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Russian, Ukrainian and US negotiators could meet as early as September to discuss ending the war, hours after a Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv killed three people, according to the capital's mayor.
AFP journalists in Kyiv heard explosions in the early hours of Tuesday as fires broke out and residents sheltered in basements and metro stations. The attack came after Moscow's temporary halt to strikes on Kyiv ended.
Zelensky said Ukraine, Russia and the United States would prepare for a possible trilateral meeting. “If all sides agree, we also want to hold it in the autumn. If September works out, then it would be great. The earlier, the better,” he told journalists. He did not say where any talks could take place.
US President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited Moscow and Kyiv at the weekend for separate talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelensky. There was no immediate breakthrough, but Witkoff said the discussions had made “substantive progress”.
The Kremlin said on Monday that it did not rule out three-way talks, but spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was too early to discuss a venue or exact dates.
Russia's army said it carried out a “massive strike” on military-industrial sites, logistics hubs and storage centres in Kyiv and its suburbs. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga accused Putin of launching a “massive, horrific attack” shortly after the US envoys left.
Russian-installed officials in the Moscow-annexed Crimean peninsula said a Ukrainian attack killed two people.
Several previous rounds of negotiations have failed to bring the sides closer. Moscow is demanding that Ukraine cede territory in eastern Donetsk that Kyiv still controls and renounce Western military support. Kyiv says those terms amount to capitulation and would allow Russia to prepare another attack.
Update
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the overnight attack killed three people, up from the previously reported two.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine, Russia and the United States could hold a trilateral meeting in autumn, possibly in September, if all sides agree.
Zelensky said the sides would prepare for a Ukraine-Russia-US meeting but did not give a venue.
AFP journalists in Kyiv heard fresh explosions in the early hours of Tuesday.
The United Nations has verified that civilian deaths in Ukraine are running at their highest rate since the first months of Russia's invasion.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 11:07:47 UTC.
Update
Russia's army said it carried out a massive strike on military-industrial sites, logistics hubs and storage centres in Kyiv and its suburbs.
Russian-installed officials in Crimea said a Ukrainian attack killed two people there.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov appeared to rule out a Turkish proposal for a truce on Black Sea strikes.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 07:33:40 UTC.
Update
The air alert in Kyiv had been cleared after earlier alerts across about a dozen Ukrainian regions.
Telegram channels monitoring Ukrainian air threats said Russia had started moving ballistic missiles and heavy bombers closer to Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Axios that US proposals discussed with envoys included energy facilities, grain shipments, and oil and gas exports.
Zelensky said the US envoys told him that Russia was ready to negotiate, and said Washington could pressure Vladimir Putin to de-escalate.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 04:10:29 UTC.
Update
Kyiv City Military Administration said seven people were known to be wounded as of 6:30 am local time.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 03:50:37 UTC.
Update
Kyiv city authorities said Russian strikes killed two people.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 03:46:23 UTC.
Update
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said six people were wounded.
Authorities said a five-storey apartment block in the Solomianskyi district was damaged and vehicles caught fire in the Podilskyi district.
Klitschko said people were trapped in a residential building.
Air alerts were active in about a dozen Ukrainian regions by 5:30 am local time.
Poland announced aviation operations after the Russian attack.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 02:50:23 UTC.
Update
Kyiv's city military administration reported a missile attack and urged residents to take shelter.
Authorities said buildings were hit in Kyiv and in the Boryspil and Fastiv districts.
An AFP journalist saw smoke plumes and the glow of a fire.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 01:15:00 UTC.
Update
AFP journalists described the explosions in Kyiv as strong.
The Kyiv city military declared an air raid alert before the explosions were heard.
The explosions triggered car alarms in the city centre, according to AFP journalists.
AFP reported that Russia resumed strikes on the Ukrainian capital after a three-day halt.
Source note: AFP news report published on 8 September 2026 at 00:43:51 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
No venue or exact date has been confirmed for any Ukraine-Russia-US talks.
The Kyiv casualty figures are attributed to city officials and may be revised.
Russia's stated targets for the Kyiv attack were not independently verified in the supplied material.
There was no announced breakthrough from the weekend talks.
Source
AFP news report published on .