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In an attempt to negotiate peace, representatives from Russia and Ukraine are meeting again this Monday in Istanbul. This marks their second meeting following the exchange of around 1,000 prisoners each two weeks ago. Despite Moscow's promise to send Kyiv a memorandum with peace terms, it remains unfulfilled. The primary aim is to secure at least a 30-day ceasefire; however, both parties arrive amidst escalating attacks. On Sunday, Ukraine audaciously targeted Russian airfields with drones, while Russia retaliated with 472 drones, marking the largest assault of this kind throughout the war. Overnight, five individuals in the region of Zaporiyia were killed due to a Russian strike, and the Ukrainian military fired 162 drones at targets within Russia.

A Ukrainian delegation has arrived in Istanbul for renewed peace negotiations with Russia, aiming to find a resolution to the ongoing conflict. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry confirmed their arrival, with the meeting scheduled for the afternoon. Defense Minister Rustem Umerov leads the Ukrainian group, while the Russian delegation is once again headed by ultranationalist historian Vladímir Medinsky, an advisor to the Kremlin.

After a three-year hiatus, this meeting follows one held two weeks ago amid intensifying offensives, with mutual attacks escalating in recent days. On Sunday, Russia executed the most extensive drone attack in the war, deploying nearly 500 drones, while Ukraine launched a bold strike against Russian aviation, damaging or destroying several strategic bombers at airfields as far from Ukraine as Siberia.

The initial meeting resulted in the exchange of 1,000 prisoners per side, but failed to achieve the main goal of a 30-day ceasefire proposed by the US, which Ukrainian President Volodímir Zelenski had accepted. Russian President Vladímir Putin, with battlefield momentum, remains reluctant to make commitments. The EU accuses him of stalling to strengthen his position at the negotiation table. Despite Moscow's pledge during the first meeting to send Kyiv a document with its conditions, this has not been fulfilled.

American President Donald Trump is attempting to broker a ceasefire but warns that if the parties do not seriously engage in dialogue, he will abandon mediation efforts, which have leaned towards Russian positions since he took office in January. Trump's envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, stated that both sides would present their peace condition documents this Monday and that the US would be involved along with representatives from the UK, France, and Germany, though he did not specify the level of involvement. (Reuters)

At least five individuals were killed late Sunday due to Russian attacks on Ukraine's Zaporiyia province, according to its governor, Ivan Fedorov. He reported on Telegram that the province suffered 593 attacks across 16 locations, some involving missiles and 351 drones. Among the hardest-hit areas was Ternuvati, where three women aged 18, 35, and 56 died in a bombing of their home, and a 67-year-old man was killed in Kopani. The location of the fifth casualty was not specified, but nine people were reported injured in the province.

On Monday, in Sumi, northern Ukraine, six individuals, including two children, were injured in a Russian drone attack, as reported by the province's governor, Oleg Sinegubov.

Good morning. We begin today's coverage of the Ukraine war, focusing on the second round of peace talks between Russians and Ukrainians in Istanbul. Both sides approach the meeting with entrenched positions amidst worsening hostilities, following Ukraine's Sunday attack on Russian aviation and Russia's deployment of nearly 500 drones. Early this morning, Ukraine launched 162 drones at Russian targets, according to Moscow, while five people were killed late Sunday in the Ukrainian province of Zaporiyia due to a Russian assault.