Introducing the main events of the 1,340th day of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Published October 26, 2025
Here is the situation for Sunday, October 26, 2025.
finding
Russia launched a drone strike on Ukraine’s capital Kiev early Sunday, hitting residential buildings and injuring at least five people, including two children, officials said. At least two people were killed and 12 others injured in Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine on Saturday night, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko said on the X program. She accused Russia of trying to cause a “humanitarian catastrophe” in her country during the winter season. Saturday’s Russian attack targeted “critical infrastructure,” energy networks, railways and residential areas in regions including Kiev, Dnipro, Kharkiv and Sumy, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sibikha wrote in a separate post on X. “Russian terrorism can and should be stopped,” he said, calling for “stronger sanctions” against Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said such attacks have increased the need for Ukraine’s Patriot air defense system. “The United States, Europe, and the G7 nations can help ensure that such attacks no longer threaten lives,” he wrote. Ukraine’s air force said in a statement on Telegram that it shot down four of the nine missiles and 50 of the 62 drones fired in Saturday’s attacks across Russia. Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defense announced that its military shot down 121 Ukrainian drones overnight, including seven that were flying toward Moscow. Separately, Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of Russia’s Belgorod region, said Ukrainian forces had destroyed and damaged a reservoir dam in the border area. He warned that the strike could pose a risk of flooding and advised residents of two border villages to temporarily evacuate.
politics and diplomacy
US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Asia that he has “no time to waste” in talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin until he believes there is a deal to ensure peace between Russia and Ukraine. The Trump administration is also preparing additional sanctions that could target key sectors of Russia’s economy if Putin continues to delay ending the war, Reuters reported, citing a U.S. official and another person familiar with the matter. Reuters quoted a US official as saying the US wants its European allies to make the next big move against Russia, which could be more sanctions or tariffs. President Zelensky welcomed the latest U.S. sanctions targeting two of Russia’s two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, saying they were a “strong and much-needed message that aggression is not without answers.” In a separate telegram statement, President Zelensky announced that Ukraine will receive up to 150 Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets starting next year, hailing the deal as necessary to protect the country. However, Kirill Dmitriev, President Putin’s special envoy for investment and economic cooperation, said in an interview with US cable broadcaster CNN that Moscow, Washington and Kiev were close to reaching a diplomatic solution to end the three-year war.
