One person was killed and two others injured in a Ukrainian attack on Russian-occupied Crimea, Moscow-installed officials announced Sunday.
In recent weeks, Ukraine has intensified attacks on key infrastructure in Crimea as its military works to isolate the Russian-held peninsula. The peninsula was annexed by Moscow in 2014. Ukraine's increasing use of long-range strikes has demonstrated its ability to damage Russian targets and increase pressure on the Kremlin, while Russian advances have recently stalled, according to Western analysts and officials.
The latest attacks occurred as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin held separate calls with U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss ending the war, now in its fifth year.
Zelenskyy stated on X that he called Trump to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence and that they discussed the front lines. He added that there is a "real prospect of ending this war, and America’s determination will be crucial," and they agreed to continue discussions in person during the NATO summit in Ankara.
The Kremlin reported that Putin and Trump held a "constructive" phone call on Saturday. Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said the conversation, their fourth this year, lasted nearly an hour and a half. Ushakov stated that Trump reaffirmed his "readiness to help achieve a quick cessation of hostilities and search for peaceful solutions to settle the crisis" in Ukraine, with Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner prepared to continue mediation efforts and visit Moscow.
Ushakov also relayed that Putin emphasized Russia's "preference for a diplomatic settlement of the conflict, provided that Russia’s well-known, fundamental positions are taken into account." Putin reportedly told Trump that Kyiv and its European allies are "betting on prolonging, and even escalating the conflict," attributing this to a "flawed perception of the overall situation" by the European "party of war."
According to Ushakov, Putin described the "real situation on the battlefield" to Trump, claiming Russian forces are advancing and liberating settlements. The Russian leader specifically mentioned the capture of Kostyantynivka as a step toward liberating the entire Donetsk region. Kyiv has denied this claim, with Ukraine's General Staff reiterating that the city remains under Ukrainian control.