Russian strikes killed three civilians and wounded dozens across Ukraine on Saturday, local officials reported, as Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated his warning that any deployment of European troops into Ukraine would signify direct conflict with Russia.
Ukraine is facing an intensified air campaign from Russia, employing ballistic missiles and drones. Officials state that Moscow's attacks have targeted Ukraine's power grid in an effort to demoralize the civilian population ahead of winter.
In the southern city of Zaporizhzhia, two people were killed and one injured when Russian drones struck a residential area overnight, according to regional head Ivan Fedorov. Another person died and three were wounded in strikes on Kryvyi Rih. In Odesa, a "massive attack" wounded 28 people, with the upper floors of a residential high-rise reportedly destroyed.
Speaking at the BRICS summit in India on Friday, Putin stated that European governments considering sending troops into Ukraine would be initiating "a war with Russia." He further asserted that Russia poses no threat to Europe and has no intention of threatening European countries.
European leaders have previously pledged support for a potential peacekeeping force in Ukraine, a prospect that Russia has deemed unacceptable. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk noted this week that two incidents near Ukraine's borders with Poland and Moldova could foreshadow increased Russian provocations at border crossings with Europe. Tusk stated that two people died when Russian drones hit the Starokozache border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova on Tuesday night, and a "direct threat" to a Polish-Ukrainian crossing point on Wednesday night was averted through cooperation between Warsaw and Kyiv.
In separate remarks published Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Deutsche Welle that he would be willing to meet with Putin if both leaders were invited to the Group of 20 summit in Miami in December. Putin's foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, stated Saturday that the possibility of Putin attending the summit has not yet been discussed. The Kremlin has previously suggested that Zelenskyy could visit Moscow for a meeting with Putin, a proposal Kyiv has rejected.