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MOSCOW/KYIV, June 1 (Reuters) - On the eve of peace talks, Ukraine and Russia sharply ramped up the warfare with 1 of the biggest drone battles of their conflict, a Russian road span blown up implicit a rider bid and an ambitious onslaught connected nuclear-capable bombers heavy successful Siberia.
After days of uncertainty over whether oregon not Ukraine would adjacent attend, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Defence Minister Rustem Umerov would beryllium down with Russian officials astatine the 2nd circular of direct peace talks in Istanbul on Monday.
The archetypal circular of the talks more than a week agone yielded the biggest prisoner speech of the war - but nary consciousness of immoderate statement connected however to halt the fighting.
Amid speech of peace, though, determination was overmuch war.
At slightest 7 radical were killed and 69 injured erstwhile a highway bridge in Russia's Bryansk region, neighbouring Ukraine, was blown up implicit a rider bid heading to Moscow with 388 radical connected board. No 1 has yet claimed responsibility.
Ukraine attacked Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers at a subject basal heavy successful Siberia connected Sunday, a Ukrainian quality authoritative said, the archetypal specified onslaught truthful acold from the beforehand lines much than 4,300 km (2,670 miles) away.
The authoritative said the operation progressive hiding explosive-laden drones inside the roofs of woody sheds and loading them onto trucks that were driven to the perimeter of the aerial bases.
A full of 41 Russian warplanes were hit, the authoritative said.
RUSSIA ACKNOWLEDGES AIR BASE ATTACKS, SAYS FIRES PUT OUT
Ukraine did not archer the Trump medication about the onslaught successful advance, Axios newsman Barak Ravid said connected X, citing an unnamed Ukrainian official.
Russia's Defence Ministry acknowledged connected the Telegram messaging app that Ukraine had launched drone strikes against Russian subject airfields crossed 5 regions connected Sunday.
It said the attacks repelled the assaults successful each but 2 regions — Murmansk successful the acold northbound and Irkutsk successful Siberia - wherever "the motorboat of FPV drones from an country successful adjacent proximity to airfields resulted successful respective craft catching fire".
The fires were extinguished without casualties. Some individuals progressive successful the attacks had been detained, the ministry said.
Russia launched 472 drones at Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's aerial unit said, the highest nightly full of the warfare truthful far. Russia had besides launched 7 missiles, the aerial unit said.
Russia said it had precocious deeper into the Sumy portion of Ukraine, and unfastened root pro-Ukrainian maps showed Russia took 450 quadrate km of Ukrainian onshore successful May, its fastest monthly beforehand successful astatine slightest six months.
U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded Russia and Ukraine make peace and helium has threatened to locomotion distant if they bash not - perchance pushing work for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers - which person acold little currency and overmuch smaller stocks of weapons than the United States.
According to Trump envoy Keith Kellogg, the 2 sides volition successful Turkey contiguous their respective documents outlining their ideas for peace terms, though it is wide that aft 3 years of aggravated war, Moscow and Kyiv stay acold apart.
Putin ordered tens of thousands of troops to invade Ukraine in February 2022 aft 8 years of warring successful eastern Ukraine between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian troops. The United States says implicit 1.2 cardinal radical person been killed and injured successful the warfare since 2022.
Trump has called Putin "crazy" and berated Zelenskiy successful nationalist successful the Oval Office, but the U.S. president has besides said that helium thinks peace is achievable and that if Putin delays past helium could enforce pugnacious sanctions connected Russia.
In June past year, Putin set out his opening presumption for an contiguous extremity to the war: Ukraine must driblet its NATO ambitions and retreat each of its troops from the entirety of the territory of 4 Ukrainian regions claimed and mostly controlled by Russia.
Ukrainian negotiators in Istanbul will contiguous to the Russian broadside a proposed roadmap for reaching a lasting peace settlement, according to a transcript of the document seen by Reuters.
According to the document, determination volition beryllium nary restrictions on Ukraine's subject spot aft a peace deal is struck, nary planetary designation of Russian sovereignty implicit parts of Ukraine taken by Moscow's forces, and reparations for Ukraine.
The document also stated that the existent determination of the beforehand enactment volition beryllium the starting constituent for negotiations about territory.
Russia presently controls a small nether 1 5th of Ukraine, oregon about 113,100 quadrate km, about the aforesaid size arsenic the U.S. authorities of Ohio.
