Hours after the call between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump where they agreed to a 30-day "energy and infrastructure ceasefire," Russia and Ukraine have launched new attacks on enemy territory early this morning.
Volodymyr Zelensky has accused the Russian president of rejecting the ceasefire proposal and attacking civilian infrastructure, including two hospitals in the city of Sumy. Meanwhile, Moscow reported that a Ukrainian bombardment caused a fire at an oil depot in the Krasnodar region.
The United States has announced that negotiations for a ceasefire in Ukraine will continue this Sunday in the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
EU Will Not Accept Putin's Demand to Stop Arms Deliveries
The EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, warned on Wednesday that the bloc cannot accept Russian President Vladimir Putin's demand to stop arms deliveries to Ukraine.
In remarks to a group of journalists, Kallas added that based on what is known from the Tuesday phone call between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, "it is evident that Russia does not want to make any concessions."
Albares: "We are very far, very far from the peace Spain wants"
The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union, and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, considered on Wednesday that it is "positive" to have a preliminary agreement not to bomb energy infrastructure in Ukraine, although he warned that this is far from being a ceasefire.
"Talking about a ceasefire and talking about peace with Russia is something positive, and of course, we think it's good, but we are very far, very far from the peace that Spain wants and that we Europeans want," he said in an interview with RNE reported by Efe.
The Spanish Foreign Minister assured that Spain will continue to support Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Ukrainian people in defense of their freedom "for as long as necessary."
"The situation in Belgorod remains difficult"
The governor of the Russian region of Belgorod, on the border with Ukraine, said on Wednesday that the situation remains difficult a day after Moscow said its forces had thwarted Kiev's troops' advance across the border.
"The situation in the Krasnoyaruzhsky district remains difficult," the governor specified in a video posted on Telegram.
The Russian Ministry of Defense, in a statement picked up by Russian news agencies, had said that Russian forces had thwarted five attempts by Ukraine to enter the region through the border.
Moscow Launches 145 Drones and Four Missiles
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia has launched 145 drones against Ukrainian territory since Tuesday afternoon, including attack drones and replicas without payloads used to confuse enemy defenses, and four S-300 missiles.
Ukrainian defenses shot down 72 kamikaze drones during the attack, which lasted well into the early morning hours.
Negotiations to Continue on Sunday in Jeddah
The United States has announced that negotiations for a ceasefire in Ukraine will continue on Sunday in the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to follow up on the dialogue held on Tuesday between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
In an interview with Fox News, Steve Witkoff, one of Trump's closest advisors, stated that discussions on a ceasefire agreement "will begin on Sunday in Jeddah."
According to Witkoff, the U.S. delegation in Saudi Arabia will be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, although he did not specify who would be part of the Russian delegation and whether the Ukrainian government would be invited to the dialogue.
The negotiations in Saudi Arabia come at a time when the Trump administration is still trying to get Russia to accept its 30-day ceasefire proposal.
Russia Strikes Two Hospitals in Sumy
Russian drones targeted two hospitals in the Sumy region and energy infrastructure of the national railway company in the Dnipropetrovsk region in the center of the country, as reported by Ukrainian authorities.
Patients from both hospitals had been moved to the air-raid shelter, and there were no injuries in both attacks, according to the Sumy Regional Military Administration.
Electricity system infrastructure was also hit in the city of Sloviansk in the eastern Donetsk region, where the most intense hostilities between both sides are taking place.
Russia Downs 57 Ukrainian Drones
Russian anti-aircraft defenses shot down 57 Ukrainian drones over four regions of the country and the Sea of Azov, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported on its Telegram channel on Wednesday.
According to the Russian military command, the Ukrainian drone attacks last night focused on the Kursk region, where 35 unmanned aerial vehicles were destroyed, and where Russian troops are in the final phase of an offensive to expel Kiev forces that invaded part of its territory last August.
The other drones were shot down over the Oryol region (13), Tula (1), Bryansk (1), and the waters of the Sea of Azov (7). EFE
Fire at an Oil Depot in Krasnodar
Russian authorities reported on Wednesday a fire at an oil depot in the Krasnodar region, east of the border with Ukraine, following a drone attack from that country.
"A fire broke out near the village (of Kavkazskaya) after debris fell" from drones shot down by the anti-aircraft defense, the emergency services coordination office indicated.
It was specified that 105 rescuers were mobilized, and initially, no casualties were reported.
Zelensky Accuses Putin of Rejecting the Ceasefire
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday of "effectively rejecting" the ceasefire proposal, following a wave of Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure.
"Unfortunately, there were bombings, specifically against civilian infrastructure," including a hospital in the city of Sumy, Zelensky posted on X.
"Today Putin effectively rejected the total ceasefire proposal," Zelensky said in reference to the conversation between the Russian leader and American President Donald Trump.