Russia, Ukraine keep up attacks as Zelenskyy renews appeal to US

Bloomberg News on Oct 18, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

Russia and Ukraine continued to trade attacks overnight as Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was ready for fresh talks with the U.S. and renewed an appeal for Washington to put pressure on Moscow.

The Ukrainian president said Russian forces hit substations in the Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, and Odesa regions, leaving tens of thousands of families without power. Two people were killed and 12 injured after residential buildings were struck overnight, Zelenskyy said Sunday in a post on X.

Russia and Ukraine have escalated strikes despite U.S. President Donald Trump last week saying the two had agreed to an “energy ceasefire.” Zelenskyy later said he was ending a three-day pause on strikes on Russian refineries, while Russian leader Vladimir Putin said Friday that Russian forces must continue large-scale strikes on Ukraine’s military-industrial facilities and logistics hubs.

In northwestern Russia, emergency services were working to put out fires at the St. Petersburg oil terminal and other industrial facilities, Alexander Beglov, the head of Russia’s second largest city, said in a Telegram post. A total of 145 drones were shot down over the surrounding region, with power facilities damaged, according to Governor Alexander Drozdenko.

In the past 24 hours, Russian forces downed 1,256 unmanned aerial vehicles and seven Flamingo cruise missiles, the Russian Defense Ministry said, according to the state-run Tass news service. Ukraine’s General Staff said 152 drones had been intercepted overnight.

A blaze broke out at logistics center of online marketplace Ozon in St. Petersburg, with staff evacuated and no one hurt, Interfax said Sunday, citing the company. The news service said a data center used by social networking platform VK had also been attacked.

The Russian Defense Ministry said on Telegram its forces had targeted a Nova Poshta logistics center in the western Ukrainian city of Rivne, as well as a cargo ship in the Black Sea near Odesa.

With the midterm elections approaching, Trump this month said he’d reached a deal with Putin to allow diesel sales to the U.S. and global markets in a bid to ease fuel prices, even as Russia continued attacks on Ukrainian cities targeting power and water supplies.

Trump has pressured Zelenskyy to halt attacks on Russian refineries that are among Ukraine’s most effective means of disrupting the Kremlin’s war economy, although he has made no demands on Putin to stop bombing Ukraine. On Friday, he followed up on the diesel deal by waiving new tariffs and sanctions on Russia.

“It’s a pity of course,” Zelenskyy said Sunday in an interview with NBC. “I hope that he will change his decisions, change his attitude to Putin.”

If the U.S. took the side of Russia, it would be a “historic mistake” and Ukraine wouldn’t prevail, he said, adding that intelligence sharing had been restored after being blocked “for some period of time.”

The Ukrainian leader said the U.S. wanted to meet for talks, which could happen in Brussels as early as Tuesday or Wednesday.

“I’m very open to this,” Zelenskyy said.

_____