Residents of St. Petersburg were told not to leave their homes after a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack that also targeted areas from the Black Sea to central Russia.
Russia said it had intercepted hundreds of the drones, including those headed for Saint Petersburg, where it is hosting a major economic forum, as Ukraine reported at least three people killed by Russian strikes overnight.
On Saturday morning, Russia’s defence ministry said it downed a total of 376 Ukrainian drones in locations along the border, including Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk and locations in Crimea and the Sea of Azov.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted on X, “Last night, our drones covered a distance of about 1,000 kilometres to the St. Petersburg region – to the enemy navy’s arsenals and a base in Kronstadt.”
Zelensky started his message repeating his calls for peace, writing, “It is time to end this war. But Russia’s ruler wants to keep fighting.”
Russia also targeted Ukraine overnight with 272 strike drones, and air defences shot down 249 of them, the Ukrainian air force said on Saturday.
Putin holds private talks with former German chancellor
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has held a private meeting in the Kremlin with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, the man he has proposed as a potential mediator in future talks between Russia and Europe over Ukraine.
The details of the private one-on-one meeting, described by Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov as “good and friendly”, have not been disclosed to Russian news agencies.
The encounter is likely to attract attention across Europe because it comes less than a month after Putin suggested Schröder could play a role in negotiations on a future European security arrangement, after European Council President Antonio Costa said he believed there was “potential” for the EU to negotiate.
Putin said at the time that the conflict in Ukraine was moving towards an end and that trusted intermediaries would be needed.
Schröder, who served as German chancellor from 1998 to 2005, has maintained a close relationship with Putin for more than two decades. After leaving office, he took a senior position with Russian state-controlled energy company Rosneft and has been involved in projects including the Nord Stream gas pipelines.
Schröder is “sitting on both sides of the table”
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas ruled out any mediating role for the former German leader, arguing that allowing Russia to choose Europe’s representative would be inappropriate. She also pointed to Schröder’s work with Russian state-owned companies, saying Putin’s preferred candidate would effectively be “sitting on both sides of the table”.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha likewise dismissed the idea.
The Putin-Schröder meeting comes at a particularly sensitive moment in diplomatic efforts to end the war.
Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy published an open letter inviting Putin to meet face-to-face and discuss a path towards ending the conflict. Zelenskyy proposed a full ceasefire and suggested a neutral venue, declaring: “The choice is yours now. Enough of war.”
He argued that direct engagement between the two leaders offered the best chance of reaching agreement.
The proposal was quickly rebuffed by the Kremlin. Speaking at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin said he currently saw no reason to meet Zelenskyy and questioned the sincerity of the Ukrainian leader’s appeal.
The Russian president insisted that any future settlement would require extensive preparatory work by experts and reiterated Moscow’s longstanding demands regarding territory and security arrangements.
The contrasting positions underline the continuing gulf between the two sides despite renewed diplomatic activity. While Ukraine has said it is open to negotiations, Russia has maintained that any talks must address what it describes as the root causes of the conflict before a summit between leaders can take place.
Zelenskyy due to meet leaders in London
Attention will now turn to a meeting of senior European leaders on Sunday, where Zelenskyy is expected to discuss military support, diplomatic strategy and the prospects for future peace efforts as Ukraine seeks to maintain Western backing amid the continuing war.
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer will meet Zelenskyy in London to discuss putting pressure on Russia.
“Russia, in a state of military, economic and strategic failure, is persisting unsuccessfully with a deadly war,” the Élysée Palace said on Friday.