Russia warns Ukrainian stubbornness in peace conversations

Lavrov accuses West and Zelensky to block peace negotiations in Ukraine; According to the chancellor, Zelensky insists on direct meeting with Putin as a condition for any advance, making it difficult to dialogue between the parties

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused western countries and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of disrupting the advance of peace negotiations in Ukraine. The statements were made in an interview with Russia-1 broadcaster and released on Sunday.

According to Lavrov, West countries would be “just looking for an excuse to prevent negotiations.” He added that Zelensky would be “acting stubbornly,” insisting on an immediate meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin as a condition for any advance in conversations.

Also read:
US Border Wall will be painted with black paint to be hostile
White House presses and questions independence of intelligence
Wall Street plummets with AI -pressing actions

The Russian chancellor also directed criticism of the European nations, stating that they would be trying to undermine their efforts by both Putin and former US President Donald Trump.

The context of the accusations involves recent diplomatic meetings. On August 15, Trump met with Putin in Alaska to discuss conflict solutions in Ukraine, but, according to reports, no concrete agreement was achieved. A few days later, the following Monday, the former US president met in Washington with Zelensky and European leaders in another attempt to articulate a path to peace.

Lavrov’s statements reflect the growing tension on the difficulty of establishing a stable negotiation channel between Moscow and Kiev, amid the political pressures of international allies and the military impasse on the ground.

Ukraine attacks nuclear plant and russian port with drones; reactor and fuel terminal are damaged

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine reached new levels on Sunday, when Ukrainian attacks with drones caused significant damage to one of Russia’s largest nuclear power plants and burned the UST-Luga fuel export terminal in the Baltic Sea, Russian authorities.

Despite peaceful negotiations, the war in the deadlier Europe since World War II has been intense, with air attacks, missiles and drones occurring in both Russian and Ukrainian territory.

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that at least 95 Ukrainian drones were intercepted in more than a dozen regions of the country on August 24, when Ukraine celebrates its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

At the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, located about 60 km from the Ukraine border, a drone was overthrown by the air defenses shortly after midnight, but eventually detonated near the installation. The attack has damaged an auxiliary transformer, forcing to reduce the operational capacity of reactor 3 by 50%. The plant reported that radiation levels remain normal and that there were no injuries. Two other reactors remain off for programmed maintenance.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (AIEA) claimed to be aware of the incident and emphasized that all nuclear facilities should be protected continuously during conflicts.

A thousand kilometers to the north, in the Gulf of Finland, at least 10 Ukrainian drones were slaughtered while flew over the port of UST-Luga in the Leningrad region. The attack caused a fire at Novatek terminal, a Baltic Sea fuel export complex, according to regional governor Alexander Drozdenko. Images published on Russian Telegram channels showed a drone approaching the terminal followed by a huge fireball and a column of black smoke climbing to the sky. DROZDENKO stated that “Firefighters and emergency services are working to put out the fire” and that there were no injuries.

Also read:
Economy improves Lula’s image
Brazilians see a threat of war on the tariff
Quaest: Pessimism Reflees and Brazilians see improvement

The UST-Luga Terminal, which opened in 2013, processes light and heavy naphtha condensate, aviation fuel, fuel oil and diesel, and is responsible for exporting oil products and gas condensate to international markets. Novatek points out that its products mainly serve Asian countries, including China, Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia, as well as sending aviation fuel to Istanbul.

The attack also caused flight interruptions at several Russian airports at night, including Pulkovo Airport in the Leningrad region, according to the country’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia.

In addition, Ukrainian drones attacked an industrial company in the city of Syzran, southern Russia. The governor of the Samara region reported that a child was injured, although he had not provided details about the exact location of the attack.

So far, there have been no immediate statements from Ukraine about the attacks. The Kiev government states in general lines that its operations within Russian territory are answers to Moscow’s continuous bombing and aim to destroy strategic infrastructure for Russian military efforts.

The episode highlights the escalation of conflict and the increasing range of Ukrainian actions in Russian territory, raising concerns about nuclear security and damage to vital infrastructure, while peace negotiations remain stagnant.

Russia and Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners with mediation from the United Arab Emirates

Amid the intensification of attacks and the escalation of war, Russia and Ukraine made this Sunday a change of prisoners involving 146 detainees on each side. The operation was mediated by the United Arab Emirates, who acted as intermediaries in the negotiation, according to information from the Russian Defense Ministry and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The Russian ministry reported that all soldiers released were taken to Belarus, where they received psychological and medical assistance. In addition, Ukraine returned to Moscow eight Russian citizens, residents of the Kursk region.

On the Ukrainian side, Zelensky announced the operation through the Telegram messaging app without detailing exact numbers. The president published hostage photos returning smiling, noting that most of them had been in captivity since 2022, the year of the Russian invasion. Among those released was a journalist who had been captured just a month after the conflict began.

In his message, Zelensky thanked the Arab Emirates united for the role of supervising the exchange and reinforced the importance of action for the country. “The exchanges continue. Perhaps this is possible thanks to our soldiers, which are increasing the exchange fund to Ukraine”he wrote, in reference to the capture of Russian military as part of the negotiation mechanism.

This week’s operation occurs at a high voltage moment when attacks with drones and missiles continue in Russian and Ukrainian territory, including damage to a nuclear plant in Kursk and the UST-Luga fuel export terminal. Despite the ongoing peace negotiations, military clashes follow, showing that the conflict remains far from an outcome.

Even in the face of violence, the exchange of prisoners represents a point of relief and demonstrates that dialogue canals can be maintained, albeit temporarily. The participation of a neutral country such as the United Arab Emirates illustrates the international effort to facilitate humanitarian measures amid the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II.

The episode reinforces the complexity of the war: as drone bombing and attacks reach critical infrastructures, diplomatic and humanitarian initiatives, such as prisoners’ exchange, they are fundamental to relieve tensions and save lives on the ground.

With information from news agencies*