Talks between US and Russian officials on a possible peace deal in Ukraine are taking place in Saudi Arabia
They follow separate talks between Ukraine and the US in Saudi, which Ukraine's defence minister called "productive and focused"
Our correspondent in Riyadh, Frank Gardner, says today's talks are aimed at agreeing a "ceasefire light"
Russian attacks on Ukraine continued overnight, with Ukraine saying Russia launched 99 attack drones
A Russian drone attack on Kyiv at the weekend killed three people, including a five-year-old child
Ukraine is also launching drones at Russia, with the Russian military saying 28 were intercepted overnight – Ukraine also says it has destroyed four military helicopters in Russia
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Russian drones hit Kyiv at the weekend, as officials prepared for peace talks in Saudi Arabia
Edited by Aoife Walsh and Rorey Bosotti, with Frank Gardner in Riyadh and James Landale in KyivJames Landale
Diplomatic correspondent, in Kyiv
What exactly is being discussed in Riyadh today? There have been mixed messages.
The US readout of last week’s Trump-Putin call said the talks would focus on implementing "an energy and infrastructure ceasefire". The Ukrainian account of the Trump-Zelensky call concurred, speaking of pausing strikes on "energy and other civilian infrastructure".
On the US broadcaster CBS yesterday, the US national security adviser, Mike Waltz, spoke of an "aerial ceasefire" that he seemed to believe was already in place. But the Kremlin readout of the Trump-Putin call referred to pausing strikes only on "energy infrastructure facilities".
One thing is clear: Russia has continued attacking civilian infrastructure from the air and both sides have accused each other of striking energy targets.
There is also confusion about the Black Sea. The US readouts – and Waltz – spoke of a "maritime ceasefire". But the Kremlin spoke only of wanting "to resume the so-called Black Sea initiative", a now defunct limited deal that allowed the safe navigation of grain and fertiliser shipping through demined sea corridors.
There is also uncertainty about the ambitions of this week’s talks. They’ve been described widely as technical talks to implement last week’s political agreements.
But the US has expressed hopes of both "implementing and broadening the partial ceasefire". Waltz even raised the idea of starting talks about agreeing "a line of control" between both sides, and the verification and peacekeeping of any ceasefire.
Grigory Karasin is leading the Russian delegation in Riyadh
Talks with Russia and the US are under way in Riyadh – the complete list of who is around the table has not been announced, but according to the Reuters news agency, negotiators include:
For the US:
For Russia:
We'll be bringing you the latest from the talks here throughout today – stay with us. Frank Gardner
Security correspondent, reporting from Riyadh
Inside the opulent Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, where talks are underway for a partial ceasefire in Ukraine
Inside the opulent confines of Riyadh’s closely guarded Ritz-Carlton hotel, Russian and US negotiators are sitting down to talk through the details of a partial ceasefire.
The Ukrainian delegation is in the same building – but there are no plans for the two opposing sides to meet.
Optimistic US ambitions for ending this war have had a head-on collision with reality. Finding common ground for even a partial ceasefire is proving a highly complex task.
This is not something that can be solved quickly. So today, the aim is to come up with a kind of "ceasefire light", focusing on the Black Sea.
Russia is reportedly keen to revive a 2022 grain deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey, that allowed Ukraine to export its grain by sea without being attacked by Russia.
In return, Russia would export farm produce and fertiliser through the Black Sea, getting some relief from crippling western sanctions. Russia pulled out of that deal in 2023 complaining that sanctions were still in place.
Even getting this deal approved today would be a start. But it is still a long way from ending Europe’s worst conflict since World War Two.Vitaliy Shevchenko
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring
Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SSO) say they have destroyed four military helicopters parked at a concealed location in Russia’s Belgorod region.
The SSO says US-made Himars missiles with cluster munitions were used to destroy two Ka-52 strike helicopters and two Mi-8 transport helicopters.
According to the statement on social media – which also contains drone footage of the attack, external – the helicopters had been used against Ukrainian forces.
Himars launchers rely on intelligence supplied by the US, and their use by Ukraine is believed to have been hampered by Washington’s recent suspension of intelligence sharing.
Damage to an apartment building hit by a Russian drone strike
Ukraine shot down 57 out of 99 drones launched by Russia overnight, the country's air force says.
Another 36 imitator drones did not reach their targets, it says, not specifying what happened to the remaining six drones.
On Sunday, Russian strikes on Kyiv killed three people and left several injured, local officials said. One witness said "everyone started screaming and running" as debris hit an apartment block.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said yesterday "these attacks are a daily reality" and that "new pressure on Moscow" was needed to bring an end to the war.
Journalists have been asked to leave the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh, where talks between the US and Russia have begun, according to Tass news agency.
Both Tass and al Arabiya are reporting that the talks are under way behind closed doors.
Defence Minister Rustem Umerov is leading the Ukrainian delegation
As we've been reporting, US negotiators are in Saudi Arabia to hold talks with both Ukraine and Russia.
Last night they met the Ukrainian delegation – led by Defence Minister Rustem Umerov – behind closed doors.
Umerov described the talks as "productive" in a post on X, external, saying they addressed key points, including energy, and were working to make Zelensky's goal of securing "a just and lasting peace" a reality.
He said these were "technical" discussions, focusing on how best to safeguard energy facilities and critical infrastructure.
Black Sea shipping lanes are also under discussion, with Russia reportedly keen to revive a deal that allowed Ukraine to export grain from its ports without being attacked, in exchange for relief on sanctions.
Now it's Russia's turn, with Russian state news agency Tass reporting the talks were due to begin at 07:00 GMT.
Among the Russian delegation are Grigory Karasin, a career diplomat and chair of the international affairs committee in the upper house of parliament, and Sergei Beseda, an adviser to Russia's FSB security agency.
US President Donald Trump has set his sights on achieving peace, but whether that will happen and how quickly is yet to be seen.
As the US-Russia talks begin in Riyadh, let's turn to some news from Ukraine, where the country's state-owned railway company says its online systems have been hit by a large-scale cyber-attack.
Ukrzaliznytsia says it first reported disruption to its systems on Sunday, calling it an IT failure.
"The railway continues to move despite physical attacks on the infrastructure, not stopping it even with the most vile cyberattacks!" Ukrzaliznytsia says on Telegram, adding that train traffic is stable and running without delays.
The railway firm says it's closely cooperating with the cyber department of Ukraine's security service and "has implemented backup protocols".
The attack was "very systemic, non-trivial, and multi-level", it adds.
It follows a Russian drone attack the company says hit electricity systems powering railways in Ukraine's central Dnipropetrovsk region on Wednesday. Doug Faulkner
Live reporter
Good morning, we’re restarting our live coverage as negotiators from the US are due to meet a Russian delegation in Saudi Arabia for talks aiming to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
Separate talks between the US and Ukraine took place in Riyadh last night, in what the Ukrainian delegation described as a “productive and focused” meeting.
The talks between Russia and the US are starting in about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine have continued to attack each other, with Ukraine’s Air Force saying it had shot down 57 of 99 drones launched overnight, while Russia reported 28 drones were intercepted in the other direction.
We'll bring you more on that – and the latest from Riyadh – throughout today, so stay with us. Imogen James
Live reporter
As upcoming peace talks on the Ukraine war near, US envoy Steve Witkoff is hopeful meetings with both Ukraine and Russia will bring "real progress".
This evening, the Ukrainian delegation will speak with US officials in Saudi Arabia, though it's not clear whether the outcome of that discussion will be shared publicly just yet.
On Monday, another round of talks will take place, this time between the Russian delegation and US officials.
While talks continue, so does the war, follow the latest Russian strikes on Ukraine which killed three people, including a child, in Kyiv.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says "new pressure" on Moscow is needed after the overnight attacks, which he called a "daily reality".
In Russia, Ukrainian strikes killed one person in a car fire, as the country's defence ministry says it shot down almost 60 drones overnight.
We're now pausing our live coverage, but we'll be back here tomorrow as Saudi Arabia hosts peace talks. For more on the Ukraine war, we have plenty of coverage across the BBC:
Today, the US and Ukrainian delegations will meet in Saudi Arabia for talks about ending the war. Tomorrow, Russia will have its turn with the US.
Here are the key people involved:
Ukraine
Russia
It's not yet been confirmed who the United States delegation will be, but a US official told Reuters that its delegation will include Andrew Peek, from the National Security Council, and Michael Anton, head of policy planning at the Department of State.
Sebastian Usher
Middle East analyst
Rubio's visit last month resumed the warm relations the US and Saudi Arabia had in Trump's first term
Saudi Arabia has been the US's choice of location for key talks on the war in Ukraine.
This underscores how far the Kingdom has come diplomatically from the near pariah state it became after the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
The return of Donald Trump to the White House will have been welcomed by the Saudis.
His first foreign visit in his first term was to Saudi Arabia – and the transactional nature of his foreign policy is more conducive to the current Saudi leadership.
But the war in Gaza has subsequently got in the way and may well raise the price that Saudi Arabia will demand for a peace agreement.
The Saudis were very quick to announce their definitive rejection of Mr Trump's plan for Gaza – to remove all the Palestinians and rebuild it as a resort.
It has spurred the Kingdom to try to come up with a workable alternative plan with other Arab states – which would see Gazans remain in place as the enclave is rebuilt and would lead to a two state solution of the conflict.
What is clear is that the Saudis have no intention of reining in their ambition of becoming an essential player in global diplomacy.
The Ukrainian Ground Forces say they have recaptured a village in the Luhansk region, in the east of the country.
In a post on Telegram, it says they took Nadiya in a 30-hour operation, and have reclaimed three square kilometres. It also shows a video of fighting, including tank warfare.
The footage has not yet been independently verified.
Very early on in the conflict, Russia had essentially taken the entire Luhansk region, a key strategic aim of President Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
It largely remains to be under Russian military control.
Chris Partridge
BBC News weapons analyst
As Russia continues its aerial bombardment of Ukraine with drones and missiles, Ukraine has been successfully targeting the sources of some of those attacks.
One of those was at Engels-2 Airbase, deep inside Russia and which is a key base for Moscow's strategic bombers and also serves as a refuelling point.
Engels-2, says Ukraine, also stores weapons including Kh-101 subsonic, air-launched cruise missiles, which, costing millions of dollars per missile, have been frequently used in overnight strikes.
A drone strike on Engels is reported to have destroyed ammunition storage facilities, with before-and-after images from Maxar satellite imagery detailing the extent of the operation.
Engels-2 Airbase, in Russia, is a key base for Moscow's strategic bombers
A drone strike on Engels-2 Airbase is reported to have destroyed ammunition storage facilities
Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine Defence Council's Centre for Countering Disinformation, wrote on Telegram: "At Engels, the Russians lost missiles, including the Kh-101, as a result of the strike. The number will be clear later. This airfield stores the largest number of missiles used by strategic aviation to strike Ukraine."
While Russia's military operation is defined by the sheer size of attacks, Ukraine's much more limited resources are having to be focused on pinpoint hits on key military installations.
Russia will try to continue its overnight raids to overwhelm air defences and the electronic warfare systems Kyiv uses to try to defeat the drones that pour in.
Earlier, we heard US envoy Steve Witkoff say that he is hopeful for "real progress" in Ukraine peace talks over the next two days.
The US has taken a leading role in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
But the UK and EU have been working on plans for what peace could look like, including putting peacekeeping troops on the ground in Ukraine.
US envoy Steve Wtikoff dismissed this plan as "a posture and pose" in an interview with pro-Trump journalist Tucker Carlson.
Witkoff said the idea was based on a "simplistic" notion from the UK prime minister and other European leaders.
"Russians are going to march across Europe. That is preposterous by the way. We have something called Nato that we did not have in World War Two."
Starmer also welcomed Schoof to Downing Street ahead of a bilateral meeting back in February
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Prime Minister Dick Schoof of the Netherlands spoke today about Ukraine, Downing Street says.
The pair agreed that "continued political momentum and action driven by the members of the Coalition of the Willing, is vital to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position for a secure and lasting peace," a statement from No 10 says.
They also agreed that much closer cooperation in Europe on defence capabilities will be "vitally important" in the coming decades in order to protect Europe and secure its future, the statement adds.
Speaking on Air Force One on Saturday night, US President Donald Trump told sports journalist Clay Travis, external that there's nobody in the world that can stop Putin "except me".
In the interview, he says: "I think I'm going to be able to stop him."
"We've had some very rational discussions, and I just want to see the people stop getting killed," Trump adds.
US envoy Steve Witkoff says that the United States is expecting to see "real progress" at the next round of peace talks, beginning with Ukraine today in Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Witkoff says "our job is to narrow the issues, bring the parties together and stop the killing".
He says progress is expected on issues like the Black Sea and shipping. "And from that, you'll naturally gravitate into a full on shooting ceasefire."
Witkoff thinks Russian President Vladimir Putin "wants peace" and says lots of progress has already been made in calls between Trump and his Russian counterpart over the past week.
Last night, Witkoff praised Putin and told journalist Tucker Carlson that he "liked" the leader.
Saudi Arabia will host more peace talks on Sunday and Monday this week, with delegations from Ukraine, Russia and the US all expected to attend – though not all at the same time.
Ukraine's team will first meet the US delegation on Sunday evening, a member of the Ukrainian delegation told AFP.
The US team will then meet their Russian counterparts in Saudi Arabia on Monday.
Kyiv says it wants an end to strikes on its energy infrastructure, and to retain control of its land. Moscow is calling for an end of military aid and intelligence sharing in Ukraine.
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