Ukraine and Russia attacked energy facilities on each other’s territory as Kyiv prepared for its first public contacts with senior officials from new US president Donald Trump’s administration.
Kyiv and Moscow have indicated that behind-the-scenes conversations have already taken place with Washington since Mr Trump returned to power last month, but they have not revealed who has been involved and what has been discussed, as the White House pushes to end Europe’s biggest war in 80 years.
Russia’s military launched air attacks on at least six regions of Ukraine in the early hours of Tuesday. A gas facility in the eastern Poltava region was the main target, coming under fire from cruise and ballistic missiles and explosive “kamikaze” drones.
Ukrainian forces launched another long-range drone attack on southern Russia and hit a large oil refinery in the Saratov region, which they said supplies Moscow’s military.
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Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said members of Mr Trump’s team would visit Kyiv shortly, and he would meet US vice-president JD Vance at the this week’s Munich Security Conference, which will also be attended by other senior US officials.
“Of course, there may be different opinions, but [there must be] a common understanding of the main priorities – how to stop [Vladimir] Putin and how to provide security guarantees for Ukraine,” he said, referring to the Russian president.
“This week, some serious figures from president Trump’s team will be in Ukraine, even before the Munich conference. Then, at the Munich conference, I will have a series of meetings, including one with the US vice-president.”
Mr Vance is expected to be in Munich with US secretary of state Marco Rubio. The conference begins on Friday.
Meanwhile, US defence secretary Pete Hegseth is scheduled to meet Nato defence ministers and officials from countries that give military aid to Kyiv.
Retired US general Keith Kellogg, Mr Trump’s special envoy for the Ukraine-Russia war, is also expected to be in Munich and reportedly plans to visit Kyiv next week.
“They [Ukraine] may make a deal. They may not make a deal. They may be Russian some day, or they may not be Russian some day. But we’re going to have all this money in [Ukraine] and I say, I want it back,” Mr Trump told Fox News.
“I told them that I want the equivalent of like $500 billion worth of rare earth [minerals], and they’ve essentially agreed to do that,” he added.
Mr Zelenskiy said last week: “If we are talking about a deal, then let’s do a deal, we are only for it . . . The Americans helped the most, and therefore the Americans should earn the most . . . I would also like to talk about this with president Trump.”
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