Two Russian missile strikes on the east Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, including on a residential building, killed at least five people and wounded 31 others, Kyiv said. Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops are creating conditions to advance forward step-by-step and have the initiative on the battlefield, Ukraine's commander-in-chief said on Monday. Read our blog to see how the day's events unfolded on the war in Ukraine. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
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8:32pm: Russian strikes on east Ukraine's Pokrovsk kill five, wound 18, says Kyiv
Two Russian missile strikes on the east Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, including on a residential building, killed at least five people and wounded 18, Kyiv said.
"Five dead and 18 wounded as a result of two strikes on a residential building in Pokrovsk," Igor Klymenko, Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, said on Telegram. He said the first strike killed four civilians and that an official from the emergency services was killed in the second strike.
7:51pm: US says it was productive that China attended talks on Ukraine war in Saudi Arabia
The United States on Monday said it was productive that China attended talks in Saudi Arabia to make headway towards a peaceful settlement of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters that US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland held a brief separate meeting with China’s Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs and former ambassador to Russia, Li Hui, at the talks in Jeddah.
7:42pm: Zelensky says Russian missiles hit residential building in eastern Ukraine, leave victims
Two Russian missile strikes hit a residential building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday.
“Two missile strikes. An ordinary residential building was hit. Unfortunately, there are victims. Rescuers and all necessary services are on the scene. The rescue of people continues,” Zelenskiy wrote in his Telegram channel
7:40pm: Russia sentences writer Glukhovsky to 8-year jail term in absentia
A Russian court on Monday sentenced leading science fiction writer Dmitry Glukhovsky to eight years in prison in absentia for denouncing Moscow’s Ukraine offensive on social media.
Glukhovsky, who lives outside Russia, is best known for his novel Metro-2033, that has also been used as a basis for a popular video game.
The 44-year-old, who Moscow has already labelled a “foreign agent”, was found guilty of spreading “fake information” about the Russian army, the TASS news agency reported.
He was sentenced under a law adopted shortly after President Vladimir Putin sent troops to Ukraine that has been used to stifle criticism of the offensive.
Glukhovsky has consistently denounced Moscow’s military campaign against its neighbour.
7:39pm: Kyiv claims Moscow used chemical weapons near Zaporizhzhia on Sunday
Russian forces used used chemical munitions in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast on Sunday, the Ukrainian military said on Monday.
"The enemy continues to use chemical munitions, violating all conventions," said General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, the commander of the Tavria operational-strategic group of troops.
FRANCE 24 correspondent Emmanuelle Chaze explains, adding that this is "nothing new".
6:57pm: Ukraine's foreign minister asks US for ATACMS long-range missiles
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Monday he had held a phone call with his US counterpart Antony Blinken during which he requested ATACMS long-range missiles.
“In our call, @SecBlinken and I discussed further steps to broaden global support for the Peace Formula and solutions to expand grain exports,” Kuleba said on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
“I thanked the US for all the assistance provided and stressed the need to enhance Ukraine’s long-range capabilities by providing ATACMS."
5:37pm: China, Russia foreign ministers hail cooperation in call
The foreign ministers of China and Russia hailed the "practical cooperation" between the two global powers in a phone call on Monday, Beijing said.
China's top diplomat Wang Yi told his counterpart Sergei Lavrov that Beijing and Moscow "should continue to maintain close strategic coordination, promote world multipolarisation and the democratisation of international relations", according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement.
The newly reappointed foreign minister praised recent progress in "practical cooperation" between the two countries during a discussion that also touched on the ongoing fighting in Ukraine, Beijing said.
5:34pm: Ukrainian troops creating conditions to advance, says commander-in-chief
Ukrainian troops are creating conditions to advance forward step-by-step and have the initiative on the battlefield, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said on Monday.
Zaluzhnyi also said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app that the Ukrainian defence was stable with troops repelling Russian attempts to counter-attack and distract Ukrainian forces from other areas of the front
4:42pm: Ukraine says Jeddah peace talks 'huge blow' to Russia, new meeting agreed
The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff said on Monday that talks about the Ukraine war in Saudi Arabia at the weekend dealt a “huge blow” to Russia, and that the participants agreed to hold another meeting of political advisers within about six weeks.
Andriy Yermak told a briefing in Kyiv that no other peace initiatives were discussed at the meeting in Jeddah apart from Ukraine’s, and that all countries present at the talks had fully supported Ukrainian independence and territorial integrity.
4:05pm: China's foreign minister Wang Yi holds call with Russian counterpart, says ministry
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday spoke with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the phone, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement.
On the Ukraine crisis, Wang told Lavrov that China will uphold an independent and impartial position, actively promote peace talks and strive to find a political settlement to the issue, according to the statement.
3:07pm: Ukraine MP says key German lawmakers reach consensus on long-range missile supply
A senior Ukrainian lawmaker said on Monday that key parliamentary factions in Germany had "reached a consensus" to supply Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles with a range of 500 km (310 miles) but that an official decision was yet to come.
Germany's defence minister said last week Berlin does not plan to supply the missiles for now and that the weapons are not the most urgent priority. A ministry spokesperson told Reuters on Monday that Berlin's position had not changed.
1:41pm: Russia says it advanced 3 kilometres in northeast Ukraine
Russia said Monday its troops had advanced three kilometres (two miles) along the Kupiansk front in northeast Ukraine.
"Over the past three days, the advance of Russian troops ... amounted to 11 kilometres along the front and more than three kilometres deep into the enemy's defence," the defence ministry said.
1:14pm: Ukraine detains woman over alleged plot to attack Zelensky
Ukraine's SBU security service said Monday it had detained an informer accused of helping Russia plot an attack on President Volodymyr Zelensky as he visited a flood-hit region.
Zelensky visited the Mykolaiv region in June after it was hit by flooding caused by the Kakhovka dam breach and in July after shelling.
The SBU alleged the suspect was helping Russia prepare a "massive air strike on the Mykolaiv region" to take place during the visit.
She was allegedly seeking data on the location of electronic warfare systems and warehouses with ammunition as well as photographing locations and trying to get information from personal contacts in the area.
The SBU said its officers caught the woman "red-handed" as she attempted to pass intelligence data to Russian secret services.
Ukraine regularly accuses local residents who support Russia of passing information to help Moscow's military.
12:43pm: Jeddah talks were successful contribution to Ukraine peace, Germany says
A conference hosted by Saudi Arabia to discuss a peace plan for Ukraine was a successful meeting because it showed the willingness of the international community to work towards ending the war, a German government spokesperson said on Monday.
"Germany will also continue to engage actively including in this process," the spokesperson said at a regular news conference in Berlin.
12:43pm: Russia says peace possible if Ukraine stops fighting
Russia said Monday a peace settlement with Ukraine was only possible if Kyiv put down its arms, after talks were held in Saudi Arabia over the weekend without Moscow's participation.
Russia, which was not invited to the talks, said that a resolution was possible if Ukraine "stopped the hostilities and terrorist attacks" and if Western countries stopped arms supplies to Kyiv.
It also called on Ukraine to cede its occupied territories to Moscow.
"The original foundations of Ukraine's sovereignty – its neutral, non-aligned and non-nuclear status – must be confirmed," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
11:37am: Ukraine says 22 soldiers return in latest prisoner swap with Russia
Russia and Ukraine carried out the latest in a series of prisoner exchanges on Monday, with 22 Ukrainian soldiers returning home, a senior Ukrainian official said.
Andriy Yermak, the head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, said the released servicemen included two officers, sergeants and privates who fought in different parts of the front. Some of them were wounded.
A video posted on Telegram showed soldiers wrapped in blue and yellow Ukrainian flags posing for pictures and shouting "Glory to Ukraine".
"Today we have returned 22 Ukrainian fighters home from captivity," Yermak said, adding the oldest of them was 54 years old and the youngest 23.
There was no immediate comment from Russia.
10:51am: China says Jeddah talks on Ukraine helped to 'consolidate international consensus'
China's foreign ministry said on Monday that recent international talks in Saudi Arabia on resolving the Ukraine crisis helped "consolidate international consensus".
China's Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs, Li Hui, "had extensive contact and communication with all parties on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis ... listened to all sides' opinions and proposals, and further consolidated international consensus," the foreign ministry said in a written statement.
More than 40 countries, including China, India, the United States, and European countries, but not Russia, took part in the Jeddah talks that ended on Sunday.
10:03am: Ukraine says two killed in Russian shelling of Kharkiv region
Two people were killed in Russian shelling of border areas of the Kharkiv region in northeast Ukraine, officials said on Monday.
The head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said on Telegram that two civilians had been killed and three others wounded during Russian shelling of the Kharkiv region on Monday morning.
FRANCE 24 could not independently verify the details of the Ukrainian report.
The Ukrainian military has reported increased Russian attacks in the Kharkiv region in recent days.
9:20am: Crimea bridge strikes 'very significant' for Ukrainian counteroffensive
Two bridges linking Crimea and Kherson were hit over the weekend by strikes that Russia attributed to Ukraine. Crimea has been occupied by Russian forces since 2014, and large parts of southern Kherson also remain under Russian occupation.
The damage inflicted on Russian military supply routes was a significant boost for Ukraine's counteroffensive, FRANCE 24's Emmanuelle Chaze reported from Kyiv.
"Russian forces will have to use another route of supply – that will be the eastern route, which goes along the sea of Azov, and this route is well within range of Ukrainian artillery," she said.
7:51am: Ukraine says woman killed in Russian shelling of Kherson
A woman was killed early on Monday when Russian forces shelled the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, regional officials said.
"A difficult night for Kherson ... The Russian army continued to shell Kherson residents' homes in the central part of the city," governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on the Telegram messaging app.
Prokudin said the shelling started around midnight and lasted for several hours.
FRANCE 24 could not independently verify the details of the report.
7:49am: Ukraine calls Jeddah talks productive, Russia calls them doomed
A senior Ukrainian official said on Sunday that talks in Saudi Arabia to make headway towards a peaceful settlement of the war with Russia had been productive, but Moscow called the meeting a doomed attempt to swing the Global South behind Kyiv.
More than 40 countries, including China, India, the United States, and European countries, but not Russia, took part in the Jeddah talks that ended on Sunday.
Ukraine and its allies called the talks an attempt to secure broad international support for principles that Kyiv wants to be the basis for peace, including the withdrawal of all Russian troops and the return of all Ukrainian territory to its control.
Speaking about the Jeddah talks, Zelensky's head of staff Andriy Yermak said in a statement: "We had very productive consultations on the key principles on which a just and lasting peace should be built."
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by state media on Sunday as saying the meeting was "a reflection of the West's attempt to continue futile, doomed efforts" to mobilise the Global South behind Zelensky's position.
Saudi Arabia's Media Ministry said participants had agreed on the importance of continuing consultations to pave the way for peace. European officials have said participants planned to establish working groups to address specific problems raised by the war.
7:07am: Russia destroys drone over Kaluga region, says local governor
Russia's air defence system destroyed an aircraft-type drone over the Ferzikovskyi district in the Kaluga region, Vladislav Shapsha, governor of the region, said on the Telegram messaging app on Monday.
The Kaluga region borders the Moscow region to the north.
"There has been no impact on people or infrastructure," Shapsha said.
It was not clear who launched the drones, and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Kyiv almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia or on Russia-controlled territory in Ukraine.
5:18am: Iran's foreign minister in first Japan visit since 2019
Iran's foreign minister visited Japan on Monday for the first time since 2019 to meet his opposite number, officials said, with a meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also reportedly on the cards.
The purpose of the rare visit by Hossein Amir-Abdollahian to a G7 member country was not announced, but reports said Japan would press Iran to stop supplying Russia with arms.
Amir-Abdollahian will meet with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, the Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement.
TBS, citing unnamed government sources, said Japan would raise the issue of arms exports to Russia.
Key developments from Sunday, August 6:
Ukraine's air force said Sunday moning it shot down 30 out of the 40 cruise missiles and all the Iranian-made Shahed drones that Russia launched overnight in several waves of attacks. Some 27 attack drones were also destroyed, the air force said.
Multi-lateral talks on the Ukraine conflict hosted by Saudi Arabia concluded on Sunday with the participants including the US, China and India agreeing on the importance of continuing consultations to pave the way for peace, according to a closing statement released by Jeddah.
Read yesterday's liveblog to see how the day's events unfolded.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
