Russia, Ukraine exchange deadly drone strikes as Zelenskyy holds security talks with Erdogan in Istanbul

Russia and Ukraine exchanged deadly overnight drone strikes , killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens, officials said, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy travelled to Istanbul for talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine was working to strengthen security partnerships to protect lives and ensure stability in Europe and the Middle East. During his visit, he was also scheduled to meet Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of Eastern Orthodox Christians.

Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia launched 286 attack drones overnight , of which 260 were intercepted by air defences .

In the city of Nikopol in the Dnipropetrovsk region, a strike on a market area killed five civilians and wounded at least 19 , damaging shops and stalls. Another attack in Sumy, near the Russian border, injured 11 people and damaged homes, vehicles and utility networks. In the capital Kyiv, a drone strike sparked a fire in a three-storey office and warehouse building but caused no casualties.

In the partially occupied Donetsk region, a Russian drone hit a civilian car on the Kostyantynivka–Druzhkivka road, killing one woman and injuring another.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said it targeted Ukrainian military-industrial and energy facilities with long-range precision weapons and strike drones.

Meanwhile, Moscow-installed authorities in the occupied Luhansk region said Ukrainian strikes on railway infrastructure and homes killed a family of three , including an eight-year-old child.

Ukraine’s Security Service of Ukraine said its drones struck the metallurgical plant in Alchevsk, damaging blast furnaces, gas pipelines, electrical substations and production workshops, forcing the facility to halt operations. The plant supplies steel to Russia’s defence manufacturer Uralvagonzavod, which produces T-90M tanks and artillery systems.

Russia said its air defences shot down 85 Ukrainian drones across nine regions , including over the annexed Crimea and the Black Sea. In Russia’s Rostov region, one person was killed and four injured after a drone strike caused fires at a warehouse and on a cargo vessel offshore. In the city of Tolyatti in the Samara region, another person was wounded and residential buildings were damaged.

During the Istanbul meeting, Erdogan reiterated Turkey’s readiness to mediate future peace negotiations , while the two leaders discussed expanding defence technology cooperation and regional security initiatives.