Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1104 EAT on Thursday 26 February 2026

Russia launched a sweeping overnight barrage of missiles and drones across Ukraine, injuring at least eight people, as Kyiv and Washington prepared for fresh high-level talks aimed at ending the war, now in its fifth year.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the early Wednesday strikes on the capital damaged a nine-storey residential building in the Darnytskyi district and ignited fires in a house and several garages in other parts of the city.

Air defence systems were activated in the capital to repel the attack, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, who urged residents to remain in shelters until the assault ended. No casualties were reported in the city.

Ukraine has faced frequent overnight barrages in recent months, with Russia targeting cities using missiles and drones during harsh winter conditions. Strikes have also hit civilian energy infrastructure, even as Washington continues its push to negotiate an end to Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.

Attacks were also reported in the Kharkiv, Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Officials said seven people were wounded in Kharkiv and another in Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk, according to the Agence France-Presse.

US, Ukrainian delegations to meet
The strikes came ahead of a scheduled meeting in the Swiss city of Geneva between Ukraine’s lead negotiator Rustem Umerov and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. The talks are being held in advance of a broader round of negotiations involving Moscow, Kyiv and Washington expected in early March.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday he had held a 30-minute call with US President Donald Trump ahead of the Geneva talks, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner also participating. The discussion focused on the agenda for the upcoming meeting and preparations for a broader trilateral session involving Moscow, Kyiv and Washington expected in early March.

Zelenskyy, who has repeatedly called for direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to resolve the most difficult issues, said he hopes the Geneva meeting will “open the way to talks at the leaders’ level”.

“President Trump supports this sequence of steps,” Zelenskyy said. “This is the only way to resolve all the complex and sensitive issues and finally end the war.”
Putin has previously dismissed the prospect of such a meeting, repeatedly questioning Zelenskyy’s legitimacy.

Separately, Russian state news agency TASS reported that the Kremlin’s economic envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, is also expected in Geneva on Thursday to pursue economic talks with US officials.

Despite Trump’s push to end the conflict — which he has previously claimed he could resolve within 24 hours of returning to office — negotiations have so far produced little progress.

Talks based on a US proposal unveiled late last year have hit an impasse over the most contentious territorial disputes, particularly control of the eastern Donbas industrial region, the epicentre of some of the war’s fiercest fighting.

Moscow is seeking full control of Ukraine’s Donetsk region in the Donbas and has threatened to take it by force if Kyiv refuses to concede at the negotiating table.

Ukraine has rejected the demand and maintains it will not sign any deal without firm security guarantees to prevent future Russian aggression. The country’s constitution also bars the surrender of territory.

Souce: Aljazeera

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