And also in the Zaporizhia region of Ukraine, 431 aviation strikes on 16 settlements. State Governor Ivan Fedorov said four people were killed and three others wounded in the assaults.
Meanwhile, four workers of a water utility were reportedly killed in a drone strike at the Russian-held Svatovsky district of Luhansk.
The Russia-installed governor Leonid Pasechnik later announced in a statement that another victim had succumbed to her injuries while being treated at the hospital. Another Ukrainian drone attack on the village of Nyzhnia Duvanka saw a 30-year-old man killed and a 51-year-old woman injured.
Ukraine's military intelligence said this morning that its forces had fought off a large-scale assault by the Russians in Sumy, and killed 334 Russian soldiers and wounded over 550. Unverified graphic
Drone Components and Military Supplies
Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to the Ukrainian President, said that Kyiv found out through examination of the drones used in recent attacks carried out by Russians that they include components produced in India.
On the military aid side, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark announced they would jointly provide up to 5 billion Norwegian crowns ($486 million) in U.S. arms for Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the sale as a significant enhancement of Ukraine's defense resources.
Also, the US Department of State has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale to Ukraine of up to $203.5 million in repair and sustainment support services for the M777 howitzer artillery system, as well as related transportation equipment from BAE Systems and other contractors.
NATO Air Policing and Diplomatic Initiatives
Germany said it will deploy five Eurofighter combat jets to northeastern Poland for several weeks in response to a request by Poland. The drills are viewed as a potential precursor to upcoming military exercises jointly staged by Russia and Belarus.
Lithuania requests NATO assistance on air defence following drone incursions from Belarus.
Diplomatic Hints Toward Ceasefire
In turn, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy noted that he had talked to US President Donald Trump and they had a "productive conversation" in which they discussed ways to end the war.
Trump told CNBC that falling energy prices around the world could force Russia's Putin to stop the fighting.
"If energy goes down enough, Putin is going to stop killing people," Trump said, pressuring plummeting oil prices could crash the Russian economy and force him into making peace.
