Russia and Ukraine trade long-range strikes ahead of US-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi

Russia and Ukraine exchanged long-range strikes on Monday, with Russia hitting Ukraine's power grid and Ukraine attacking a major Russian oil refinery, just hours before U.S.-brokered talks were set to begin in Abu Dhabi. The three-way negotiations between U.S., Russian, and Ukrainian envoys are scheduled to start Tuesday and last two days, marking the first such meeting since February. U.S. President Donald Trump claimed Moscow and Kyiv are "very close" to a deal, while Russia insists European representatives will not be directly involved in the discussions. The talks aim to address security guarantees, with Russia viewing NATO as a threat and Ukraine seeking protection against future invasions. Russia launched 317 drones at Ukraine overnight, while Ukrainian long-range strikes have reportedly neutralized over half of Russia's oil refining capacity.