KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hosted leaders and representatives from seven regional countries for talks on deepening co-operation on Friday, after overnight Russian strikes in multiple regions sparked fires and caused several deaths and injuries. The inaugural summit of the so-called “Carpathian Eight” brings together Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Hungary, with the European Union also involved. It comes as U.S.-mediated efforts to end Russia’s 4.5-year full-scale invasion have stalled, with the issue of territorial concessions in eastern Ukraine among the central sticking points. Ukraine is also seeking security guarantees from partners for a deal. The summit also comes as three days of voting began in Russia’s first wartime parliamentary election, which features virtually no opposition to President Vladimir Putin’s party and is all but certain to secure the Kremlin’s political dominance. Some of the nations attending the meeting in western Ukraine’s Ivano-Frankivsk region, such as Poland and Romania, have been staunch supporters of Ukraine. Others, such as Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia, have refused to provide Kyiv with direct military assistance. Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram that the summit was a “significant beginning” of a movement intended to “further strengthen ties between our countries and create another strong element of co-operation at the EU level.” He added that the participating countries would work together on security, energy, logistics, cross-border economic ties and support for local communities. European countries concerned over Russian hybrid threats The meeting in the western Ukrainian ski resort of Bukovel came amid increasing concern among many European countries that Russia is ramping up hybrid threats including sabotage, cyberattacks, disinformation and potential drone incursions into NATO territory. Tusk, Poland’s prime minister, warned on Thursday before departing for Ukraine that Moscow is planning hybrid strikes with drones or rockets on European countries supporting Kyiv, among them Poland. Officials in Poland, Germany and Denmark have in recent weeks accused Russia of involvement in drone incursions, sabotage, arson, surveillance of defence facilities and planning to use a drone carrying explosives to attack an airport. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday that the EU needs a NATO-like mechanism to better respond to hybrid attacks blamed on Russia, and to develop “a consensus on how to respond to certain incidents ... that fall below armed aggression but clearly threaten our national security.” Putin issues a new warning against seizing Russian ships Speaking at a meeting of a government commission on new weapons, Putin declared that the Western claims about Russia’s purported aggressive plans were intended to justify a boost in defence spending. He again denied that Russia has any hostile intentions toward Europe, but warned that it will be forced to respond to any aggressive action by Western allies, such as the seizure of merchant vessels operated by Russia. “Let’s live in peace, otherwise we will be forced to respond in kind - it must be quite obvious to everyone,” he said. Last month, Putin threatened retaliation for Western seizures of Russia’s commercial vessels, describing them as “piracy.” He warned that the Russian response wouldn’t necessarily come in the waters where the Russian ships were seized, noting that Moscow could retaliate in any area. Russia is believed to be using a fleet of hundreds of ships to evade international sanctions imposed after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. France and the U.K. have detained tankers suspected of being part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” shipping oil in violation of international sanctions. The EU has sanctioned hundreds of “shadow fleet” ships. Russia has recently started deploying warships to escort its commercial vessels. Meanwhile, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday it had summoned the British Charge d’Affaires to strongly protest the United Kingdom’s continued increase in the supply of drones and other weapons systems to Ukraine. The ministry said the U.K.’s “fiercely confrontational stance” was aimed at “prolonging and escalating the armed conflict by every possible means.” It added that Russia reserves the right to take necessary countermeasures in self-defence, and that “any British military facilities in Ukraine used to strike Russian territory represent legitimate targets.” In a statement, Britain’s Foreign Office said the U.K. will remain committed to providing the equipment Ukraine needs to defend itself. The office called the diplomatic reprimand “yet another attempt to deflect attention from Russia’s barbaric full scale invasion of Ukraine and discredit the U.K. on the world stage.” Ukraine receives nearly US$4 billion in EU support Following a phone call with von der Leyen on Friday, Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post that Ukraine has received a 3.3 billion-euro tranche (roughly US$3.8 billion) from an EU financial support package meant to strengthen Ukraine’s defence capabilities including the purchase of missiles and drones. The funding comes as Kyiv faces a projected budget deficit of roughly US$27 billion this year. Zelenskyy said Ukraine was also preparing for a meeting with von der Leyen at the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week focused on the country’s financial stability. Russian strikes spark fires and cause deaths and injuries Two people were killed and two others injured in Russian strikes overnight in the Zhytomyr region, west of Kyiv, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said in a statement on Telegram. The strikes sparked fires in warehouse and production buildings. Rescuers were forced to retreat during repeated air raid alerts, while emergency de-miners inspected the area for explosive devices. Firefighters later extinguished the blazes. Elsewhere, one person was killed and six others injured after Russian forces attacked an electric train in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, the state emergency service said. The drone strike targeted a railway station in the Novovodolazka community and sparked a fire in two carriages of the suburban train. Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom said that a Ukrainian drone on Thursday hit a cooling tower of a reactor unit at the Kursk nuclear power plant, but the attack hasn’t posed any radiation threat and hasn’t affected its operation. The Russian Defence Ministry on Friday said its air defences intercepted and destroyed 629 Ukrainian drones overnight over 14 Russian regions, as well as illegally annexed Crimea and the Azov and the Black seas. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said more than 350 drones were headed toward Moscow, but that most were destroyed far from the Russian capital while 64 were downed as they approached the city. The Russian military said Friday it carried out drone strikes overnight on Ukraine’s ports, vessels and a logistics centre operating for the military. Russian forces hit a bulk carrier in the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk and a Nova Poshta logistics facility, six kilometres (3.7 miles) northwest of Odesa, that the Russian Defence Ministry said was used for storing and distributing military cargo from Europe. ___ Samya Kullab, The Associated Press
