HEADLINES

• Analysis finds Kyiv air raids have reached record highs. READ MORE BELOW

• Zelenskyy calls peace talks 'very substantial' but says conflict likely to continue into winter. READ MORE BELOW

• Putin could hold call with Trump, says Kremlin

• Pro-Russia AfD party wins state election in Germany

• Russia and Ukraine continue cross-border strikes. READ MORE BELOW

IN DEPTH

Kyiv air raid alerts at record high

The Ukrainian capital of Kyiv is experiencing more daily air raid alerts than any time since the start of Russia's conflict with Ukraine in 2022, according to BBC Verify analysis of government figures. Alerts have been coming in around the clock, forcing residents to head to air-raid shelters 10 times a day on average and as often as 13 times a day. Some alerts last as long as four and a half hours. 

Analysts used data from the state-owned app Kyiv Digital, which alerts city residents to air raids, as well as providing live transport updates and public transport ticketing.

Previously, most attacks from Russia came at night but Moscow has recently adopted a new tactic, striking Kyiv during the day. This has caused major disruption to schools and businesses in the capital. 

Kyiv residents are struggling to adapt to their new reality. The regular alerts force pupils to leave their classrooms mid-lesson and office workers their offices. As air raid alerts force overground  trains to stop, commuters are left scrambling to find other ways of getting home. 

In the seven days from August 27, Kyiv endured 76 air raid alerts. The largest frequency of alerts in 2022 was around 66. 

The increased frequency of strikes has also been linked to Russia's adoption of newer, faster drones powered by jet engines. These drones can reach up to around 370mph, triple the speed of the older propeller-driven Shahed drones. 

Zelenskyy calls US envoy talks "very substantial" but expects fighting to continue until winter

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called his negotiations with the US envoy on Sunday "very substantial", despite neither side reporting any breakthrough in peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv. He also said that, despite talks, he expects another winter of conflict and is focussed on preparing for that.

US President Donald Trump's top envoys travelled to Kyiv after first visiting Russia's President Vladimir Putin the day before. Zelenskyy said the envoys and his team discussed the supply of air-defense missiles and a winter support package. 

Putin had similarly positive words to say about the envoy's visit to Moscow, claiming talks went "beyond a mere exchange of views on resolving the Ukrainian crisis" and touched on "economic issues" as well.

Steve Witcoff and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, greeted Zelenskyy warmly with hugs as they arrived in the capital, but despite familiarly positive rhetoric many Ukrainians were skeptical of whether this visit would change anything. Following the talks, Zelenskyy tried to reassure skeptics with concrete agreements, including a US plan to increase production of Patriot missiles next year and a "winter package" of support covering both air defense and energy infrastructure. 

Despite this latest diplomatic push, the core demands of Moscow and Kyiv remain incompatible, especially with regards to territorial concessions. Zelenskyy said the question of territory "remains relevant" but reiterated his view that such difficult issues "can oly be resolved at the level of leaders".

Zelenskyy has said Ukraine is ready to move to trilateral talks with Russia and the US. He said Ukraine will "do everything" for such meetings to take place but "needs to see what Russia says."

Russia and Ukraine continue to exchange fire

Despite a brief agreed-upon pause of strikes on Kyiv and Moscow during Trump's envoy's visit, strikes continued elsewhere in Russia and Ukraine.

The noticeable lack of air raids in Kyiv prompted Zelenskyy to joke that Kushner and Witkoff's presence seemed to be more effective than the Patriot missile systems Ukraine has urgently been seeking. 

Overnight into Sunday Russian attacks across Ukraine killed one person and left at least 10 wounded, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said. 

In the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, drone strikes killed a 74-year-old-man and wounded three, while a drone strike on an apartment building in the Khmelnytskyi region wounded a further seven. 

The Ukrainian air force reported that it intercepted 82 drones out of 108 fired at Ukraine by Russia overnight, along with six missiles. Russia's Defense Ministry said on Sunday it shot down 258 Ukrainian drones across its territories.

A man was reportedly killed and a woman was injured when a Ukrainian drone struck a vehicle in Russia's Belgorod border region.

On Monday (September 7), a Ukrainian drone struck a residential building deep inside Russia. Dmitry Makhonin, the governor of the Perm region where the strike took place, reported that one person was killed and four other injured in the attack.

Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine had carried out strikes on Perm, saying oil-processing facilities were struck there and in Tatarstan, along with an oil refinery in the Ryazan region.