Russia hoping for some progress at Saudi talks: Negotiator

Moscow is hoping to achieve some progress at talks in Saudi Arabia on March 24, a Russian negotiator told state media before the US meets delegations from both Ukraine and Russia in a bid to halt the three-year conflict.

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MOSCOW -

Moscow has rejected a joint US-Ukraine proposal for a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire, suggesting instead halting aerial strikes on energy facilities.

Despite that offer, both sides have continued to launch aerial attacks in the run-up to the negotiations.

A Russian strike on the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia on March 21 night killed a family of three, triggering anger among Ukrainian officials.

Russia also launched drone attacks on Kyiv that hit apartment buildings and caused fires, killing at least two people, Ukraine's emergency service said early on March 23.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on March 23 that a "massive attack by enemy UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles)" caused falling debris in several districts of the city, wounding seven.

US negotiators will meet separately with Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Saudi Arabia on March 24, in what US envoy Keith Kellogg described as "shuttle diplomacy" between hotel rooms.

Despite the flurry of diplomacy and push from US President Donald Trump, a breakthrough has so far proved elusive.