Russia bombards Kyiv

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that the US and Russia have exchanged new ideas for peace talks after he met with his Russian counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in Malaysia

- REUTERS

Russia unleashed heavy airstrikes on Ukraine Thursday before a conference in Rome at which Kyiv won billions of dollars in aid pledges, and US-Russian talks at which Washington voiced frustration with Moscow over the war.

Two people were killed, 23 were wounded and there was damage in nearly every part of Kyiv from missile and drone attacks on the capital and other parts of Ukraine.

Addressing the Rome conference on Ukraine’s reconstruction after more than three years of war, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged allies to “more actively” use Russian assets for rebuilding and called for weapons, joint defence production and investment.

$12 BILLION PLEDGED FOR UKRAINE

Participants pledged over 10 billion euros ($12 billion) to help rebuild Ukraine, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said. The European Commission, the EU’s executive, announced 2.3 billion euros ($2.7 billion) in support.