Europe weighs war strategy as drone hits train

The Russia Ukraine conflict has entered its fifth year with no end in sight. Against this backdrop, defence ministers from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and the United Kingdom are meeting in Paris on Monday to coordinate their next moves.

French officials stated the group will discuss further support for Ukraine, as well as European defence strategy and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. This gathering follows a similar meeting in Berlin in June, where the five nations pledged continued backing for Kyiv to signal their unified stance to Moscow.

Combat operations intensified on both sides while the ministers convened. In southeastern Ukraine, Russian forces struck Zaporizhzhia on Monday morning, injuring four people according to regional Governor Mykhailo Semikin. Ukrainian emergency services reported that two additional individuals were wounded in strikes on the Chernihiv region.

Russia's Ministry of Defence announced that its forces targeted a power station and a nearby warehouse in Kharkiv, the country's second-largest city. The ministry said it also hit a power station in the Khmelnytskyi region. It claimed that port infrastructure in Chornomorsk and a cargo vessel bound for Odesa, which it said was being used for military purposes, were also struck.

A Ukrainian drone attack on the Russian city of Voronezh resulted in two deaths and 17 injuries, regional Governor Alexander Gusev reported. Many of the casualties were passengers on a commuter train in a left-bank suburb when debris from the drone fell on the vehicle. Gusev said the impact started fires at several industrial businesses, a business centre in the city center, and a residential building, though he noted the industrial sites suffered no major damage.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy outlined specific terms for a pause in Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries in an interview aired on Sunday. He said Kyiv would stop hitting refineries, a demand from US President Donald Trump, only if Moscow ceases attacks on Ukrainian power infrastructure. Zelenskyy argued that if grid strikes continue, the US should allow Starshield to detect missile launch sites over Russia or supply Patriot missile systems.

Ukrainian authorities confirmed on Saturday that the Starlink satellite system and its military variant, Starshield, are fully operational again after more than a week of restrictions. The curbs had disrupted military operations and heightened tensions with Washington. Diplomatic efforts continue as negotiators from Ukraine, Russia, and the United States are expected to meet in Abu Dhabi during the first half of November.