Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he sees a chance for a diplomatic settlement to end the war in Ukraine, as Russian and Ukrainian forces continue exchanging strikes and tensions rise on both sides of the conflict.
Speaking on Thursday at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Putin said Russia and Ukraine remained the main parties to the conflict and should reach a consensus before other countries contribute to the process.
“We are grateful to everyone who is trying to contribute to resolving this issue. Are there chances? In my view, yes, there are,” Putin said.
Putin said contacts between Moscow and Washington were continuing, including through intelligence channels, and expressed hope they would lead to a positive result. He also said US President Donald Trump appeared willing to engage in constructive work.
The Russian president separately criticised attacks on civilian vessels and threats against civilian aircraft, calling such actions “state terrorism” and saying they complicated prospects for bilateral peace talks.
Strikes on energy infrastructure
Meanwhile, the conflict between the two countries continues to escalate.
Overnight, Russia attacked energy infrastructure facilities in Ukraine’s southern Odessa region, the Ukrainian Energy Ministry said on Friday, warning of possible restrictions on the electricity network.
Odessa Governor Oleh Kiper said one person was killed and at least five others wounded in the attack, which also damaged civilian infrastructure.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Friday that its forces had struck two cargo vessels in the Black Sea that were transporting weapons, ammunition and military equipment for Ukraine. The claim could not be independently verified.
A Ukrainian drone strike, meanwhile, caused a fire at an oil depot in the Russian Black Sea port city of Sochi, authorities in the Krasnodar region said. No casualties were immediately reported.
Tensions inside Ukraine
Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said an investigation would determine how a dispute between two Ukrainian security agencies escalated into a shootout in Kiev that left three members of the Defence Ministry’s HUR Military Intelligence Directorate injured.
The confrontation occurred on Tuesday after the home of a Russian nationalist activist fighting alongside Ukrainian forces was searched. The activist said he had been detained by the SBU Security Service and forced to sign a confession saying he had collaborated with Russian intelligence, a statement he later retracted.
The SBU said its officers had acted to prevent what it described as a Moscow-backed plot to assassinate Russian anti-Kremlin activists in Kiev.
“It is important that the truth come out. And that situations like this do not recur,” Zelenskyy said.
He said the heads of the SBU and HUR would be assessed following an internal investigation, adding that both sides should be held accountable for actions that “should not have happened”.
Two servicemen from the agencies have been issued notices of suspicion in connection with the incident. Zelenskyy also dismissed Oleh Khramov, head of the SBU department responsible for protecting state secrets.
Shooting targets Russian serviceman
In Russia, a serviceman was hospitalised on Thursday after being shot in the city of Engels in Saratov region, according to the regional branch of the Investigative Committee.
Authorities said bullets and shell casings were found at the scene and a criminal investigation was opened on charges of attempted murder and illegal arms trafficking. They did not identify the serviceman or say who carried out the attack.
Last week, a serviceman was killed and his wife injured in a car bombing near St Petersburg, while three weeks earlier a factory director supplying drones to the Russian military was seriously injured and his driver killed when their vehicle exploded near Yekaterinburg.
Kiev has claimed responsibility for some attacks inside Russia. Ukraine’s SBU said in December 2024 that it had organised the killing of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, who headed Russia’s military nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces. Kirillov was killed by a bomb hidden in a scooter outside his Moscow apartment building.
The latest developments underscore the widening security risks surrounding the conflict, even as Putin says there remains a chance for a diplomatic settlement.
