Ukraine updates: Russia says 36 drones downed over Black Sea – DW – 10/29/2023

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave his thanks to the representatives of more than 60 countries attending a peace summit in Malta.

“The unity of all those in the world who work with us and all our partners to restore the strength of international law and the real weight of UN principles and norms” will certainly be effective, Zelenskyy said in a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. 

Zelenskyy is hoping to rally support for his 10-point plan to end Russia’s war, and sees the growing list of participants as a signal that global support remains intact despite the US Congress halting new military aid for Ukraine.

The first round of talks in Denmark in June only managed to bring together 15 representatives.

The talks have been dismissed by Moscow, which described the gathering as “a blatantly anti-Russian event.”

Russian forces shot down 36 Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea and the northwestern part of the Crimean peninsula, Moscow’s Defense Ministry said.

“On the night of October 29, an attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out a terrorist attack using air-type drones against facilities on the territory of the Russian Federation was stopped,” the ministry said on Telegram.

“The air defense systems in place destroyed 36 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over the Black Sea and the northwestern part of the Crimean peninsula,” the statement said.

There has been no reaction from Ukrainian authorities.

Crimea was illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014 and is a key location — the peninsula’s biggest city Sevastopol is the primary base for Russia’s Black Sea fleet.

It is also an important supply route for Russian forces who are occupying southern and eastern Ukraine.