Ukraine-Russia war latest: Russia’s largest search engine responds to ‘challenging’ time after strikes by Kyiv

Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Membership today.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has accused the US of being unwilling to help Ukraine defend itself after a Russian bomb attack on two passenger buses killed at least 35 people.

The attack, which struck public buses in ​the embattled city of Kramatorsk, came amid a wave of Russian strikes across Ukraine that killed 78 people and injured 215 over two days, according to Zelensky.

Speaking to reporters in Pryluky, the Ukrainian leader criticised Washington for pursuing economic ties with Moscow while attempting to broker an end to the war, now in its fifth year.

He urged the US to expand Ukraine’s access to the Starlink satellite service to help its forces target Russian ballistic missile launchers.

“Open Starlink for Ukraine. You did open it when you ‌were responding to Iran ... I’ve said quite openly – give it to us, help us defend our skies and dominate there. And then Putin will sit down at the negotiating table,” he said.

It comes as Ukrainian negotiators will travel to the US on Friday and Saturday for talks, Zelensky added, urging Donald Trump to increase sanction pressure on Russia .

UK foreign secretary Ed Miliband visited the site of the Russian strike in Pryluky along with Volodymyr Zelensky, where he condemned Vladimir Putin's "evil intent and evil strategy".

He announced "more sanctions on Russia, on the war machine of Putin, on the shadow fleet, on the oil companies, on the crypto, on the financing of the war".

“My message to Putin is clear – you cannot wait us out. Until you choose the path of peace, the UK will not relent in its support for Ukraine, our values, or our national security. You will remain a pariah,” he said.

They visited a site where 22 people, including five children, were killed in a single strike on a five-storey block of flats in Pryluky on Wednesday.

The sanctions package, which includes around 40 targets across Russia’s financial, oil and technology sectors, is designed to disrupt Russia’s supply chain and cut off financing streams.

Volodymyr Zelensky urged the US to accede to his request to expand Ukraine’s access to its Starlink satellite service in order to better target Russian ballistic missile launchers, after Moscow launched one of the deadliest single aerial attacks of the war so far.

Speaking to reporters in ‌Pryluky in the east of Kyiv, he said: “Open Starlink for Ukraine. You did open it when you ‌were responding to Iran ... I’ve said quite openly – give it to us, help us defend our skies and dominate there. And then Putin will sit down at the negotiating table.”