Russian attack on western Ukraine hits an American factory during the US-led push for peace

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a rare drone and missile attack on western Ukraine overnight, officials said Thursday, striking targets including an American-owned electronics plant and injecting further uncertainty into the U.S.-led efforts to end the 3-year-old war.

The aerial assault on a part of Ukraine that has largely not experienced such focused attacks was one of Russia's biggest this year and came as Moscow objects to key aspects of proposals that could end the fighting.

U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the war with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week before hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House on Monday.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted “enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex," including drone factories, storage depots, missile launch sites and areas where Ukrainian troops were gathered. Russia has repeatedly denied targeting civilian areas of Ukraine.

But in a post on X, Zelenskyy wrote that “the Russians practically burned down an American company producing electronics — home appliances, nothing military.”

“The Russians knew exactly where they lobbed the missiles. We believe this was a deliberate attack against American property and investments in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy wrote, adding: “Telling attack, right as the world awaits a clear answer from Russia on negotiations to end the war.”

Trump last month questioned Putin’s commitment to ending the war, saying the Russian leader “talks nice and then he bombs everybody.”

In a social media post Thursday, Trump criticized his predecessor, Joe Biden, for not providing Ukraine with more weaponry it needs to “fight back."

“It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invaders country,” Trump said. “It’s like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offensive. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia.”

The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Trump is considering changes to the types of weapons the U.S. will provide to Kyiv.

Russia has fired nearly 1,000 long-range drones and missiles at Ukraine since Monday's White House talks, according to Ukrainian tallies.

European countries are discussing how they can deploy military assets to deter any postwar Russian assault on Ukraine. But the Kremlin won’t accept the deployment of any troops from NATO countries, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Wednesday that making security arrangements for Ukraine without Moscow’s involvement was pointless.

Putin is ready to meet with Zelenskyy to discuss peace terms, Lavrov said Thursday, but only after key issues have been worked out by senior officials in what could be a protracted negotiating process because the two sides remain far apart.

Ukrainian and European leaders have accused Putin of stalling in the peace efforts in the hopes that his bigger army, which has been making slow advances, can capture more Ukrainian land.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a conference call Thursday with the national security advisers of European countries expected to play a role in future security guarantees for Ukraine, a senior U.S. official said. In addition to the national security advisers from Britain, Finland, France, Germany and Italy, officials from the European Commission and NATO also joined the call. The U.S. official spoke on condition of anonymity to outline a discussion that had not been publicly announced.

Military leaders from the U.S., Ukraine and these five European countries met Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington to work out military options, said Joseph Holstead, a spokesperson for the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. His statement gave no details about what specifically was discussed at the meeting, which also included NATO’s supreme allied commander in Europe.

But an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly about the discussions said, “Everything is being considered and nothing is being ruled out,” regarding security guarantees for Ukraine, apart from U.S. boots on the ground.

Military chiefs and their staffs are looking at a variety of options including “how big” the security guarantee is and what happens if it is implemented with or without a ceasefire, the official said, noting that European defense chiefs acknowledged its their “responsibility to secure Europe.”

The Pentagon's policy chief, Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, attended meetings with European military leaders this week to personally convey that the U.S. military plans to play only a minimal role in any security guarantee for Ukraine, Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said in a statement.

Russia launched 574 drones and 40 ballistic and cruise missiles overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. The attack mostly targeted western regions of the country where much of the military aid provided by Ukraine’s Western allies is believed to be delivered and stored. The strikes killed at least one person and injured 15 others, according to officials.

A U.S. electronics plant near the Hungarian border was struck, according to Andy Hunder, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine. The Flex factory is one of the biggest American investments in Ukraine, Hunder told The Associated Press.

At the moment of impact, 600 night shift workers were on the premises, and six were injured, Hunder said. Russian attacks on Ukraine since it launched its invasion have damaged property belonging to more than half of the chamber’s roughly 600 members, he added

“The message is clear: Russia is not looking for peace. Russia is attacking American business in Ukraine, humiliating American business,” Hunder said.

In the western city of Lviv, one person was killed and three were injured as the attack damaged 26 residential buildings, a kindergarten and administrative buildings, regional head Maksym Kozytskyi wrote on Telegram. The regional prosecutor’s office said three Russian cruise missiles with cluster munitions struck the city.

Zelenskyy condemned the attack amid the push for peace and accused Moscow of “trying to wriggle out of holding a meeting” between Putin and himself.

“They don’t want to end this war. They continue their massive attacks on Ukraine and their ferocious assaults along the frontline,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “They even lob missiles at an American enterprise, alongside many other purely civilian targets.”

He also urged the international community to respond with stronger pressure on Moscow, including tougher sanctions and tariffs.

In prepared comments released Thursday, Zelenskyy said plans for security guarantees would become clearer by the end of next week. He said he then expects to be ready to hold direct talks with Putin for the first time since the full-scale invasion.

The talks could also be conducted in a trilateral format alongside Trump, Zelenskyy said.

A venue for the meeting is being discussed, and Switzerland, Austria and Turkey are possibilities, Zelenskyy added.

Ukraine, meanwhile, has kept up its attacks with domestically produced long-range drones on infrastructure inside Russia that supports Moscow's war effort. Among other targets, it has hit oil refineries, and Russian wholesale gasoline prices have reached record highs in recent days.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones on Thursday wounded four civilians in Russia’s Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, according to Telegram posts by regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov. He said the drones damaged apartment blocks, a commercial site and a car.

Associated Press reporters Matthew Lee, Konstantin Toropin and Aamer Madhani in Washington, and Emma Burrows in London contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

President Donald Trump meets with Russia's President Vladimir Putin Friday, Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. At left is Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and second from right is Secretary of State Marco Rubio. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Ukrainian servicemen of the 44th artillery brigade fire a 2s22 Bohdana self-propelled howitzer towards Russian positions at the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)

Ukrainian servicemen of the 44th artillery brigade fire a 2s22 Bohdana self-propelled howitzer towards Russian positions at the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)

In this photo, taken on Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2025 and provided by Ukraine's 127th Separate Brigade of the Territorial Defence press service, soldiers aged 18 to 24 practice military skills on a training ground near Kharkiv, Ukraine. (Anatolii Lysianskyi/Ukraine's 127th Separate Brigade via AP)

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks in Lafayette Park, across from the White House, after meeting with President Donald Trump and European leaders Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks in Lafayette Park, across from the White House, after meeting with President Donald Trump and European leaders Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days.

District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.

Norwegian company Equinor owns Empire Wind. Spokesperson David Schoetz said they welcome the court's decision and will continue to work in collaboration with authorities. It’s the second developer to prevail in court against the administration this week.

The Trump administration froze five big offshore wind projects on the East Coast days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Trump has targeted offshore wind from his first days back in the White House, most recently calling wind farms “losers” that lose money, destroy the landscape and kill birds.

Developers and states sued seeking to block the order. Large, ocean-based wind farms are the linchpin of plans to shift to renewable energy in East Coast states that have limited land for onshore wind turbines or solar arrays.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul applauded the court decision, telling reporters the projects had been “stopped under the bogus pretense of national security.”

“When I heard this I said one thing: I’m the governor of New York, if there is a national security threat off the coast of New York, you need to tell me what it is. I want a briefing right now. Well, lo and behold, they had no answer,” she said.

On Monday, a judge ruled that the Danish energy company Orsted could resume its project to serve Rhode Island and Connecticut. Senior Judge Royce Lamberth said the government did not sufficiently explain the need for a complete stop to construction. That wind farm, called Revolution Wind, is nearly complete. It’s expected to meet roughly 20% of the electricity needs in Rhode Island, the smallest state, and about 5% of Connecticut’s electricity needs.

Orsted is also suing over the pause of its Sunrise Wind project for New York, with a hearing still to be set. Dominion Energy Virginia, which is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, plans to ask a judge Friday to block the administration’s order so it can resume construction, too.

Trump has also dismissed offshore wind developments as ugly, but the Empire project is about 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) offshore and the Sunrise project is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) offshore.

The fifth paused project is Vineyard Wind, under construction in Massachusetts. Vineyard Wind LLC, a joint venture between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, joined the rest of the developers in challenging the administration on Thursday. They filed a complaint in District Court in Boston.

In contrast to the halted action in the U.S., the global offshore wind market is growing, with China leading the world in new installations. Nearly all of the new electricity added to the grid in 2024 was renewable. The British government said Wednesday it secured a record 8.4 gigawatts of offshore wind in Europe’s largest offshore wind auction, enough clean electricity to power more than 12 million homes.

Robin Shaffer, president of Protect Our Coast New Jersey, said the Trump administration was right to stop construction on national security grounds. He urged officials to immediately appeal the adverse rulings and seek to halt all work pending appellate review. Opponents of offshore wind projects are particularly vocal and well-organized in New Jersey.

Empire Wind is 60% complete and designed to power more than 500,000 homes. Equinor said the project was in jeopardy due to the limited availability of specialized vessels, as well as heavy financial losses.

During a hearing Wednesday, Judge Nichols said the government’s main security concern seemed to be over operation of the wind turbines, not construction, although the government pushed back on that contention.

In presenting the government’s case, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, Jr. was skeptical of the perfect storm of horrible events that Empire Wind said would derail their entire project if construction didn’t resume. He disagreed with the contention that the government’s main concern was over operation.

“I don’t see how you can make this distinction,” Woodward said. He likened it to a nuclear project being built that presented a national security risk. The government would oppose it being built, and it turning on.

Molly Morris, Equinor’s senior vice president overseeing Empire Wind, said in an interview that the company wants to build this project and deliver a major, essential new source of power for New York.

McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island. Associated Press writer Anthony Izaguirre contributed to this report from Albany, New York.

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FILE - Wind turbines operate at Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts, July 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FILE - Wind turbine bases, generators and blades sit along with support ships at The Portsmouth Marine terminal that is the staging area for Dominion Energy Virginia, which is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, Dec. 22, 2025, in Portsmouth, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

FILE - A sign for the company Equinor is displayed on Oct. 28, 2020, in Fornebu, Norway. (Håkon Mosvold Larsen/NTB Scanpix via AP, File)

Blades and turbine bases for offshore wind sit at a staging area at New London State Pier, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in New London, Conn. (AP Photo/Matt O'Brien)