Russian attack kills 25 in Ukraine’s Ternopil as Zelenskyy meets Erdogan in Turkey

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A large Russian drone and missile barrage on Ukraine's western city of Ternopil killed at least 25 people, including three children, authorities said Wednesday, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy went to Turkey in search of diplomatic support for his fight against Russia’s invasion.

The nighttime attack hit two nine-story apartment blocks in Ternopil, located around 200 kilometers (120 miles) from the Polish border, according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. At least 73 people, including 15 children, were injured, emergency services said.

At least 19 among those killed were burned alive, including three children aged 5, 7 and 16, Klymenko said. Two dozen people are still unaccounted for, he said on national television, and rescuers expect to work at least two more days to complete the search of rubble.

Russia fired 476 strike and decoy drones, as well as 48 missiles of various types, at Ukrainian targets overnight, Ukraine’s air force said. The bombardment included 47 cruise missiles, with air defenses intercepting all but six of them, the air force said. Western-supplied F-16 and Mirage-2000 jets intercepted at least 10 cruise missiles, it said.

“Every brazen attack against ordinary life indicates that the pressure on Russia (to stop the war) is insufficient,” Zelenskyy wrote on the messaging app Telegram.

Zelenskyy met with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara later Wednesday as part of his efforts to diplomatically isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin and bring more international pressure to bear on him. Putin has so far resisted making compromises, despite U.S. pressure.

In brief statements to the press, Zelenskyy and Erdogan expressed their commitment to finding a peaceful settlement. Turkey is a key broker in the Black Sea region, preserving relations with both Ukraine and Russia.

“We count on the strength of Turkish diplomacy, on (how) it’s understood in Moscow,” Zelensky said.

Zelenskyy said before the talks that he had seen “some positions and signals from the United States" about the war. He didn’t elaborate. Tough new American sanctions on Russia’s oil industry, devised to push Putin to the negotiating table, are due to take effect on Friday.

A senior Turkish official initially said U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff would join Zelenskyy in Turkey, but backtracked later in the day and said Witkoff wouldn’t be coming. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity Tuesday because he wasn't allowed to speak publicly about the arrangements.

U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and other high-ranking Army officials are in Ukraine to help with peace talks, according to two U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive plans. Driscoll is scheduled to meet this week with Zelenskyy, one of the officials said. Ukrainian officials confirmed that Driscoll was meeting officials in Kyiv, but made no mention of any discussion of renewing peace talks with Russia.

Ternopil sits in a part of relatively peaceful western Ukraine, where many people from the east and south moved to as they fled danger along the front line.

Almost 50 people were injured in Russian strikes on three other Ukrainian regions.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said it attacked Ukrainian energy facilities and military-industrial targets, including long-range drone depots, in retaliation against strikes by Kyiv on Russian territory.

Two Eurofighter Typhoon jets and two F-16s were scrambled in Romania when a drone entered the NATO member’s airspace during the Russian attacks, Romania’s Ministry of National Defense said.

The Polish military said that Polish and allied aircraft were deployed in the middle of the night as a preventive measure. Poland’s Rzeszów and Lublin airports were closed temporarily to prioritize military aviation, the Polish Air Navigation Services Agency said.

In northeastern Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Russian drones injured 46 people, including two girls, the head of the regional military administration, Oleh Syniehubov, wrote on Telegram. Drones hit several city districts, at least 16 residential buildings, an ambulance station, school and other civilian infrastructure, he said.

Russia's Defense Ministry said Wednesday that Ukraine fired four American-supplied ATACMS missiles at the Russian city of Voronezh on Tuesday. All four were shot down, the ministry said, but the debris damaged a private house, an orphanage and a gerontology center. There were no casualties, the ministry said.

Ukraine’s General Staff on Tuesday reported firing ATACMS missiles at Russia without offering details.

Associated Press writers Stephen McGrath in Leamington Spa, England, and Konstantin Toropin in Washington contributed to this report.

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

A photograph of a child lies on the ground near a residential building which was heavily damaged by a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlad Kravchuk)

Rescue workers clear the rubble of a residential building which was heavily damaged by a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlad Kravchuk)

A photograph of a child lies on the ground near a residential building which was heavily damaged by a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlad Kravchuk)

Rescuers evacuate an elderly woman after a residential building was hit following Russia's missile attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

Rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building which was damaged by a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Rostyslav Kovalchuk)

A rescuer works in front of a residential building which was heavily damaged by a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Rostyslav Kovalchuk)

Smoke rises from a residential building which was heavily damaged after a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlad Kravchuk)

Dead bodies in plastic bags lie on the ground in front of residential building which was heavily damaged after a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlad Kravchuk)

People look at a residential building which was heavily damaged after a Russian strike on Ternopil, Ukraine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlad Kravchuk)

Rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged by a Russian strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

Rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged by a Russian strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

Rescuers evacuate an elderly woman after a residential building was hit following Russia's missile attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

NEW DELHI (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday at an annual summit aimed at expanding defense and trade ties, as the United States presses New Delhi to revise its decades-old partnership with Moscow.

The 23rd Russia-India Summit comes at a pivotal moment as the United States pushes for a Ukraine peace deal while seeking global cooperation. It will test New Delhi’s efforts to balance relations with Moscow and Washington as the nearly four-year war in Ukraine grinds on.

Putin was received by Modi at an airport in New Delhi on Thursday, who gave the visiting leader a bear hug and a tight handshake with the gusto of an old friend.

According to Indian officials involved in the preparation for the summit, the agenda includes talks on defense, energy and labor mobility.

While India has historically maintained deep ties with Russia, critics say Putin’s visit could strain relations with the European Union and the United States and might jeopardize negotiations for major trade agreements with both that are seen as critical for India’s exports.

U.S. President Donald Trump raised tariffs on Indian goods to 50% in August, citing New Delhi's discounted Russian oil. India has been the second biggest importer of Russian crude after China.

The U.S. says purchases of Russian oil help finance Moscow’s war machine. In October, the U.S. sanctioned two of Moscow’s biggest oil producers to force countries like India to cut down on imports. Indian officials have said New Delhi has always abided by international sanctions and would do so in the case of Russia oil purchases as well.

India and the U.S. set a target for the first tranche of a trade deal by the fall, but the deal hasn’t come through yet amid strains in relations.

India is also in the final stages of talks on a trade agreement with the EU, which sees Russia's war in Ukraine as a major threat.

Putin’s India visit, “given the timing and geopolitical context, underscores New Delhi’s strategic tightrope walk between the West and the rest, chiefly Russia,” said Praveen Donthi, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group.

Donthi said India’s tilt toward Russia dates back to the Cold War and persists despite its official nonaligned position. “The significant change now is its desire to be a strategic partner with the U.S. at the same time, which will be a diplomatic challenge,” he added.

In his meeting with Putin, Modi is likely to push for faster delivery of two further Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems. It has already received three under a 2018 deal worth about $5.4 billion. The delay has been tied to supply chain disruptions linked to the war in Ukraine.

The two sides signed a pact in February to improve military cooperation, exercises, port calls, disaster relief assistance and logistics support. Moscow’s State Duma ratified the same ahead of Putin’s India visit.

Talks are also expected on upgrading India’s Russian-made Su-30MKI fighter jets and accelerating deliveries of critical military hardware.

Trade is also expected to be a major point in talks.

Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at $68.7 billion in the last fiscal year ended March, and the aim is to boost it to $100 billion by 2030. The trade is heavily skewed in favor of Russia with deep deficits for India, which it is looking to bridge by pushing exports.

India is keen to increase exports of pharmaceuticals, agriculture and textiles to Russia and is seeking the removal of non-tariff barriers. New Delhi is also seeking long-term supplies of fertilizers from Moscow.

Another key area where the two countries are expected to finalize an agreement is the safety and regulation of migration of Indian skilled workers to Russia.

Putin last visited India in 2021. Modi was in Moscow last year, and the two leaders briefly met in September in China during a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.

Hussain reported from Srinagar, India.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, shakes hands with Indian President Droupadi Murmu as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, looks on during a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi, India, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo)

Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, poses for a photograph with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, and Indian President Droupadi Murmu during a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi, India, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo)

Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during an interview with journalists and executives of Aaj Tak and India Today TV channels at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, speaks during an interview with journalists and executives of Aaj Tak and India Today TV channels at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi sit inside a limousine as they arrive at the Indian Prime Minister office in New Delhi, India, on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)