Charles Means

Ukraine noted progress in negotiations, a view shared by White House envoy Steve Witkoff, though neither provided further details.

Negotiations have bogged down over Russian ultimatums Ukraine surrender territory, including land not controlled by Russian forces, as well as Ukraine's demands for ironclad security guarantees from the U.S.

should it even consider a deal.

Ahead of the talks, President Trump said the onus was on Kiev to make concessions, saying Ukraine better come to the table fast.

Charles Mainz, NPR News, Moscow.

Russia's defense ministry said it had launched the Ereshnik, or hazeltree missile, a nuclear-capable weapon that Moscow claims is invincible to Western air defenses due to the way it scanners its payload at high speeds, like nuts falling fast from a tree.

Russia said the strike was a response to an attempted Ukrainian drone attack on a residence tied to President Vladimir Putin, an attack both Ukraine and the U.S.

say never happened.

Explosions were reported in Ukraine's Lviv region.

Whether Ereshnik was the cause wasn't immediately clear.

Russia's deployed the Ereshnik just once before, back in 2024, when it used dummy warheads rather than explosives on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, causing minimal damage.

Charles Mainz, NPR News, Moscow.