Overview

• Russia and Ukraine have not scheduled further direct peace talks after their recent Istanbul meeting, which resulted in an agreement to exchange 1,000 prisoners each but no broader progress.
• Both nations have ramped up drone warfare, with Russia claiming to have shot down hundreds of Ukrainian drones, including dozens near Moscow, and Ukraine reporting extensive Russian drone strikes overnight.
• Fierce fighting continues in the Donetsk region, with Russian forces claiming limited advances near Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka, though Ukraine has not confirmed these developments.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected Ukraine's proposal for a 30-day ceasefire, instead linking any truce to conditions such as halting Ukraine's mobilization and freezing Western arms shipments.
• Preparations for the prisoner exchange are underway, with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy describing it as the only tangible outcome of the Istanbul talks.