Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with Syria's foreign minister Asaad al-Shibani in Moscow on Thursday, the first visit by a top official from Syria's new government since the toppling of longtime Russian ally Bashar al-Assad in December.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday promised reconstruction aid to Syria and extended an invitation to President Ahmed al-Sharaa to visit Moscow. "We expect President al-Sharaa to be able to attend the first Russia-Arab League summit,

Despite having been on opposite sides of the battle lines during the civil war, the new rulers in Damascus, headed by interim President Ahmed al-Sharra, have taken a pragmatic approach to relations with Moscow.

President Donald Trump said his foreign envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Russia in the coming days as the president calls for to an end to the conflict in Ukraine.

His tighter deadline to reach peace with Ukraine and his threat against Russia’s energy customers contrast with a lighter approach to Russia elsewhere.

Russia fired 309 Shahed and decoy drones, and eight Iskander-K cruise missiles overnight, the Ukrainian air force said.

Russia launched waves of missiles and drones on Kyiv before dawn on Thursday, killing at least 14 people including a six-year-old boy, and wounding well over 100 others, officials in the Ukrainian capital said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has made clear that he wants a deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine by August 8, the United States told the United Nations Security Council on Thursday. “Both Russia and Ukraine must negotiate a ceasefire and durable peace.

The attack was the latest in Russia’s escalating air campaign that has targeted Kyiv and dozens of other cities across Ukraine with thousands of drones and missiles in the past few months. It came three days into a 10-day ultimatum given by Trump to Russian leader Vladimir Putin to agree a ceasefire in Ukraine or face tighter sanctions,