I spoke with the newly elected President of Estonia. I congratulated Ülle Madise @YlleMadise on taking office. Ukraine always wishes the people of Estonia nothing but success and the achievement of all their goals. I am grateful for the much-needed and right signals – Estonia’s support in all areas will continue. Estonia is also closely following the diplomatic efforts aimed at achieving peace. I shared details of the talks in Oslo and our communication with the American side following their meeting in Russia. There is an agreement to hold a trilateral meeting at the team level as early as November, and it is important that the meeting is not postponed. Ukraine is ready for negotiations at any time, and our position is that the sooner the talks begin, the better. Of course, like Estonia and other partners, we have always advocated for Europe’s presence in the negotiations. Europe must have a say in all formats that can deliver real decisions. We also discussed the consequences of Russian strikes, particularly on our energy infrastructure and railways. Russia is deliberately trying to destroy our locomotives, and therefore any support that helps increase our rolling stock of this type would be very helpful. Thank you, Estonia!

I accepted the letters of credence from the newly appointed ambassadors of Canada, Spain, Switzerland, Egypt, and Türkiye to Ukraine. Different countries and different relations, but each is important to Ukraine. We value the diplomatic presence in Kyiv, alongside our people. Last night, the ambassadors experienced Russian ballistic missile strikes, saw the destruction, and indubitably understand how much Ukraine needs help in protecting lives. Supplies and the strengthening of our air defense – from Patriots to HAWKs – all of this matters every single day. We discussed our efforts to achieve peace and Ukraine’s European integration. We also talked about Russia’s blockade of the Black Sea and the food crisis it is already causing in countries that rely on Ukrainian grain. And of course, we discussed current bilateral issues with all the ambassadors. Thank you for supporting Ukraine.

Russian ballistic missiles struck the grounds of a university in Kyiv and the area around it – effectively the campus, Kyoto Park, the area near a metro station, and residential buildings. The exact number of casualties is not yet known. But tragically, there are victims. There are people injured. Rescue operations are underway. There is extensive damage, and there are also reports that people may be trapped under the rubble. All emergency services are at the scene and doing their work – saving lives. The missiles hit very crowded areas, and there is not a single military facility nearby. This was a strike directly on the city, on its infrastructure. Unfortunately, there may be more strikes coming. The attack with “shaheds” is also continuing – against Kyiv and our other cities and communities. And it is precisely under such circumstances, when the threat is constant, when strikes can come at any moment and target cities and villages directly, that artificial delays in providing air defense to Ukraine help terror. It is important that political agreements be implemented promptly at the team level. It is important that our partners understand that Ukraine needs the proper tools to destroy Russian ballistic missile launchers. This would be the most effective way to save lives. It is important that the world sees that Russia is showing nothing but a desire to kill and continue waging war. Ukraine must not be left to face this alone, and it is solely Russia’s fault that the war is still going on and people are still dying. Please take care of yourselves. All partners should stand with Ukraine – with the protection of lives.