Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Istanbul, October 31, 2026
EA-Frontline VideoCast: Ukraine Resumes Refinery Strikes as Russia Refuses Ceasefire Beyond Oleshky
EA-Ukraine VideoCasts: Why Kremlin Won’t Re-Enter Meaningful Talks to End Invasion
Saturday’s Coverage: US Approves Sale of 500 Patriots to Kyiv…But Delivery Could Take Years
UPDATE 0859 GMT:
Russia attacked Ukraine with 433 strike drones, 64 of them jet-powered, overnight.
As of 7:30 a.m., air defenses down 371 Russian drones, including 47 jet-powered UAVs. More than 40 strike drones were still in the air.
UPDATE 0852 GMT:
Evacuated residents of Russian-occupied Oleshky in southern Ukraine finally reached free Ukrainian territory on Saturday.
Around 2,000 residents of the town in the Kherson region, deprived of food and other basic supplies, were held by the Russian forces who feared Ukrainian attacks. A local ceasefire, spurred by Pope Leo XIV, was established last week.
The evacuees were taken by bus to Russia, flown to Belarus, and then moved back into Ukraine.
Evacuees from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky have reached Ukrainian-controlled territory on Oct. 31 after an arduous 19-hour journey.
Disembarking from the buses to step on Ukrainian-controlled soil for the first time in years, many residents broke out in tears.
Video: Yuliia Taradiuk; Olena Zashko / the Kyiv Independent.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) October 31, 2026
UPDATE 0817 GMT:
Speaking at the G20 Foreign Ministers summit in Atlanta, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said,
“I don’t know if negotiated peace is achievable in Ukraine, that’s what we’re trying to find out”.
He added, “I don’t think anyone here is claiming that we’re on the verge of a negotiated settlement.”
Three senior European officials said Rubio does not foresee Vladimir Putin’s acceptance of a settlement before spring 2027.
Countering Donald Trump’s repeated declarations that a deal is imminent, Rubio said:
We’re going to continue to try and see if we can reach an agreement, but I’m not here to tell you we are on the verge of one.
President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on Saturday that Ukraine is still preparing for technical talks with Russia and the US in the first half of November. However, the Kremlin has pulled back from its initial acceptance of a meeting in the UAE’s Abu Dhabi.
UPDATE 0806 GMT:
Ukraine’s drones again struck the NORSI oil refinery in Kstovo in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region overnight.
Nizhny Novgorod Governor Gleb Nikitin announced destruction from “more than a hundred drones”. No one was injured, but “an industrial facility in the Kstovsky district sustained significant damage”.
NORSI is Russia’s fourth-largest oil refinery and second-largest gasoline producer, processing around 15-17 million metric tons of crude annually. It produces bitumen and the diesel and aviation fuel used to support Russian forces.
The refinery is around 800 kms (500 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Ukraine has targeted the facility a number of times, including a strike on August 26 that sparked a large fire and forced the suspension of operations.
More photos from Kstovo, Russia, showing the scale of last night’s massive Ukrainian drone attack on the Lukoil oil refinery.
Usually, footage from refinery strikes shows one or two fires. This time, we can see what appear to be at least 7–8 separate points of fire, possibly even more.
— Special Kherson Cat (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) November 1, 2026 at 6:45 AM
ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has hailed “an important and substantive meeting” with Türkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Istanbul on Saturday.
The two leaders discussed the situation in the Black Sea, where Russia has been attacking ships and Ukrainian ports in an attempted blockade. Zelensky said that Erdoğan agreed to work on a grain corridor, restoring the route opened after a previous Russian blockade was broken in 2022.
Erdoğan said attacks against civilian vessels “and actions that further escalate tensions in the Black Sea serve no one’s interest.”
We cannot accept these attacks under any circumstances, regardless of who carries them out or what justification is offered. We call on all parties to act responsibly on this matter.
Zelensky also posted about “new joint industrial and other economic projects” under a Free Trade Agreement that has come into force. He cited “significant potential in energy and infrastructure” amid meetings with representatives of Turkish energy companies.
Türkiye is expected to increase supplies of generators and other energy equipment as early as next week, as Ukraine faces Russia’s attempt to break it with airstrikes over the winter.
