A Russian drone strike hit a passenger bus in northeastern Ukraine on Saturday, killing nine people and injuring four others, Ukrainian officials allege. 

The attack came just hours after Russian and Ukrainian officials held their first direct peace talks in years, although the two sides failed to reach a ceasefire agreement for the conflict that began with a February 2022 invasion by Moscow.

Ukraine’s national police released photos showing the aftermath of Saturday’s strike in the city of Bilopillia in the Sumy region. The city is about six miles from the front line and border with Russia.

“This is another war crime by Russia — a deliberate strike on civilian transport that posed no threat,” the Sumy regional administration said on Telegram.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks on the phone during a meeting at the European Political Community summit in Skanderbeg Square in Tirana, Albania, on Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP)

Zelenskyy said he discussed the negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of France, Germany, the U.K. and Poland. On X, he called for “tough sanctions” against Moscow if it rejects “a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to killings.”

Zelenskyy was in Tirana, Albania, on Friday, to meet with leaders of 47 European countries to discuss security, defense and democratic standards. The leaders he met included French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

“Pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war,” Zelenskyy said on X.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.