Russia is "not preparing for any war with Europe," and "if you look at the political processes taking place in Europe, it's obvious that the peoples of Europe don't want to fight Russia," President Vladimir Putin said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian armed forces struck energy facilities supporting the operation of Ukrainian military-industrial complex enterprises and logistics centers, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Thursday.

The more Russia degrades Ukrainian military logistics and drone-targeting infrastructure, the sooner Ukrainian forces will be forced to surrender, military journalist Alexey Borzenko tells Sputnik.

On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and US special envoy Steve Witkoff held talks in St. Petersburg. On the Russian side, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov and Russian special presidential envoy for economic cooperation with foreign countries Kirill Dmitriev also took part in the negotiations.

"For now, Abu Dhabi is being discussed," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian media.

The Kremlin has not heard a single statement from Ukraine or European countries indicating a willingness to move from escalation to dialogue, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

"Coalition military presence is being built up along our borders," Belousov said at a joint meeting of the Russian and Belarusian defense ministries in Minsk.

Russia and China are strengthening cooperation to combat the criminal misuse of digital technologies, Russian Supreme Court Chairman Igor Krasnov said during a meeting with Chen Wenqing, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

The 19th Verona Eurasian Economic Forum, held in Istanbul on October 22–23, 2026, brings together policymakers, experts and business leaders from East and West under the theme "Challenges of a Changing World and a Changing Economy" to discuss global economic and geopolitical developments.

Russian forces have liberated the village of Mirovka in the Zaporozhye region, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

“Many people are somewhat surprised by our economic work with the US, and I have no doubt that as soon as we conclude more deals with America, European companies will come to us,” Russian special presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev told the 2026 Verona Eurasian Economic Forum in Istanbul on Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Thursday that it had detained a resident of Sevastopol, who provided the Security Service of Ukraine with information about the locations of military equipment and units of the Black Sea Fleet.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian forces carried out a massive wave of overnight strikes targeting Ukrainian defense industry facilities with precision-guided ground-launched weapons and drones, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Thursday.

Chairman of the Supreme Court of Russia Igor Krasnov met with Minister of Justice of the People’s Republic of China He Rong.

The main achievement of Vladimir Putin's talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff was strengthening mutual trust between Putin and Donald Trump and advancing Russia-US cooperation beyond the Ukrainian conflict, political analyst Dmitry Suslov told Sputnik.

The Russian armed forces struck Ukrainian defense industry complex enterprises and transport infrastructure facilities in Kiev, as well as port infrastructure in the Odessa region overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

US President Donald Trump said Washington is avoiding new sanctions and other escalatory steps against Russia while delicate negotiations over the Ukraine conflict continue, arguing that the sides may now be closer to an agreement than they have been in a long time.

US President Donald Trump claimed at a rally that the United States had defeated Iran “militarily, financially, and otherwise,” while arguing that Washington could leave the conflict soon.

The US State Department ordered non-emergency government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as security concerns mount following a series of Houthi attacks, CBS News reported.