Russia carried out one of its largest combined attacks of the war overnight into Saturday, launching 653 drones and 51 missiles at targets across Ukraine in a barrage that struck energy facilities, residential buildings and railway infrastructure in multiple regions.

The assault, which occurred on Ukraine's Armed Forces Day, triggered air raid alerts across the country and coincided with ongoing peace talks between Ukrainian and American officials in Florida.

Ukrainian air defenses intercepted or neutralized 585 drones and 30 missiles, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. At least eight people were wounded in the attacks, including three in the Kyiv region, Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko said.

"The night was tough," Klymenko wrote on social media on December 6. "Russia again struck civilian infrastructure with drones and missiles."

Scope of the attack

The Ukrainian Air Force said its radar units detected and tracked 704 aerial attack targets overnight. The weapons used included 653 strike drones of the Shahed and Gerbera types launched from multiple locations in Russia and occupied Crimea, with over 300 of them being Shaheds.

The missile component consisted of three Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles launched from the Ryazan and Tambov regions of Russia, 34 cruise missiles including Kh-101, Iskander-K and Caliber variants fired from the Rostov region and the Black Sea, and four Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles from Bryansk, Rostov, Krasnodar and Crimea.

A total of 29 locations were struck across Ukraine, along with 60 additional strike drones that found their targets. Debris from downed drones fell in three locations.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the regions of Kyiv, Dnipro, Chernihiv, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Lviv, Volyn and Mykolaiv were affected. He said energy facilities were the main targets of the attack.

Railway and energy infrastructure targeted

The railway station building in Fastiv, located in the Kyiv region, was struck in the attack. Zelenskyy called the strike "meaningless from a military point of view" and said Moscow "could not have been unaware of this."

Ukrzaliznytsia, the Ukrainian railway company, reported that railway infrastructure was hit, prompting adjustments to passenger train routes passing through Fastiv. Severe fires were reported at a damaged depot in the town, where charred electric trains were later photographed.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy reported that the attack targeted electricity generation, distribution and transmission facilities in eight regions: Kyiv, Chernihiv, Lviv, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv.

"As a result of the attack in the morning, consumers in the Odesa, Chernihiv, Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Mykolaiv Regions are without electricity," the Ministry of Energy said.

Emergency repair work began where the security situation allowed. Hourly outage schedules were applied in all regions of Ukraine, and power limitation schedules for industrial consumers and businesses continued in effect nationwide.

In the Kharkiv region, Russian forces struck the dam of the Pechenihy Reservoir, temporarily closing traffic on two highways. The Infrastructure Restoration and Development Service said the restrictions were introduced due to "dangerous damage to road infrastructure and the impossibility of safe travel." A detour route was organized for drivers.

Peace talks continue amid escalation

The wave of attacks coincided with ongoing talks between Ukrainian and American officials aimed at ending the war. US special envoy Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Ukrainian negotiators Rustem Umerov and Andriy Hnatov discussed a security framework for postwar Ukraine in Florida on Friday, the sixth meeting between the parties over two weeks.

"Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia's readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings," Witkoff said in a summary of Friday's meeting shared on social media.

The parties also reviewed what was described as a "future prosperity agenda" aimed at supporting Ukraine's postwar reconstruction, joint US-Ukraine economic initiatives and long-term recovery projects.

Ukraine and its European allies have accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of faking interest in peace efforts after previous talks with the US resulted in little breakthrough or compromise.

Russia's Ministry of Defense said its air defenses shot down 116 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory overnight. According to Russian Telegram news channel Astra, Ukraine hit Russia's Ryazan Oil Refinery. Regional governor Pavel Malkov said a residential building was damaged and drone debris fell at an industrial facility, but he did not mention the refinery.

Russian forces advance in eastern Ukraine

The barrage came as Russian forces made advances on the ground. The US-based Institute for the Study of War confirmed in its December 5 report that Russian forces advanced north and southeast of Myrnohrad and infiltrated positions in northwestern Pokrovsk.

Myrnohrad and Pokrovsk are located in the southeastern part of the country, nearly 200 miles from the Russian border town of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky.

Data reviewed by the research organization found that while Russian forces advanced on Myrnohrad, they had not encircled Ukrainian forces in the city as of December 5. However, Russian forces are attempting to complete the isolation of the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad pocket, the ISW stated.

During a speech on December 6, Zelenskyy congratulated the "warriors" holding back Russian forces on all fronts.

"I thank our servicemembers who, on the battlefield, do their utmost so that Ukraine has confidence at the negotiating table," Zelenskyy said.

Attacks continue overnight into Sunday

Russia launched another attack overnight into Sunday, striking Ukraine with 241 drones and five missiles. Ukrainian forces shot down about 175 of the drones and four of the missiles, according to the Air Force. Sixty-five drones hit targets in 14 locations.

At least two civilians were killed in the second wave of attacks, one in Donetsk and one in Novhorod-Siverskyi in the Chernihiv region, Ukrainian officials said. The major target of the Sunday attacks was the industrial city of Kremenchuk, where energy infrastructure was struck.

Fastiv came under drone attack for the second time in a day.

Zelenskyy said that in this week alone, Russia launched over 1,600 attack drones and around 1,200 guided aerial bombs at Ukraine.

"The priority is clear: more air defense systems and missiles, and more support for our defenders," Zelenskyy said. "Every agreement must be implemented faster."