Russian attack on western Ukraine hits an American factory during the
US-led push for peace
[August 22, 2025]
By SAMYA KULLAB and ILLIA NOVIKOV
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a rare drone and missile attack on
western Ukraine overnight, officials said Thursday, striking targets
including an American-owned electronics plant and injecting further
uncertainty into the U.S.-led efforts to end the 3-year-old war.
The aerial assault on a part of Ukraine that has largely not experienced
such focused attacks was one of Russia's biggest this year and came as
Moscow objects to key aspects of proposals that could end the fighting.
U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the war with Russian President
Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week before hosting Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House on Monday.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted “enterprises of the
Ukrainian military-industrial complex," including drone factories,
storage depots, missile launch sites and areas where Ukrainian troops
were gathered. Russia has repeatedly denied targeting civilian areas of
Ukraine.
But in a post on X, Zelenskyy wrote that “the Russians practically
burned down an American company producing electronics — home appliances,
nothing military.”
“The Russians knew exactly where they lobbed the missiles. We believe
this was a deliberate attack against American property and investments
in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy wrote, adding: “Telling attack, right as the
world awaits a clear answer from Russia on negotiations to end the war.”
Trump last month questioned Putin’s commitment to ending the war, saying
the Russian leader “talks nice and then he bombs everybody.”
In a social media post Thursday, Trump criticized his predecessor, Joe
Biden, for not providing Ukraine with more weaponry it needs to “fight
back."
“It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an
invaders country,” Trump said. “It’s like a great team in sports that
has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offensive. There is
no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia.”
The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on
whether Trump is considering changes to the types of weapons the U.S.
will provide to Kyiv.
The push for peace
Russia has fired nearly 1,000 long-range drones and missiles at Ukraine
since Monday's White House talks, according to Ukrainian tallies.
European countries are discussing how they can deploy military assets to
deter any postwar Russian assault on Ukraine. But the Kremlin won’t
accept the deployment of any troops from NATO countries, and Russian
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Wednesday that making security
arrangements for Ukraine without Moscow’s involvement was pointless.
Putin is ready to meet with Zelenskyy to discuss peace terms, Lavrov
said Thursday, but only after key issues have been worked out by senior
officials in what could be a protracted negotiating process because the
two sides remain far apart.
Ukrainian and European leaders have accused Putin of stalling in the
peace efforts in the hopes that his bigger army, which has been making
slow advances, can capture more Ukrainian land.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a conference call Thursday with
the national security advisers of European countries expected to play a
role in future security guarantees for Ukraine, a senior U.S. official
said. In addition to the national security advisers from Britain,
Finland, France, Germany and Italy, officials from the European
Commission and NATO also joined the call. The U.S. official spoke on
condition of anonymity to outline a discussion that had not been
publicly announced.
Military leaders from the U.S., Ukraine and these five European
countries met Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington to work out military
options, said Joseph Holstead, a spokesperson for the U.S. Joint Chiefs
of Staff. His statement gave no details about what specifically was
discussed at the meeting, which also included NATO’s supreme allied
commander in Europe.
But an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't
authorized to speak publicly about the discussions said, “Everything is
being considered and nothing is being ruled out,” regarding security
guarantees for Ukraine, apart from U.S. boots on the ground.
[to top of second column]
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President Donald Trump meets with Russia's President Vladimir Putin
Friday, Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
At left is Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and second from
right is Secretary of State Marco Rubio. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree
Nikhinson)
Military chiefs and their staffs are looking at a variety of options
including “how big” the security guarantee is and what happens if it
is implemented with or without a ceasefire, the official said,
noting that European defense chiefs acknowledged its their
“responsibility to secure Europe.”
The Pentagon's policy chief, Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge
Colby, attended meetings with European military leaders this week to
personally convey that the U.S. military plans to play only a
minimal role in any security guarantee for Ukraine, Pentagon press
secretary Kingsley Wilson said in a statement.
Western Ukraine is struck
Russia launched 574 drones and 40 ballistic and cruise missiles
overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. The attack mostly targeted
western regions of the country where much of the military aid
provided by Ukraine’s Western allies is believed to be delivered and
stored. The strikes killed at least one person and injured 15
others, according to officials.
A U.S. electronics plant near the Hungarian border was struck,
according to Andy Hunder, president of the American Chamber of
Commerce in Ukraine. The Flex factory is one of the biggest American
investments in Ukraine, Hunder told The Associated Press.
At the moment of impact, 600 night shift workers were on the
premises, and six were injured, Hunder said. Russian attacks on
Ukraine since it launched its invasion have damaged property
belonging to more than half of the chamber’s roughly 600 members, he
added
“The message is clear: Russia is not looking for peace. Russia is
attacking American business in Ukraine, humiliating American
business,” Hunder said.
In the western city of Lviv, one person was killed and three were
injured as the attack damaged 26 residential buildings, a
kindergarten and administrative buildings, regional head Maksym
Kozytskyi wrote on Telegram. The regional prosecutor’s office said
three Russian cruise missiles with cluster munitions struck the
city.
Ukraine's leader responds
Zelenskyy condemned the attack amid the push for peace and accused
Moscow of “trying to wriggle out of holding a meeting” between Putin
and himself.
“They don’t want to end this war. They continue their massive
attacks on Ukraine and their ferocious assaults along the
frontline,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “They even lob missiles at an
American enterprise, alongside many other purely civilian targets.”
He also urged the international community to respond with stronger
pressure on Moscow, including tougher sanctions and tariffs.
In prepared comments released Thursday, Zelenskyy said plans for
security guarantees would become clearer by the end of next week. He
said he then expects to be ready to hold direct talks with Putin for
the first time since the full-scale invasion.
The talks could also be conducted in a trilateral format alongside
Trump, Zelenskyy said.
A venue for the meeting is being discussed, and Switzerland, Austria
and Turkey are possibilities, Zelenskyy added.
Ukraine, meanwhile, has kept up its attacks with domestically
produced long-range drones on infrastructure inside Russia that
supports Moscow's war effort. Among other targets, it has hit oil
refineries, and Russian wholesale gasoline prices have reached
record highs in recent days.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones on Thursday wounded four civilians in
Russia’s Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, according to
Telegram posts by regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov. He said the
drones damaged apartment blocks, a commercial site and a car.
___
Associated Press reporters Matthew Lee, Konstantin Toropin and Aamer
Madhani in Washington, and Emma Burrows in London contributed to
this report.
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