Russian President Vladimir Putin says that any foreign troops deployed to Ukraine, particularly while its invasion is still ongoing, would be considered "legitimate targets" by Moscow's forces. Putin's comments on Friday came hours after European leaders repledged their commitment to a potential peacekeeping force. Putin said that "we assume that they will be legitimate targets" if any foreign troops are deployed to Ukraine "especially now while fighting is ongoing." Putin made the remarks at an economic forum in the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok. Putin also dismissed the idea of peacekeeping forces in Ukraine after any final peace deal.

French President Emmanuel Macron says that 26 of Ukraine's allies have pledged to deploy troops as a "reassurance force" for the war-torn country once fighting ends in the conflict with Russia. Speaking after a meeting of the so-called "coalition of the willing" in Paris, Macron says the countries have committed to deploying troops in Ukraine — or to maintaining a presence on land, at sea, or in the air — to help guarantee the country's security the day after a ceasefire or peace is achieved. Earlier Thursday, Macron and other European leaders met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the the U.S. envoy for peace talks, Steve Witkoff.

Authorities say a mass Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine's capital has killed at least 21 people and wounded 48. The attack early Thursday on Kyiv was the first major Russian combined attack on Kyiv in weeks as U.S.-led peace efforts struggle to gain traction. A Ukrainian official says Russia launched decoy drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles and struck at least 20 locations across seven districts of Kyiv. This is the first major combined attack on Kyiv since U.S. President Donald Trump met Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month to discuss ending the three-year war in Ukraine.

A Ukrainian military official says Russia's invading forces have broken into an eighth region of Ukraine, seeking to capture more ground in their three-year war of attrition as U.S.-led peace efforts struggle to gain traction. Victor Trehubov, spokesman for local ground forces, told The Associated Press that some Russian troops have entered two villages in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, a major Ukrainian industrial center next to the Donetsk region where fierce fighting has been taking place. Ukrainian troops are under severe strain as they try to hold back Russia's bigger army.

NATO defense chiefs have discussed potential security guarantees for Ukraine to help end Russia's three-year war. Italian Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone said 32 defense chiefs held a video conference and had a "candid discussion" amid a U.S.-led diplomatic push for peace. Ukraine is seeking military assurances against the threat of future Russian invasions. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov criticized the talks for excluding Moscow. An alliance official said U.S. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's supreme allied commander Europe, took part in the virtual talks Wednesday. U.S. Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also met with European military chiefs Tuesday evening in Washington .

The second Oval Office meeting in six months between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy went off smoothly, in sharp contrast to their disastrous encounter in February. European leaders joined the discussions in a show of transatlantic unity and both they and Zelenskyy repeatedly thanked Trump for his efforts to end Russia's three-year war on Ukraine. But despite the guarded optimism and friendly banter among the leaders, there was little concrete progress on the main obstacles to ending the war. That deadlock likely favors Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces continue to make steady, if slow progress on the ground in Ukraine.