KYIV, Ukraine (AP) 鈥 A Ukrainian drone attack left at least seven people dead and a Russian strike on Odesa killed two people on Thursday, officials said, just hours after Kyiv and Washington signed a long-anticipated agreement granting U.S. access to Ukraine鈥檚 mineral resources.
The attack in the partially occupied Kherson region of southern Ukraine, which struck a market in the town of Oleshky, killed seven and wounded more than 20 people, Moscow-appointed Gov. Vladimir Saldo said.
"At the time of the attack, there were many people in the market,鈥 Saldo wrote on Telegram. After the first wave of strikes, he said, Ukraine sent further drones to 鈥渇inish off鈥 any survivors.
Meanwhile, a Russian drone strike on the Black Sea port city of Odesa early Thursday killed two people and injured 15 others, Ukrainian emergency services said.
Regional Gov. Oleh Kiper said the barrage struck apartment buildings, private homes, a supermarket and a school.
Videos shared by Kiper on Telegram showed a high-rise building with a severely damaged facade, a shattered storefront and firefighters battling flames.
A drone struck and ignited a fire at a petrol station in the center of Kharkiv, Ukraine鈥檚 second-largest city, according to Mayor Ihor Terekhov.
Following the attacks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia had ignored a U.S. proposal for a full and unconditional ceasefire for more than 50 days now.
鈥淭here were also our proposals 鈥 at the very least, to refrain from striking civilian infrastructure and to establish lasting silence in the sky, at sea, and on land,鈥 he said. "Russia has responded to all this with new shelling and new assaults.鈥
Agreement on mineral wealth
The U.S. and Ukraine on Wednesday granting American access to Ukraine鈥檚 vast mineral resources, finalizing a deal months in the making that could enable continued military aid to Kyiv amid concerns that President Donald Trump might scale back support in ongoing peace negotiations with Russia.
Tymofiy Mylovanov, former economy minister and current president of the Kyiv School of Economics, said Thursday that despite what he described as 鈥渦nimaginable pressure鈥 during negotiations on the newly signed minerals deal, Ukraine succeeded in defending its interests.
鈥淭his is a huge political and diplomatic win for Ukraine,鈥 Mylovanov wrote on Facebook. 鈥淎ll the draconian demands of the other side were canceled. The deal looks fair.鈥
Mylovanov said the deal includes no requirement for Ukraine to repay previous U.S. aid, nor does it restrict Kyiv to selling only to American buyers. Instead, he said, the deal recognizes contributions from both sides: Ukraine鈥檚 in the form of revenues from new projects, and the U.S. potentially through military assistance.
Kyiv residents voiced mixed reactions Thursday morning to the newly signed U.S.-Ukraine agreement, with many saying they had not yet had time to fully understand the deal鈥檚 implications.
Among those who spoke to The Associated Press about the deal was Diana Abramova, who attended a rally in Independence Square demanding information on missing Ukrainian soldiers. Her father, Valentyn Stroyvans, went missing in combat last year.
鈥淎ny news is hard to take 鈥 whether it鈥檚 about negotiations or anything else,鈥 Abramova said. 鈥淏ut I still believe and hope that any action will bring us closer to one thing: Ukraine鈥檚 victory. Only victory.鈥
Seventy-four-year-old university lecturer Natalia Vysotska said she wasn鈥檛 familiar with the details of the agreement but remained cautiously optimistic.
"I don鈥檛 know what the terms are 鈥 they may not be favorable for Ukraine at all. Still, if it was signed, our experts must have weighed the pros and cons. I hope it will be beneficial.鈥
Others shared a more skeptical view. Iryna Vasylevska, a 37-year-old Kyiv resident, expressed frustration and disillusionment with the broader implications of the deal.
She told the AP she feels terrible that 鈥渙ur land is just a bargaining chip for the rest of the world and that we do not have our own full protection, but rely on someone.鈥
鈥淢y vision is that instead of strengthening ourselves, we continue to give it all away. I feel sorry for our land and for our people,鈥 she said.
Russian reaction to the minerals deal
Reaction to the signing was generally muted in Moscow on Wednesday, a holiday in Russia. But the deputy chair of Russia鈥檚 春色直播 Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, said that Trump had forced Ukraine to effectively 鈥減ay鈥 for American military aid with its mineral resources.
鈥淣ow military supplies will have to be paid for with the national wealth of a disappearing country," he claimed in a post on Telegram.
Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the Russian Civic Chamber鈥檚 commission on sovereignty, told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti that Zelenskyy had effectively handed Ukraine over to 鈥渓egally prescribed slavery.鈥
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A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Russia's Defense Ministry reported shooting down eight Ukrainian drones overnight on Sunday. The statement was made on Thursday.
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Morton reported from London.
