Ukraine attacks Russian oil depot as Kiev and Moscow intensify attacks ahead of Trump-imposed ceasefire deadline

Ukrainian forces continued to attack military infrastructure deep inside Russia, as Kiev and Moscow traded attacks ahead of a deadline set by US President Donald Trump for the Kremlin to accept a peace deal with Ukraine.

Russian authorities in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi said Ukrainian drones set fire to a regional oil depot early on the morning of August 3, but the blaze was later extinguished by more than 120 firefighters. Sochi Mayor Andrei Proshunin said there were no casualties.

In the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, a Russian missile strike destroyed homes and civilian infrastructure, the regional governor said on August 3. At least seven civilians were injured in the attack. Ukraine's State Emergency Service said three of the wounded were being treated in a hospital.

In the frontline regions of Zaporizhia and Kherson, at least three people were killed and more than a dozen wounded in Russian attacks in the 24 hours to August 3, according to Ukraine's regional governors.

This latest wave of attacks comes as Ukraine appears to be increasing drone strikes deep inside Russian territory, while Trump is pressuring Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire and end the war, which is now in its fourth year.

In July, Trump said Putin had 50 days to end the war or face steep tariffs on Russia's oil and other exports. Earlier this week, however, he said he had set a new deadline of "10 or 12" days, later clarifying that August 8 was the final deadline.

This coincided with a deadly week for civilians in Ukraine, including a July 31 attack on Kiev by more than 300 drones that killed at least 31 people, while Ukrainian forces also stepped up attacks on Russian infrastructure.

Russian authorities said the latest drone attack on the Sochi oil refinery was one of several attacks launched by Ukraine over the weekend against energy and military facilities in the southern Russian cities of Ryazan, Penza and Voronezh.

The Russian Defense Ministry also announced on August 3 that its air defenses had intercepted 93 Ukrainian drones overnight, 60 of which were over the Black Sea.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Air Force announced on August 3 that Russia had shot down 76 drones and seven missiles overnight, 61 of which were shot down.

She added that 16 drones and six missiles hit targets in eight countries.

Ukraine announces new prisoner exchange agreement

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on August 3 that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to an exchange of 1,200 prisoners.

"There is an agreement for the exchange of 1,200 people," he wrote on X, explaining that they are currently working on lists of those to be exchanged and are working to "facilitate the return of our civilians."

Zelensky made the statement after a meeting with his national security team to discuss "the progress of the negotiations - in particular, the implementation of the agreements reached during the meetings with the Russian side in Istanbul," referring to the July talks between Russia and Ukraine hosted by Turkey.

He added that "preparations for a new meeting" had also been made.

There was no immediate comment from the Russian side.

Each of the three rounds of negotiations to end the war in Ukraine this year resulted in some form of prisoner exchange but failed to achieve diplomatic progress on a permanent ceasefire.

What will happen to Trump's ceasefire deadline for Putin?

The escalating attacks and the looming deadline for a deal set by Washington come after Trump declared on August 1 that he had deployed nuclear-capable submarines to "relevant regions."

This announcement was in response to a threatening social media post by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, currently deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, which suggested he was ready to launch a nuclear attack as tensions rose over the war in Ukraine.

In an August 1 post on Truth Social, Trump stated that he decided to position the nuclear submarines "closer to Russia" because of Medvedev's "very provocative statements."

The US president did not specify whether the submarines were nuclear-powered or armed with nuclear weapons.

When asked by reporters why he ordered the deployment of the submarines, Trump responded that "a threat was made by a former president of Russia and we will defend our people."

He referred to a July 28 post by Medvedev on X in which he accused Washington of playing an “ultimatum game” in response to Trump’s announcement that he would shorten the deadline for the Kremlin to accept a ceasefire from 50 to 10 days, writing: “Every new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war.”

Trump has recently expressed frustration with Putin, having initially seemed more conciliatory toward a deal with Moscow after returning to office in January.

The US president has since stated that he believes Putin is not willing to negotiate and, earlier this week, called Russia's continued attacks on civilian areas "disgusting."

Putin has not publicly responded to Trump's deadline. He has regularly claimed he is interested in peace, but only on terms completely unacceptable to Kiev.

In an apparent reference to Trump's comments, Putin said on August 1: "All disappointments arise from exaggerated expectations. This is a well-known general rule."

It is not yet clear what will happen if Trump's August 8 deadline is not met.

In a perhaps last-minute attempt to secure a deal, Trump said he would send his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, to Moscow after his current trip to Israel, although a specific itinerary was not announced.

Trump has talked about imposing further sanctions on Russia and imposing high secondary import tariffs on countries that import Russian oil. Since this would also affect China and India, the two largest consumers of Russian oil, some analysts have expressed skepticism that Washington would take such a step.

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