"Russia's Deputy UN envoy Dmitry Polyansky questioned the point of peace talks between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky if the Ukrainian leader continues to reject Moscow's key demands, while speaking at the Security Council session in New York City on Friday. "What is there to talk about if Zelensky publicly states that he is in no mood to discuss the territorial issue? […] The head of the Kiev regime also very unequivocally states that no one can prevent Ukraine from joining NATO, which also goes against the words of President Trump," he stated. The diplomat persisted, "If the overdue Ukrainian president is not ready for such a discussion and is generally unwilling to make any compromises, [...] it is not entirely clear why he insists on meeting with Russian President Putin." The remarks come after US President Donald Trump met Putin in Alaska earlier this month and held separate talks with Zelensky and European leaders in Washington DC. Polyansky also accused the West of blaming Russia for civilian casualties while ignoring that they result solely from "falling debris from downed missiles or drones, or from Ukrainian air defence missiles directly crashing off course." "We did indeed, on the night of 27-28 August, hit objects related to the military-industrial complex of that country as part of the task of demilitarising Ukraine," he confirmed, adding that "62 percent of Ukraine's key military-industrial complex enterprises have already been damaged." The envoy further proclaimed that Ukraine deliberately positioned military infrastructure in populated areas, noting it is "not surprising that Ukrainian air defence missiles again fell on residential neighbourhoods. This is what caused the damage to UK and EU mission buildings and the deaths of civilians in partially destroyed homes." The statement followed Ukrainian Air Force reports that Russia launched 598 drones and 31 missiles overnight Thursday, of which 563 drones and 26 missiles were downed, with impacts in 13 locations and debris in 26 areas. Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO. Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Volodymyr Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed rounds of sanctions on Moscow."