Russia says no Christmas ceasefire in Ukraine

Moscow said no "Christmas ceasefire" was on the cards after nearly 10 months of war in Ukraine, rejecting a call by Kyiv to start withdrawing troops by Christmas as a step to end Europe's biggest conflict since World War Two.

Russia and Ukraine are not currently engaged in talks to end the fighting, which is raging in the east and south with little movement on either side, Qazet.az reports.

Violence returned to Kyiv on Wednesday, with the first major drone attack on Ukraine's capital in weeks. Two administrative buildings were hit, but air defences largely repelled the attack. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said 13 drones had been shot down.

In one Kyiv district, where snow lay on the ground, residents said they heard the loud whirring engine of an Iranian Shahed drone followed by a powerful explosion at a building next to their homes.

"I want this all to be over ... For (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, that bastard, to die," said Yana, 39, who had been getting ready for work when the attack took place.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed, millions more displaced and cities reduced to rubble since Russia invaded its neighbour on Feb. 24, saying it needed to protect Russian speakers from Ukrainian far-right nationlists. Kyiv and its allies call it an unprovoked war of choice.