Russian Forces Advance As Ukraine Hit By More Than 600 Drone Strikes Overnight

Russian forces made advances in Ukraine as U.S. and Ukrainian officials prepared for a third day of peace talks in Miami.

Russia unleashed 51 missiles and 623 drone strikes on Dec. 6, which was observed as Armed Forces Day in Ukraine.

Ukraine shot down 30 missiles and neutralized 585 drones in the attack, which targeted residential buildings, energy facilities, and railways in 29 locations.

At least eight people were wounded in Saturday’s strikes, including three in the Kyiv region, according to Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko.

“The night was tough,” Klymenko wrote in a translation of an X post on Dec. 6.

“Russia again struck civilian infrastructure with drones and missiles.”

As Jacki Thrapp details below for The Epoch Times, the barrage occurred after Russian forces advanced north and southeast of Myrnohrad and infiltrated positions in northwestern Pokrovsk, the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) confirmed in its Dec. 5 report.

Myrnohrad and Pokrovsk are located in the southeastern part of the country, nearly 200 miles from the Russian border town of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky.

Data reviewed by the nonprofit research organization found that even though Russian forces advanced on Myrnohrad, they have not encircled Ukrainian forces in the city as of Dec. 5. However, Russian forces are attempting to complete the isolation of the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad pocket, the ISW stated.

As Moscow continued escalations in Ukraine, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Ukrainian negotiators Rustem Umerov and Andriy Hnatov discussed a security framework for postwar Ukraine in Florida on Friday.

Charred electric trains are seen in a damaged depot in the town of Fastiv, Kyiv region, after an air attack, on Dec. 6, 2025, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Serhii Okunev/AFP via Getty Images

It was the sixth meeting the parties have had over the course of two weeks.

“Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia’s readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings,” according to a summary of Friday’s meeting shared by Witkoff on X.

“Parties also separately reviewed the future prosperity agenda, which aims to support Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction, joint U.S.-Ukraine economic initiatives, and long-term recovery projects.”

Another round of discussions is scheduled for Dec. 6.

During a speech on Dec. 6, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated the “warriors” who are “holding back the occupiers on all fronts.”

“I thank our servicemembers who, on the battlefield, do their utmost so that Ukraine has confidence at the negotiating table,” Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy thanked everybody who defended Ukraine and said, “Eternal memory to those who gave their lives for Ukraine. Glory to Ukraine!”