Russia on Thursday insisted it was "still interested" in diplomacy, but would continue to launch strikes on Ukraine following an overnight attack on Kyiv that killed at least 14 people.

"The Russian armed forces are fulfilling their tasks," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in response to a question by AFP. "They continue to strike military and military-adjacent infrastructure facilities.

Russia bombarded the Ukrainian capital with drones and missiles early Thursday, including a rare strike in the city center, killing at least 15 people and wounding 48, local authorities said.

It was the first major Russian attack on Kyiv in weeks as U.S.-led peace efforts to end the three-year war struggled to gain traction. Russia launched 598 strike drones and decoys and 31 missiles of different types across the country, according to Ukraine's Air Force, making it one of the war's biggest air attacks.

Russia pushed back Wednesday against the idea of European peacekeeping troops being deployed to Ukraine, and downplayed chances of a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in another blow to the chances of a peace deal.

U.S. President Donald Trump called Wednesday for billionaire George Soros and his son to face criminal charges over unfounded claims that the family, a favorite target of the right, is behind "violent protests" around the country.

Clashes during a raid in Iran's restive southeast killed at least 13 militants as well as a Revolutionary Guard, state media reported Wednesday.

Iran said Wednesday that the return of U.N. nuclear inspectors did not represent a full resumption of cooperation, which was suspended in the aftermath of June attacks by Israel and the United States.

Iran held talks on Tuesday with European powers, seeking to avert a sanctions snapback which they have threatened to impose under the moribund 2015 nuclear deal.

The head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog has said a team of its inspectors are "back in Iran," the first to enter since Israeli and US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities this year.

Ukraine acknowledged for the first time on Tuesday that Russia's army has entered the Dnipropetrovsk region, a central administrative area previously spared from intense fighting.

A diplomatic row between the United States and France escalated on Monday when Washington decided to stand firmly behind its ambassador's criticism of the French response to a rising tide of antisemitism.