Zelenskyy rallies seven nations under new Carpathian Eight amid Russian strikes

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday launched a new regional grouping with seven neighbouring and Central European countries, seeking closer cooperation on security, energy and trade as the war with Russia continues and European governments confront growing concerns over hybrid threats.

The inaugural “Carpathian Eight” summit in Bukovel in western Ukraine brings together Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Hungary, along with representatives of European Union institutions.

The new grouping brings countries with sharply different approaches towards the Russia-Ukraine war under one regional framework. Poland and Romania have been among Kyiv’s strongest supporters, while Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia have declined to provide Ukraine with direct military assistance.

A new regional bloc

Zelenskyy described the initiative as the beginning of a new framework intended to bring the participating countries closer and strengthen cooperation at the European level.

The grouping will focus on security, energy, expanded logistics, cross-border economic cooperation and support for local communities, according to the Ukrainian president.

The summit is being held from September 18 to 20 and also includes a major business component, with hundreds of business representatives and investors participating. The initiative is intended to develop joint projects across energy, transport, infrastructure, manufacturing and other sectors.

The meeting comes as US-mediated attempts to find a negotiated end to Russia’s full-scale invasion remain stalled, with territorial concessions and security guarantees for Ukraine among the major unresolved issues.

Hybrid threats in focus

Security concerns have assumed greater urgency amid allegations by several European governments that Russia has stepped up hybrid activities, including sabotage, cyberattacks, disinformation and drone incursions.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned before travelling to Ukraine that European countries supporting Kyiv faced the possibility of hybrid attacks involving drones or missiles.

Polish, German and Danish officials have in recent weeks linked Russia to incidents involving drones, sabotage, arson and surveillance of defence facilities. Moscow has rejected or disputed Western accusations of hostile activities.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for the European Union to develop a stronger mechanism for responding collectively to hybrid attacks that fall below the threshold of conventional armed aggression but threaten national security.

Poland joins missile coalition

The summit also produced a fresh defence initiative, with Tusk announcing that Poland had joined a coalition with Ukraine and other partners aimed at developing a new anti-ballistic missile system.

The project is intended to explore a more affordable system for countering ballistic missile threats as Ukraine continues to face large-scale Russian missile and drone attacks.

Poland also indicated that it had prepared another assistance package for Ukraine, though details were not immediately disclosed.

Russian strikes continue

The diplomatic gathering unfolded against another night of Russian attacks across Ukraine.

Ukrainian authorities said two people were killed and two others injured in strikes in the Zhytomyr region west of Kyiv, where fires broke out at warehouse and production facilities.

In the Kharkiv region, a Russian drone struck a railway station in the Novovodolazka community and hit a suburban electric train. Ukrainian authorities reported one death and several injuries in the attack, which also set two train carriages ablaze.

Russia, meanwhile, reported one of the largest Ukrainian drone attacks of the war. The Russian Defence Ministry claimed its air defences intercepted and destroyed 629 Ukrainian drones over 14 regions, Russian-occupied Crimea and the Azov and Black seas.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said more than 350 drones had been headed towards the Moscow region, with 64 intercepted as they approached the capital. Claims made by the two sides about battlefield strikes and interceptions could not be independently verified.

Russia votes amid war

The escalation coincided with the start of three days of voting in Russia’s first parliamentary election since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The election will determine the composition of the 450-member State Duma. President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia dominates the political system, while prominent anti-war and opposition voices have faced restrictions, imprisonment or exile.

Voting is also being conducted in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories whose annexation by Moscow is not recognised by Ukraine or most of the international community.

EU releases fresh funds

Ukraine also received a 3.3-billion-euro tranche of European Union financial assistance, Zelenskyy said following a telephone conversation with von der Leyen.

The Ukrainian president said the money would support the country’s defence capabilities, including the procurement of missiles and drones.

Zelenskyy is expected to continue discussions with European leaders on Ukraine’s financial position and defence requirements as attention shifts to the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week.

The launch of the Carpathian Eight gives Kyiv another diplomatic platform at a time when the war is increasingly intertwined with wider European concerns over border security, energy, infrastructure and hybrid threats.