Russian drone strikes on Ukraine’s second city of Kharkiv wounded 35 people on Friday, local officials said.

The attacks came hours after Russian strikes on the southern city of Zaporizhzhia wounded more than two dozen people.

Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilian areas have killed dozens of people in recent weeks despite the United States talking with both sides in a bid to end Moscow’s three-year invasion.

“The number of wounded in the massive attack on Kharkiv by Shahed UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) has increased to 35 people,” Kharkiv governor Oleg Synegubov wrote on Telegram.

He earlier said a private house, a high-rise building, a shop and a car park were damaged in the drone strikes.

Kharkiv lies close to the Russian border and has been relentlessly attacked throughout Moscow’s invasion.

The attacks come after Kyiv and Washington signed a landmark deal for the extraction of minerals in Ukraine.

Russia has announced a three-day ceasefire in Ukraine next week that coincides with World War II celebrations in Moscow.

Kyiv has denounced it as a “manipulation” that is “just for a parade” that the Kremlin holds on Red Square every year.