Russia's Putin vows retaliation after accusing Ukraine of hitting student dormitory

Ukraine says it struck Russia's elite Rubicon drone military unit in a Moscow-occupied region.

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Eighteen people were killed and 42 others injured in the overnight strike in the town of Starobilsk, in the Luhansk region, Russia's emergencies ministry said. Another three people are believed to be trapped under the rubble.

Ukraine's military said it had hit the headquarters of Russia's elite Rubicon drone military unit in Starobilsk. It did not say whether it was the same building as the one identified by Russia.

But Putin said there were "no military facilities, intelligence service facilities or related services in the vicinity".

"Therefore, there is absolutely no basis for claiming that the munitions struck the building as a result of our air defence or electronic warfare systems," he said at a reception in his Kremlin residence in Moscow on Friday.