Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "diverted" U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's calls to reconsider the decision to suspend Russia's participation in the New START treaty, Russia's foreign ministry told Interfax, Russian news agency.

“If they want to return to diplomacy, let them return. If they are engaged in self-promotion and such inexpensive PR, well, this is possible. True, the result will be appropriate," Maria Zakharova, a spokesperson for the ministry, told Russian TV channel Rossiya-1.

-ABC News' Natalia Shumskaia

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had an "on the go" talk during the G-20 Meeting of Foreign Ministers in India, but there were no negotiations, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told TASS, a Russian news agency, Thursday.

"Blinken asked for a contact with Lavrov. Sergey Viktorovich [Lavrov] had communication on the go during the second session. But there were no negotiations, no meeting or so on," the diplomat said.

Blinken had said earlier in the day during a press conference he had "spoke briefly" with Lavrov and discussed ending the war, as well as Russia rejoining the New START Treaty on nuclear arms.

"I told the foreign minister what I and so many others said last week at the United Nations and what so many G-20 foreign ministers said today: End this war of aggression, engage in meaningful diplomacy that could produce a just and durable peace," he said. "The United States stands ready to support Ukraine through diplomacy to end the war on this basis."

A senior State Department official downplayed any hopes that the conversation moved the needle on any of the topics.

-ABC News' Tanya Stukalova and Shannon Crawford

Ukraine has shot down 80% of Russian missiles, according to Commander of the Joint Forces of the Ukrainian Air Force Serhiy Nayev.

Nayev made the assessment in a Facebook post on Wednesday about the effectiveness of the air defense system.

"The enemy is also changing his tactics and ways of using air strike means, so we test after every hit," he wrote. "This analysis proves that commanders, respectively, make decisions that ensure the durability of the air defense is at the highest level."

-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman

Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrsky, the commander of Ukraine's Eastern Group of Forces, will send additional units to Bahkmut, according to Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar.

"Bakhmut has been the epicenter of hostilities for several months now. The enemy has concentrated its key efforts there because it aims to reach the borders of the Donetsk region. The situation there is really tense and difficult," Malyar said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy echoed that statement in his nightly address.

"The most difficult situation is still Bakhmut and the battles that are important for the defense of the city," he said.

-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman and Will Gretsky

Russian airstrikes targeted several cities across Ukraine early Friday, killing at least 25 people, Ukrainian officials said.

The city of Uman in central Ukraine's Cherkasy Oblast was the worst affected. Several buildings were damaged or destroyed. One of the strikes hit an apartment building, killing at least 23 people, including four children, and injuring another 18 people, according to Cherkasy Oblast Gov. Ihor Taburets. The attack happened at around 4:30 a.m. local time, when most people would have been asleep. An entire section of the nine-story building collapsed, with 27 apartments completely destroyed. There were 109 people who lived in that part of the building, according to Ukrainian police. Rescue teams were expected to spend all day and night searching for survivors in the rubble.

It was the deadliest single attack on civilians in Ukraine since January.

Dnipro, Ukraine's fourth-largest city and a major industrial hub located in southeastern Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, was hit by "high-precision" strikes in the early morning hours, leaving a woman and a 3-year-old child dead, according to Dnipro Mayor Boris Filatov.

Russian strikes also targeted Kyiv, Ukraine's capital and largest city, but there were no reports of any casualties or damages. It was the first such attack on the capital in 51 days, according to the Kyiv City Military Administration. Preliminary data shows 11 cruise missiles and two drones were destroyed in Kyiv's airspace, the city military administration said.

-ABC News' Yulia Drozd, Will Gretsky, Natalia Kushnir and Joe Simonetti