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A large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine killed five rescuers in Kharkiv and wounded at least 13 people in the capital Kyiv on Monday as strikes set apartment buildings ablaze and sparked a fire at one of the country's most significant religious landmarks. The rescuers were killed in Kharkiv by a second Russian strike as they fought a blaze caused by an earlier attack, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. At least five other emergency workers were wounded. A series of powerful explosions echoed across Kyiv, with a wave of ballistic missiles followed by Shahed drones as many people sought shelter underground and officials urged residents to take cover. "Kyiv is under the main strike. There is significant destruction of civilian infrastructure," Klymenko said. Thirteen people, including a child, sought medical help in the capital, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration. Five strikes hit civilian sites in the city's Shevchenkivskyi district in less than 3
Britain is investigating a sanctioned tanker that is suspected of being part of the Russian "shadow fleet," shipping oil in violation of international sanctions over Moscow's war on Ukraine, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Sunday. British armed forces boarded and detained the vessel, the Smyrtos, on Sunday in the English Channel, in what the country's Defence Ministry called "the first UK-led operation of its kind." The vessel will be held and monitored off the south coast of England for investigation, according to a statement by the Defence Ministry. The operation was carried out "in close coordination" with French authorities, who have previously intercepted a number of vessels linked to the "shadow fleet." Russia is believed to be using a fleet of hundreds of ships to evade sanctions over its war against Ukraine. "This operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fuelling Putin's war in Ukraine that they cannot hide," Starmer said. UK authorities sai
India remained the world's second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in May, importing an estimated 5.8 billion euros (USD 6.7 billion) worth of Russian hydrocarbons as refiners stepped up crude purchases from Moscow, European think tank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said in a report. Crude oil accounted for about 83 per cent of India's imports from Russia during the month, valued at 4.8 billion euros, while oil products and coal imports stood at 550 million euros and 429 million euros, respectively. "India's total crude import volumes recorded an 8 per cent month-on-month increase in May. This is partially explained by a 21 per cent month-on-month increase in Russian imports," CREA said. Some of India's largest refining hubs recorded notable increases in Russian crude arrivals. Unloaded volumes at the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat rose 36 per cent from April levels, while deliveries to the Jamnagar refining complex in the state increased 14 per cent. Accordin
Residents of St Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, were told not to leave their homes after a "large-scale" Ukrainian drone attack targeted the city Saturday morning, local officials said, underscoring Kyiv's growing ability to hit deep inside Russia. St Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov advised St Petersburg residents not to go outside and warned of possible disruptions to mobile internet service. Regional Gov Alexander Drozdenko said 141 drones were shot down over the surrounding Leningrad region. Russia's Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 376 Ukrainian drones. Although no casualties were immediately reported, the renewed attack on St Petersburg strikes a further embarrassing blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin's efforts to cast the conflict as a distant event that doesn't affect Russian daily life. Saturday's attack follows a Ukrainian drone strike that set ablaze an oil terminal in the city and hit a nearby naval base Wednesday, hours before the ..
Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered New Delhi Russia's fifth-generation stealth aircraft Sukhoi Su-57 and even suggested that the combat jet could even be jointly produced in India in line with the strong strategic partnership between the two countries. For decades, Russia has served as India's primary defence supplier. However, persistent supply chain disruptions and delivery delays stemming from the war in Ukraine have forced New Delhi to aggressively diversify its military procurement strategy. After a years-long search for a fifth-generation fighter jet, India has launched its ambitious Advanced Multirole Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project, widely regarded as the nation's largest indigenous aerospace programme. In an interaction with heads of leading global news agencies, including PTI on Thursday night, Putin delving into various aspects of India-Russia defence and military ties, said Moscow is still keen to involve New Delhi in the Su-57 aircraft programme. "As for the .
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said that the Ukraine conflict will quickly end if Kiev accepts compromises based on the Anchorage agreements. Putin made the remarks during an interaction with heads of leading global news agencies, including PTI, where he also said that Russia will strengthen its air defences to repel drone attacks from Ukraine. Recalling his discussions with US President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, in August last year, Putin said Russia is open to the compromises on Ukraine to end the conflict. "The Ukrainian side also must agree to these compromises," Putin said. "The conflict will quickly come to an end." Putin also dismissed the idea that European Union countries could act as mediators in peace talks with Ukraine. "How can Russia trust people who have been harping about the need to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia for years?" he asked. He suggested that the EU could help resolve the conflict by persuading Ukraine to compromise instead
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday hailed Moscow's strategic partnership with New Delhi and asserted that Western attempts to force New Delhi into scaling back its cooperation with Russia are both futile and damaging to global stability. In an interaction with heads of leading global news agencies including PTI, Putin lauded India's economic growth and its independent foreign policy and said Russia is determined to expand its economic engagement with the country. "India is among the world's major economies and is currently demonstrating an impressive rate of economic growth," Putin remarked, expressing confidence that bilateral trade between the two nations is on track to hit a USD 100 billion milestone in the coming years. Putin said Russia has not seen any negative consequences of Western pressure on India to limit its engagement with Russia, suggesting that such tactics are bound to backfire. "Everyone has understood that putting pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Mo
Ukrainian long-range drones struck an oil terminal in St. Petersburg and set it ablaze, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday, as the Russian city hosts an annual international economic forum that is a banner event for President Vladimir Putin. The drones flew more than 1,000 kilometres to hit the terminal, Zelenskyy said on social media. Clouds of black smoke rose over the city's port after the attack. St. Petersburg is Russia's second-largest city and is where Putin was born. Russian authorities said only that the Ukrainian drone strike targeted the city's infrastructure, without providing further details. The airport of St. Petersburg briefly suspended flights overnight because of the attack. Authorities also cut off mobile internet services. With the front line changing little as swarms of drones hinder battlefield movement, both sides have sought an edge by increasingly launching long-range strikes. The war that followed Russia's invasion of its neighbour has now stretch
Russia attacked Ukraine with a barrage of missiles and drones overnight Tuesday, killing at least 11 people, injuring dozens and trapping others, authorities said. At least four people were killed in Kyiv and 58 people were injured, including three children, Ukraine's state emergency service said in a statement on Telegram. Residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure were damaged in eight of Kyiv's districts. Attacks were also reported elsewhere across Ukraine. In the central Dnipropetrovsk region, at least six people were killed and 36 others injured after Russian strikes hit the city of Dnipro, according to the emergency service. A second attack as first responders arrived at the scene killed one rescuer. A two-story residential building and part of a four-story apartment block were damaged, with people trapped beneath the rubble of the larger building. The boom of explosions echoed through most of the night and into the early morning. Kyiv had been bracing for anothe
The French Navy, with support from the United Kingdom, has intercepted an oil tanker under international sanctions that was travelling from Russia, the latest effort by nations that support Ukraine to target Russian oil exports helping to finance President Vladimir Putin's war. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the interception in a post Monday on X, saying the Tagor was boarded on Sunday in the Atlantic. The post included a video showing a person rappelling from a helicopter onto a ship. "It is unacceptable that boats skirt international sanctions, violate the law of the sea and finance the war that Russia has been waging for more than 4 years against Ukraine," Macron wrote. "These ships, that don't respect the most elementary rules of maritime navigation, are also a threat to the environment and everyone's security." Oil revenue is a key part of Russia's economy, allowing Putin to pour money into the war effort against Ukraine without worsening inflation for everyday peo
Russia's intelligence agencies have grown more aggressive in their efforts to steal Western technology and defense secrets as sanctions squeeze the country's wartime economy, three senior European intelligence officials told The Associated Press. Moscow's agents are building fake companies, recruiting middlemen and deploying cyber spies and hackers who are gathering information that could also be used to attack key infrastructure, they said. Four years of international sanctions have hampered Moscow's ability to procure machinery, technology and research from Europe, while the grinding war in Ukraine has taxed key industries and pushed the country toward a potential financial crisis. "They really know what they need," and are putting "serious effort" into acquiring advanced machine tools, factory equipment, research and dual-use technology, said Christoffer Wedelin, deputy head of operations at the Swedish Security Service. Russia seeks high-end research, defense technology and ...
A Russian drone that was part of an overnight attack on Ukraine and then went astray slammed into an apartment building in eastern Romania, injuring two people in the NATO member country, Romanian authorities said, adding to concerns that the war could spread across the alliance's borders. The Russian drone was tracked by radar in Romanian airspace and crashed onto the roof of the building in the city of Galati, Romania's Defence Ministry said in a statement. The impact was followed by a fire. The two people suffered minor injuries, and several others were evacuated. The Romanian military scrambled two F-16 fighter jets and a helicopter that were authorised to engage targets, and alert messages were sent to residents of the affected areas. But the aircraft didn't engage or shoot at the drone to bring it down. Romania asked NATO for a faster transfer of anti-drone capabilities to its military, the Foreign Ministry said, calling the drone's flight a serious violation of international
An annual United Nations report documenting sexual violence in conflicts worldwide has included Israeli forces for the first time since the review began more than 15 years ago for their treatment of Palestinian detainees. Israel denies the accusations. The 35-page report -- shared by the Israeli mission to the UN late on Thursday ahead of its expected release on Friday -- blacklists 77 government and non-government parties in a dozen countries suspected of committing or being responsible for sexual violence in conflicts around the world. It says the number of cases rose sharply in 2025 from 2024. Russian armed and security forces were also blacklisted for the first time this year for sexual violence against prisoners of war and civilians detained during the war in Ukraine. The list for 2025 includes Israel's armed and security forces as well as Hamas militants, who were previously blacklisted after their attack in Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war in Gaza. Both Israe