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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet Thursday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Philippines, where he's expected to renew the prospect of the US trying to broker an end to the war in Ukraine. The meeting between Rubio and Lavrov is slated to occur on the sidelines of a gathering by Southeast Asian foreign ministers, among the most high-profile side meetings the region's top diplomats were having at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations event in Manila. US efforts to broker an end to the Russia-Ukraine war have dropped off as indirect talks stalled and the Iran war took centre stage. Renewed strikes by Washington and Tehran have been intensifying after an interim ceasefire deal collapsed. Rubio told reporters in Manila on Wednesday that he plans to raise the conflict in Ukraine with Lavrov, saying that the US remained open to playing a role in ending the conflict "if that opportunity presents itself." He acknowledged that those efforts have "kind of
The new commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian military forged his reputation as a daring and determined fighter in the early days of the country's battle against Russia, then spent a decade in combat assignments while steadily rising through the ranks. Maj Gen Mykhailo Drapatyi was named to the post Tuesday after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi following days of mass protests in Kyiv and other cities demanding his removal. In a Facebook post, he thanked Syrskyi for his work strengthening the military. "I grew up in it," he said, referring to the army. "I will work responsibly, with focus and with respect for the people defending our state today." Drapatyi, 43, represents a new generation of Ukrainian generals forged in the crucible of the country's fight against Russia. He has spent nearly his entire career in combat postings, including leading Ukraine's Joint Forces, which direct day-to-day combat operations across branches of the army. He is known as ...
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday fired Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi as commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces and named his replacement, following days of mass protests in Kyiv, the country's capital, and other cities across the nation demanding his removal. It was the second major change Zelenskyy has made under street pressure, after protests last summer forced him to undo a law weakening Ukraine's anti-corruption watchdogs. Zelenskyy appointed Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new army chief, according to a statement on social media. "Our shared wish is one - victory over the enemy and conditions at the front and in pressure on Russia that would force Russia toward peace," Zelenskyy said. The Ukrainian leader said he made the decision after a series of meetings with military commanders. They began shortly after protests broke out demanding the reinstatement of former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, seen by demonstrators as a driver of military modernisation, and the removal of .
India on Tuesday summoned the Russian charge d'affaires (CDA) and lodged a strong protest over the killing of four Indian seafarers aboard a Guinea Bissau-flagged merchant vessel off the coast of Ukraine. Sources said the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) told the Russian diplomat that the attack on the merchant vessel, which killed Indians, was unacceptable. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Russia attacked the civilian vessel navigating Ukraine's maritime corridor on Sunday and its crew included citizens of Syria and India. It is the first instance of death of Indian seafarers in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship was hit by Russian cruise missiles, the Ukrainian Air Force said. The vessel -- MV Golden Leo -- had 17 crew members, including five Indian nationals, according to the MEA. India condemned the attack and reiterated that targeting commercial shipping and endangering innocent civilian crew members is "deplorable and should be ...
Shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday said he is deeply anguished by the loss of lives, including of four Indian seafarers, following a missile attack on merchant vessel MV Golden Leo departing Odesa, Ukraine. Sonowal in a post on X said India strongly condemns such attacks that endanger innocent civilian crew members and impede the freedom of navigation and commerce. "Deeply anguished by the tragic loss of lives, including of four brave Indian seafarers, following a missile attack on merchant vessel MV Golden Leo departing Odesa, Ukraine. My thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families in this hour of immense grief," he said. "Our Mission in Ukraine, alongside the DGMA and RPSL, is closely monitoring the situation, conducting necessary verifications and ensuring all assistance is extended to the next of kin, on priority basis. "My prayers are also with the Indian sailor who is injured and currently hospitalised for his swift and full recovery," Sonowal said. Four
Russia attacked Kyiv overnight with ballistic missiles and other weapons, killing one and wounding 16 people, local authorities said, again highlighting Ukraine's shortage of US-made Patriot air defence systems. US President Donald Trump has said he is prepared to grant Ukraine licenses to produce Patriots, the most effective means of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles, potentially bolstering Kyiv's defences against similar Russian strikes. However, the details and timeline for implementing the decision remain unclear. The latest attack on Kyiv began at around 1:30 am and continued for several hours, with explosions echoing across the city. Russia launched 41 missiles and 125 drones across Ukraine overnight, according to the Ukrainian air force. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said most of the missiles had targeted the capital. The strikes on Kyiv sparked fires in five districts, damaging residential buildings, office and industrial sites, a dormitory and vehicles, according to
Seven people were killed and 51 others were wounded in Russia overnight by Ukrainian drone attacks, Russian officials said Saturday. Kyiv's forces are continuing their relentless aerial campaign against energy infrastructure and military targets inside Russia, aiming to undermine Moscow's war effort and make Russians feel the consequences of the Kremlin's all-out invasion of Ukraine that is well into its fifth year. Two sprawling warehouses of Russia's major online retailer, Wildberries, were hit by Ukrainian drones overnight, according to Russian officials: one in the town of Kotovsk in the Tambov region, some 360 kilometres (roughly 220 miles) from the border with Ukraine, and another one in the city of Elektrostal, about 50 kilometres (some 30 miles) east of Moscow. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post on Saturday that Ukrainian long-range strikes hit two "significant logistical facilities in the Moscow and Tambov regions." "These facilities were used
Ukraine and nine other countries on Monday announced a coalition to protect Europe from ballistic missiles, taking advantage of Kyiv's experience of fighting Russia. The 10 countries announced the agreement in Paris at talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The countries said in a statement that "our goal is to build a shared ballistic missile defense capability for Europe.
Russian attacks on Ukraine killed six people, including a child, and wounded 29, officials said Saturday, adding that Ukrainian forces damaged more than two dozen Russian tankers and other vessels in the Sea of Azov. Ukraine's General Staff said 21 tankers used to transport oil and petroleum products were damaged overnight, in addition to four tugboats, two cargo ships and a dredging vessel. Russian officials said one person was killed in the Ukrainian drone strikes and that only four ships came under attack. In Ukraine's northeast Sumy region, four people were killed, including a child, and 17 people were wounded when two aerial glide bombs hit a crowded area where civilians were present, said Sumy regional head Oleh Hryhorov. Eleven people, including one child, were wounded in missile and drone attacks overnight on Kyiv, the State Emergency Service reported. In the southern region of Odesa, two people were killed after a Russian missile struck a building, said regional head Oleh .
At least 10 people, including a child, were injured after Russia launched an overnight missile and drone attack on Kyiv early Saturday, according to Ukraine's State Emergency Service. Explosions and fires were reported across the capital's Solomianskyi, Darnytskyi and Dniprovskyi districts, the emergency service said in a statement on Telegram. In Solomianskyi district, a strike ignited a fire in a three-storey office and warehouse building, while another warehouse caught fire in the Dniprovskyi district after it was hit. Russia launched 10 missiles of various types, including six ballistic missiles, along with 121 drones against Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's Air Force said. Ukrainian air defences said they shot down or electronically suppressed two missiles and 111 drones. The Air Force said direct hits were recorded at 11 locations from ballistic missiles, two guided air-to-surface missiles and seven attack drones. Falling debris from intercepted weapons was reported at three ...
President Donald Trump said at a NATO summit Wednesday in Turkiye that the US will give Ukraine a license to make Patriot air defence systems to counter missile attacks from Russia in their more than four-year war, a huge coup for Kyiv which has long requested the technology. Allowing foreign manufacture of Patriots, which the US had resisted, was a turnaround for Trump that mirrored his day at the NATO meeting: Upon arriving, he lashed out at European partners for resisting his efforts to take control of Greenland and for not supporting his war in Iran. But by day's end, he described a gathering of unity and "tremendous love," and praised member nations on their progress in increasing their defence spending. Separately, the Trump administration also announced plans to rescind Syria's terrorism designation, in a key move toward lifting sanctions on the country. NATO's European members plus Canada have scrambled to meet the alliance's increased defence spending targets, which Trump h
Russia launched waves of missiles and drones targeting Kyiv early Monday that killed at least 10 people, authorities said, hours after Ukraine's president warned that another large-scale attack was imminent. Another 46 were injured, according to local officials, as emergency workers combed through rubble looking for survivors at residential high-rise buildings in two locations that suffered direct hits. "These are residential buildings. Places where people slept and lived their ordinary lives," said Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv's City Military Administration in a post on Telegram. A residential building in the Podilskyi district partially collapsed, he said. In the Darnytsia district, several multistory buildings were damaged and people were believed to be trapped under the rubble. The attack involved waves of ballistic and cruise missiles as well as drones. Explosions echoed across the city as civilians sought shelter in metro stations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ha
A Ukrainian drone attack struck an oil terminal in St Petersburg on Saturday, Russian officials said, as Kyiv presses on with bombardment of Russia's oil infrastructure. Almost daily long-range attacks on Russian oil facilities have created a fuel crisis and heaped political pressure on the Kremlin as its all-out invasion of Ukraine stretches into its fifth year. Gov. Alexander Beglov said the city's Kirovsky district on the Baltic Sea was hit. He also said that air defences shot down 72 Ukrainian drones across Russia's second-largest city and the surrounding region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the attack as part of Ukraine's "long-range sanctions" against Russia. He said that Ukrainian forces also hit a military target on the island of Kronstadt, just off the coast of St Petersburg. "The Ukrainian defence forces hit the port oil infrastructure, which earns money for the Russian war, and there were also hits on Kronstadt - an important military target," he sai
Despite severe fuel shortages across Russia, President Vladimir Putin appears unbothered by Ukraine's increasing attacks on his country's oil refineries. He has shrugged off the setback for one of the world's leading oil producing nations as "not critical," dismissed ceasefire proposals and insisted the war will continue until his goals are met. Putin has described the attacks on Russian energy as an effort by Ukraine to distract attention from its losses on the battlefield, although analysts say the advance of Russian forces has been stymied in recent months. The Russian leader appears to believe his government can keep the fuel crisis from eroding his authority and support for the war he launched more than four years ago. The Russian military unleashed a massive 11-hour barrage on the Ukrainian capital overnight into Thursday morning that killed at least 21 people. It was one of the deadliest attacks on Kyiv since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. Here's a deeper look at