Ukraine

Ukraine's advances in drone technology and tactics have captured the world's attention. Despite those innovations, one problem has plagued the country since the start of Russia's invasion: a shortage of combat-ready troops. Ukraine has always been outmanned by Russia, but as the war drags through its fifth year, the need for personnel is increasingly acute, commanders and analysts say, with some units at only half strength. There just aren't enough forces to fully exploit the battlefield advantages resulting from the drone innovations. "Based on the equipment and the number of people we have today, we barely have enough to hold the sector we currently have," said a deputy commander of the Da Vinci Wolves battalion in eastern Ukraine's Pokrovsk area, a focus of Russia's offensive. "To move forward would inevitably mean greater losses," said the deputy commander, who insisted on identifying himself only as "Afer" because of military rules. Long-standing mobilisation problems, includi

Ukraine said that its long-range strikes have neutralised more than half of Russia's oil refining capacity, hampering Moscow's ability to supply its forces during its 4 1/2-year-old invasion. The Defence Ministry said Sunday that recent strikes on refineries in cities including Moscow, Yaroslavl, Ust-Luga, Perm, Saratov and Syzran had put 51% of Russia's oil refining capacity out of action. The claim could not be independently verified. Both Moscow and Kyiv have intensified their aerial assaults as progress along the 1,200-kilometre front line has largely ground to a halt. Ukrainian forces have repeatedly attacked refineries from Moscow to Siberia, sparking a widespread fuel crisis in Russia earlier this year that forced authorities to restrict gasoline sales. President Vladimir Putin said in a rare admission Thursday that the strikes had caused Russia to lose roughly 1 per cent of its gross domestic product. "They started attacking oil refineries and openly declared the goal of .

Moscow threatens attacks on Ukrainian military and industrial infrastructure as tensions escalate and Germany backs Kyiv

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Kyiv Sunday in a show of support as Russia intensifies its attacks on Ukrainian cities. The aerial war has intensified, with Moscow menacing cities across Ukraine with hard-to-intercept ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones, while Kyiv has been striking Russia's oil industry and businesses. Merz said he travelled to Kyiv, his second trip as chancellor, to demonstrate Germany's support for Ukraine. "If Russia is not stopped, its war machine will sooner or later turn against us," he said in a statement Sunday, adding that he told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, "You can continue to count on our help." Merz said the partnership between the two countries was "not a one-way street," pointing to German and Ukrainian companies jointly developing technologies that benefit both sides. "This makes us safer and stronger," he said. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the agenda would focus on "strengthening Ukraine, our defenc

Traffic on Kyiv's Northern Bridge was halted after the strike damaged its surface and trolleybus power lines, while Moscow said it also hit a logistics centre and a cargo vessel

Putin envoy arrived "to continue ​constructive discussions on a peaceful resolution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict ‌and possible US-Russia energy initiatives ‌after the war ends," the US official said

Ukrainian President ​Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that in addition ​to these countries, there were also proposals ‌from other nations ‌to deblock the Black Sea.

"The American side has proposed... meeting at a technical level in a three-way format," Zelenskyy told reporters.

US national Matthew Aaron VanDyke and six Ukrainian nationals, whom the court has granted default bail, were in judicial custody at Tihar Jail

More than 13 million books -- a third of the country's annual print run -- were destroyed in two months this summer, causing at least USD 39.3 million (1.75 billion hryvnias) in damage

The meeting is expected to take place in New York during the upcoming UN General Assembly session

Moscow says it repelled a major Ukrainian drone assault as Russia's parliamentary election entered its final day

The new law will not end Ukraine conflict

Ukraine and ​Russia have continued attacks on each other's energy infrastructure despite an announcement by US ​President Donald Trump on Monday that they had agreed to stop

Russia's parliamentary election for the first time includes residents of regions that Moscow illegally annexed from Ukraine after the start of its full-scale invasion more than 4 1/2 years ago, part of Kremlin efforts to cement its gains. Officials in Kyiv vigorously denounced the action as illegal, and a human rights activist described residents there as being coerced to participate in the election. While the vote across Russia started Friday and lasts until Sunday to help boost turnout, balloting actually has been underway in the annexed parts of Ukraine and some areas on the Russian side of the border since the end of last month. Officials cited security reasons for the extended period. Russian authorities say the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia territories, often referred to by Moscow officials as the "new regions," have over 3.5 million voters. They were annexed by Russia in September 2022, despite not fully being under Moscow's control. The move has not been ...

Ukraine has long argued that Russia will only negotiate seriously if the cost of continuing the war becomes too high. For Kyiv, punitive sanctions that impose real economic costs on Moscow are a key part of that strategy. This week's passage of a long-sought, sweeping package of US sanctions aimed at cutting off some of the financial resources President Vladimir Putin relies on to fund the war gives Ukraine another potential source of leverage, but its impact may depend on whether and how aggressively the measures are implemented by the United States. The House on Wednesday approved the sanctions package targeting Russian officials and key sectors of the economy. On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the vote "symbolic," adding that the House passed the bill on the same night Russia launched another large-scale attack across Ukraine, capabilities the full implementation of the deal would derail. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday that if the United

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's plane "was almost hit by a drone as it was taking off from Moldova. That is the reality he is facing," Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said.

Trump said Russia's president is willing to negotiate an end to the Ukraine war but argued that deep hostility between Putin and Zelenskyy remains the biggest barrier to a diplomatic breakthrough

An unexpected request from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered a stark reminder that the cost of the war will rise, challenging Europe

Moscow had not yet received any information about contacts between the U.S. envoys and Ukrainian officials in Kyiv on Sunday, Peskov said.