Page 17 - Ukraine

Ukraine urges air defence aid as West meets without Pentagon chief present

Ukraine's president on Wednesday urged Western backers to speed up deliveries of air defence systems to counter Russian missile strikes and to help boost weapons production. The emphasis should be on US-made Patriot systems, President Volodymyr Zelenskky told a Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels. "These are the most effective way to force Russia to stop its missile strikes and terror, he said via video link, urging representatives of around 50 countries to make good on past pledges. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth did not attend, the first time a Pentagon chief has been absent since the forum for organising Ukraine's military aid was set up three years ago. Hegseth's predecessor, Lloyd Austin, created the group after Russia launched all-out war on Ukraine in 2022. His absence is the latest step that the Trump administration has taken to distance itself from Ukraine's efforts to repel Russia's full-scale invasion, which began on Feb. 24, 2022. M

Russia has lost over 1 million troops in Ukraine war, CSIS report estimates

The CSIS report calls the Russia-Ukraine war one of the slowest offensives in modern times, with staggering losses on both sides and Kyiv surviving due to vital international support

Russian rockets kill 4 in Ukraine as Kyiv claims it damaged a key bridge

A Russian rocket attack targeted the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy on Tuesday, killing at least four people and wounding 25, officials said. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denounced the assault, saying it underscored that Moscow has no intentions of halting the 3-year-old war. The attack came a day after direct peace talks in Istanbul made no progress on ending the fighting. Local authorities said the barrage of rockets struck apartment buildings and a medical facility in the centre of Sumy. Meanwhile, Ukraine's secret services said they struck inside Russia again, two days after a spectacular Ukrainian drone attack on air bases deep inside the country. A vital bridge to Crimea The Ukrainian Security Service, known by its acronym SBU, claimed it damaged the foundations of the Kerch Bridge linking Russia and illegally annexed Crimea a key artery for Russian military supplies in the war. The SBU said it detonated 1,100 kilograms (2,400 pounds) of explosives on the seabed ...

With Russia airfield attacks, Ukraine aims for strategic and symbolic blow

The New York Times verified videos that showed successful strikes at Olenya Air Base in the Murmansk region and Belaya Air Base in the Irkutsk region

Ukraine, Russia swap dead, wounded troops with no progress towards peace

Representatives of Russia and Ukraine met Monday for their second round of direct peace talks in just over two weeks, but aside from agreeing to swap thousands of their dead and seriously wounded troops, they made no progress toward ending the 3-year-old war, officials said. The talks unfolded a day after a string of stunning long-range attacks by both sides, with Ukraine launching a devastating drone assault on Russian air bases and Russia hurling its largest drone attack of the war against Ukraine. At the negotiating table, Russia presented a memorandum setting out the Kremlin's terms for ending hostilities, the Ukrainian delegation said. Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who led the Ukrainian delegation, told reporters that Kyiv officials would need a week to review the document and decide on a response. Ukraine proposed further talks on a date between June 20 and June 30, he said. After the talks, Russian state news agencies Tass and RIA Novosti published the text of the Russian

Highlights: Ceasefire possible if Ukraine withdraws from annexed areas: Russia

Highlights: Catch all the news developments from around the world here

Asymmetric strike: Ukraine's attack on Russian air assets holds lessons

Asymmetric warfare has been demonstrated to have become much easier. Many non-state groups will be able to afford 100-150 drones

Ukraine and Russia end their latest round of direct peace talks in Istanbul

Delegations from Russia and Ukraine met Monday in Turkey for their second round of direct peace talks in just over two weeks, although expectations were low for any significant progress on ending the3-year-old war after a string of stunning attacks over the weekend. Kyiv officials said a surprise drone attack on Sunday destroyed more than 40 warplanes at air bases deep inside Russia, including the remote Arctic, Siberian and Far East regions more than 7,000 kilometres from Ukraine. The complex and unprecedented raid, which struck simultaneously in three time zones, took over a year and a half to prepare and was a major slap in the face for Russia's military power", said Vasyl Maliuk, the head of the Ukrainian security service who led its planning. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it a brilliant operation that would go down in history. Russia on Sunday fired the biggest number of drones 472 at Ukraine since its full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine's air force said, i

Watch: Ukraine drones hit over 40 Russian bombers in record airbase strike

Ukraine's largest drone strike on record damages over40 Russian bombers in massive overnight attack, dealing a $7 billion blow to Moscow's strategic bomber fleet

Trump ally getting elected in Poland could alter EU and Ukraine policies

Poland has elected Karol Nawrocki, a conservative historian and staunch nationalist, as its next president in a closely watched vote that signals a resurgence of right-wing populism in the heart of Europe. Nawrocki, who is set to take office on Aug 6, is expected to shape the country's domestic and foreign policy in ways that could strain ties with Brussels while aligning the Central European nation of nearly 38 million people more closely with the administration of President Donald Trump in the United States. Here are some key takeaways: Conservative populism on the rise Nawrocki's victory underscores the enduring appeal of nationalist rhetoric among about half of the country along the eastern flank of NATO and the European Union, and its deep social divisions. The 42-year-old historian who had no previous political experience built his campaign on patriotic themes, traditional Catholic values, and a vow to defend Poland's sovereignty against the EU and larger European nations li

Ukraine, Russia meet in Turkiye for peace talks amid heightened tensions

Delegations from Russia and Ukraine gathered in Turkiye on Monday for their second round of direct peace talks in just over two weeks, although expectations were low for any significant progress on ending the three-year war. The Ukrainian delegation led Defence Minister Rustem Umerov was in Istanbul for the meeting, Heorhii Tykhyi, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, said in a message posted on the Ukrainian Embassy Whatsapp group. The Russian delegation headed by Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, arrived Sunday evening, Russian state media reported. Turkish officials said the meeting would start at 1 pm local time, with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan presiding over the talks and officials from the Turkish intelligence agency also present. However, Ukrainian spokesperson Tykhyi said the start would be at midday local time. It was not immediately possible to clarify the discrepancy. Recent comments by senior officials in both countries

Operation Spider's Web: What we know about Ukraine's drone attack on Russia

On the eve of the second round of peace talks, Ukraine launched a massive drone attack, destroying $7 billion worth of aircraft, representing 34% of the Russian bomber fleet

Brilliant operation carried out, Russia suffered major losses: Zelenskyy

In his address to the nation, Zelenskyy thanked Ukraine's Security Service and all those involved in the operation and mentioned that 117 drones were used in the operation

Kyiv destroyed more than 40 Russian military aircraft in drone attack

The drones reportedly hit 41 planes stationed at several airfields on Sunday afternoon, including A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M aircraft, the official said

'Russia-Ukraine war has blurred regional lines, exposing global threats'

China and North Korea's support for Russia in its war against Ukraine has exposed how lines between regions have blurred, and the need for a global approach toward defence, top security officials said Sunday. North Korea has sent troops to fight on the front lines in Ukraine, while China has supported Russia economically and technologically while opposing international sanctions. Lithuanian Defence Minister Dovile akaliene told delegates at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premiere defence forum, that if Ukraine were to fall, it would have a ripple effect in Asia and suggested it could embolden China in its territorial claims on Taiwan and virtually the entire South China Sea. If Russia prevails in Ukraine, it's not about Europe. It's not about one region," she said. It will send a very clear signal also to smaller states here in Indo-Pacific that anyone can ignore their borders, that any fabricated excuse can justify invasion. The comments echoed those from French President Emmanue

Macron, Hegseth to address China, Ukraine war at Singapore security forum

French President Emmanuel Macron and US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth are among the world leaders, diplomats and top defence officials in Singapore this weekend for a security forum that will focus on China's growing assertiveness, the global impact of Russia's war on Ukraine and the flare-up of conflicts in Asia. Macron opens the conference with a keynote address Friday night that is expected to touch on all of those issues, as well as the pressure the hefty tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump's administration is putting on Asian allies. It's Hegseth's first time to the Shangri-La dialogue, hosted by the International Institute for Security Studies, which is taking place against the backdrop of heightened rhetoric between Beijing and Washington due to the Trump administration's threat of triple digit tariffs on China, and some uncertainty in the region over how committed the US is to the defence of Taiwan, which also faces possible 32 per cent American tariffs. China ..

UK taps Ukraine lessons to invest GBP 1 billion into warfare systems

In its strategic defense review, expected to be published in full next week, the UK will also set up a new Cyber and Electromagnetic Command to protect military networks

Zelenskyy visits Berlin seeking support for Ukraine in war against Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet with new German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin on Wednesday as Ukraine seeks further military support amid a recent escalation in Russia's bombing campaign, despite US-led efforts to end the war. Germany has been the second-biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine after the United States. Merz said on Monday that Germany and other major allies are no longer imposing any range restrictions on weapons supplied to Ukraine as it fights to repel Russia's full-scale invasion, which began in February 2022. Merz has plunged into diplomatic efforts to try to secure a ceasefire and keep Western support for Ukraine intact since becoming Germany's leader three weeks ago. Meanwhile, fighting has continued along the roughly 1,000-km (620-mile) front line, and both sides have conducted deep strikes. Russia launched its biggest drone attack of the war against Ukraine on Sunday. Russian air defences downed 296 Ukrainian drones over 13 Russia

Ukraine revamps minerals sector, eyes billions in investment from US deal

Ecology Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk told Reuters in an interview that Ukraine hoped the fund would significantly increase the mineral industry's potential, noting extraction was a capital-intensive

Russia mocks Macron over viral clip of him getting 'a right hook' from wife

A viral video shows French first lady Brigitte Macron shoving President Emmanuel Macron as the couple deboarded a plane in Vietnam during the first leg of their Southeast Asia tour on May 25