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Russia launched a mass drone attack on Ukraine's second largest city of Kharkiv late yesterday, injuring at least 46 people, according to Ukrainian officials.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the assault, writing on Telegram: “There were no military targets, nor could there be any. Russia strikes dwellings when Ukrainians are in their homes, when they are putting their children to bed.”
US officials finalised new economic sanctions against Russia to intensify pressure on Moscow to embrace president Donald Trump’s efforts to end its war, sources say.
The targets include state-owned energy giant Gazprom and major organisations in the natural resources and banking sectors, an administration official said. Mr Trump would need to approve the package.
The US has also pulled out of mediating in peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, with State Department official Tammy Bruce saying envoys would no longer “fly around the world at the drop of a hat” to mediate.
Russia declares state of emergency at port after Ukrainian drone attack on Novorossiysk
The mayor of the Russian port city of Novorossiysk declared a state of emergency on Saturday after he said a Ukrainian drone attack had damaged residential buildings and injured at least five people, including two children.
Andrei Kravchenko, the mayor, announced his decision on his official Telegram account which showed him inspecting the damage to apartment buildings and giving orders to officials.
Kravchenko said one of the injured people, a woman, was in hospital in a serious situation.
There was no immediate comment from Ukraine, whose air force said Russia had attacked Ukraine overnight with 183 drones and two ballistic missiles.
Tara Cobham3 May 2025 09:00
US approves $310m F-16 training and support deal for Ukraine
The US state department has approved a proposed $310m sale to Ukraine for F-16 training, sustainment, and related equipment, the Pentagon announced on Friday.
The announcement came just days after Ukraine signed a separate deal with the United States, widely promoted by Donald Trump, granting US firms preferential access to Ukrainian mineral rights and funding for reconstruction efforts.
Ukraine had previously received F-16 fighter jets from US allies, under a transfer program authorised by the Biden administration.
Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway are among countries that have supplied F-16 fighter jets and training support to strengthen Ukraine’s defence capabilities.
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 08:30
Ukrainian forces to join UK military procession for Victory in Europe anniversary
Ukrainian armed forces will take part in a British military procession on Monday celebrating the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day, which marks the end of fighting on the continent during World War Two.
Ukrainian personnel will join around 1,000 UK armed forces members, including soldiers on horseback and military bands, to symbolise "the global support for their continued fight for freedom" against Russia, the government said in a statement on Saturday.
8 May is observed in many countries including Britain, France and the United States as the date when the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany took effect in 1945.
Russia fought alongside the Western allies as the Soviet Union - which then included Ukraine. It marks the occasion on 9 May.
Britain plans various events in the run-up to the anniversary, including a military parade and a flypast, culminating in a service of thanksgiving on Thursday at Westminster Abbey in London that is due to be attended by the royal family.
Britain has staunchly supported Kyiv since the war in Ukraine began, providing billions of pounds in military aid and placing wide-ranging sanctions on Russian entities and individuals to punish Moscow for the conflict.
"In the midst of the first full-scale war in Europe since the Second World War, it is fitting that the Ukrainian Armed Forces currently fighting on the frontline of freedom are represented in Monday's event," defence minister John Healey said in the statement.
Ukraine says Russia attacked it with 183 drones and 2 missiles overnight
Russia attacked Ukraine overnight with 183 drones and two ballistic missiles, the Ukrainian air force said early on Saturday.
Of the 183 drones, it said it had shot down 77 and that another 73 had fallen without causing any damage.
Tara Cobham3 May 2025 07:25
Zelensky has reached a deal with Trump – but it won’t stop the war in Ukraine
Too many column inches have been wasted on inaccurate descriptions of the so-called minerals deal between the US and Ukraine. Much of the commentary was almost Trumpian in its hyperbole: “historic”, “momentous”, and a 180-degree change in America’s stances toward Ukraine… and therefore toward Russia as well.
Not so fast. Many have cheered that there was mention – an admission – of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine from the American side, and an apparent commitment to a future Ukraine that is, at least by implication, sovereign and independent, writes James Nixey
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 07:10
David Lammy slams Putin for stalling Ukraine peace talks
UK foreign secretary David Lammy has criticised Russian president Vladimir Putin for obstructing meaningful peace negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
“Putin has stalled and hampered discussions for long enough. The world is losing patience,” Lammy posted on X, adding that the US and UK remain committed to helping bring the conflict to an end.
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 06:50
Russian drone kills Ukrainian man trying to remove it from home
A man was killed in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region after a fallen Russian drone detonated while he was trying to remove it from a home, regional authorities said.
The incident came just hours after a major Russian drone strike on the eastern city of Kharkiv injured at least 46 people, including an 11-year-old child, when residential buildings were hit and fires broke out.
Elsewhere, four people were injured in a combined drone and artillery strike by Russian forces on areas east of Nikopol in southeastern Dnipropetrovsk.
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 06:30
US say 'we will not be the mediators' in Russia-Ukraine war
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 06:10
Satellite images show new road bridge North Korea is building with Russia
Russia has started building its first road bridge to North Korea across the Tumen River, signalling deepening ties with its reclusive ally.
The bridge will be the first to allow cars and other motor vehicles to cross between the two countries and represents a “significant milestone” in Russia–North Korea relations, Russian prime minister Mikhail Mishustin said on Wednesday during a groundbreaking ceremony held via video conference.
Read the full report here
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 05:50
Donald Trump wants Kyiv to swap peace for land. Ukrainians say that’s too painful to contemplate
Vitali Klitschko, the former heavyweight boxer who is now mayor of Kyiv, ventured last month into hazardous political territory: he delicately suggested in an interview that Ukraine might need to cede land to end its battle against Russia.
After a flood of angry online comments, he walked back his comments, saying on Facebook that "territorial concessions contradict our national interests and we must fight against their implementation until the last".
US President Donald Trump and his negotiators believe the only route to ending the Russian war in Ukraine is for Kyiv to acknowledge in some form that it is not getting back the Ukrainian land Moscow's troops have taken since invading.
Shahana Yasmin3 May 2025 05:30
English (US) ·