A Russian terror attack on 17 June was the largest of the full-scale war, says military expert Ivan Kyrychevskyi. Russia deliberately targeted residential buildings with missiles with cluster munitions to kill as many civilians as possible, Espreso reports. 

“Before 17 June, the maximum was 200–300 aerial weapons launched at once. This time, the Russians used nearly 500, most of them kamikaze drones,” Kyrychevskyi explains.

The UN has also noted that this attack on Kyiv may be the deadliest in nearly a year. The main impact hit densely populated neighborhoods, not military targets.

“X-101 missiles with cluster warheads can’t break through fortifications, but they kill people. That’s why they were used deliberately against civilians,” Kyrychevskyi says.

No one believes anymore that the strikes on Ukrainian hospitals and children’s centers are a “mistake.” After the attack on Kyiv’s Ohmatdyt children’s hospital in 2024, Western governments have stopped buying into the narrative of “accidental strikes,” adds the expert. 

Russia began its full-scale terror campaign against the Ukrainian civilian population in 2022, burning 90% of Mariupol and Bakhmut and committing atrocities during the attacks on Bucha in Kyiv Oblast.

“Better to leave than to face the truth.” This is how former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko explains US President Donald Trump’s behavior at the G7 summit on Ukraine, Hromadske reports.

“He has nothing to say to Zelenskyy. He can’t find a single argument to justify his defense of Putin. This is one of those situations where it’s easier to just leave,” the diplomat explains.

According to Ohryzko, all Ukraine can expect from Trump right now is weapons sales and intelligence sharing. Genuine support must come from Europe, but only if European leaders stop “being afraid of their own shadow.”

What happened in Ukraine today is yet another reproach to our European partners, he says.

“We need French or German fighter jets to shoot down missiles over Ukraine — just like the US shoots down Iranian missiles over Israel,” the diplomat adds.

He emphasizes that such action would not drag NATO into the war, as it would be an act of defense, not aggression.

“There isn’t a Russian sitting on every missile. These are aerial weapons flying into the territory of a country friendly to France, so they should be shot down,” he says.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy must raise this issue directly with allies during his visit to Canada, in his view.

“The question must be put bluntly. I believe Zelenskyy has to do it today, in Canada,” he concludes.

On 17 June, Ukraine’s capital and other cities were subjected to sheer terror. Russia deployed its every available aerial weapon to strike Kyiv, Odesa, and Zaporizhzhia, including hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, Kalibrs, cruise and ballistic missiles, and Shahed drones.

Read more: 

• How Ukraine can win, p.4: Just repeat what Putin says
• Russia bombs Kyiv and Iran targets Israel, Trump wants ceasefire — but only from Ukraine

The capital and other Ukrainian cities were subjected to sheer terror. On 17 June, Russia deployed every available aerial weapon to strike Kyiv, Odesa, and Zaporizhzhia, including hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, Kalibrs, cruise and ballistic missiles, and Shahed drones.

The Russian terrorist attack damaged residential buildings and killed 20 civilians. The number of casualties is not final as Ukraine continues to remove rubble from destroyed buildings. 

Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defense has cynically declared that its attacks’ objectives have been achieved. The missile struck so deep it pierced all concrete floors down to the basement.

All nine stories collapsed, leaving behind a two-story concrete ruin.

The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy states that Russian ruler Vladimir Putin continues the war simply because he is allowed to.

“It’s a tragedy when the powerful of this world turn a blind eye. It’s the terrorists who should feel the pain, not ordinary, peaceful people,” he emphasize.

At the same time, Poland, which currently chairs the Council of the European Union, has declared its support for Ukraine and expressed condolences to those who became victims of Russia’s carpet bombings. This is the same tactic Moscow used in Chechnya and Syria, and now applied to Kyiv, UkrInform reports. 

Iran mirrors the same strategy, indiscriminately targeting Israeli cities. At the same time, US President Donald Trump has called for a peace agreement with Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. Yet, when it comes to Iran, he takes a hardline stance: demanding not a ceasefire, but a total abandonment of the nuclear program, per CBS News. 

Warsaw is pushing for the adoption of the 18th package of sanctions against Russia, particularly the introduction of a price cap on Russian oil.

This package specifically targets oil, the fuel source that powers Russia’s war machine. This is critically important for Ukraine, as high oil prices have risen after the start of Israeli strikes on Iran, allowing Russia to earn enormous profits that are immediately funneled into weapons procurement.

Many experts and politicians believe that Moscow could be preparing a staging ground for launching a new war directly in Europe, especially in light of the Trump administration’s isolationist policies.

European leaders have expressed condolences and condemned Russian terror. Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Kyiv remains silent.

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Ukraine’s new bike unit mirrors Russia’s dumbest suicidal tactic — and that’s a strategic problem. Ukraine’s new bike unit adopts a Russian-style tactic: fast, deadly, and often doomed. It’s a gamble Kyiv may not be able to afford.

Military

60 Sumy border settlements completely abandoned amid intensified Russian attacks and offensive threat. More than 400 people evacuated from Ukrainian border communities in a single week, with 26 children among those forced to leave their homes.

UK intel: North Korea sent 11,000 troops to help Russia in Kursk—over half never came back. Kim Jong-un sent troops to back Putin in Kursk. UK intel says over 6,000 didn’t return.

Ukrainian actor-turned-soldier killed in combat. He traded stage for battlefield to defend Ukraine. Yurii Felipenko was known for theater work at Kyiv Academic Drama Theater and television appearances spanning a decade before he became a drone operator when Russia’s full-scale invasion started.

Intelligence and Technology

Ukrainian drone veterans train Estonia’s Defense League in battlefield tactics. Estonia’s Defense League volunteers are learning drone warfare from Ukrainian operators who spend up to 29 days at a time on the front lines, where drones serve as the “eyes of God” in modern combat.

German Vector and Twister drones already help Ukraine track targets. Soon, they’ll come armed with power to hear artillery before it hits. They will be linked to neural networks are being developed to automatically identify weapons — and guide counterstrikes.

Diplomacy can wait, but weapons can’t. Kyiv is ready to spend cash on American equipment. The Ukrainian president reveals plans to negotiate a new defense deal with Trump

International

Russia still cashing in: EU’s $ 231 bn fuel bill exposes nuclear blind spot. Brussels faces a $278 bn investment bill to wean the EU off Russian nuclear technology by the 2030s, as the bloc’s 101 nuclear reactors depend on Moscow for up to 25% of their uranium supply chain.

Ukraine’s people have bridged historic divides—up to 90% now stand united behind NATO and EU membership. Once split by language and geopolitics, Ukrainian society has been fundamentally reshaped.

Politico: Baltic hospitals go underground as NATO’s eastern flank braces for Russian threat. Three years into Russia’s war in Ukraine, hospitals across NATO’s eastern flank are moving operations underground, stockpiling tourniquets by the thousands, and asking medical staff to sign pledges promising they won’t flee if war arrives at their borders.

Canada’s uranium could replace Russia’s resources, choking off Kremlin money, say expert. Beyond oil and gas, Canada’s uranium production offers the West a rare chance to break nuclear dependency on Russia and Kazakhstan, says expert John Kirton.

Axios: Trump and Zelenskyy to meet at G7 summit in Canada first time since April. The last time the two leaders met in April before Pope Francis’ funeral.

Humanitarian and Social Impact

Umerov: Ukraine managed to return over 6,000 bodies of the dead, the fight for prisoners is ahead. Over 6,000 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers returned home following the completion of Istanbul agreement implementation, marking the end of this repatriation stage and the beginning of prisoner exchange efforts, according to Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

What three years of Russian captivity did to Ukrainian soldier. Mariupol defender Oleksandr was captured in 2022 and returned home in a recent prisoner exchange.

Doctors began removing “Glory to Russia” words carved on Ukrainian POW body. The propaganda inscription was discovered when the wounded serviceman regained consciousness after surgery in Russian custody.

Political and Legal Developments

Moscow quietly rushes to reinforce its nuclear sites just 300 km from Sweden. Meanwhile, Russia’s revised policy allows nukes in response attacks supported by NATO members.

Latvian MP faces 20 years in prison after shouting in Russian at parliament. Latvia’s State Security Service detained former parliamentarian Aleksejs Rosļikovs after he shouted “There are more of us, our language is Russian!” during a 5 June parliamentary session.

Russia planned to destroy Mariupol before 2022 — first public evidence emerges. From official plans to ash and silence — Mariupol’s fate was sealed in Kremlin documents.

Russia expands nuclear facilities near European borders, satellite images reveal. Russia knows that these threats cause panic in the Western world and exploits this fear strategically, according to a former NATO nuclear policy expert.

Read our earlier daily review here.

Surveys show that Ukraine has fundamentally changed. Today, up to 90% of citizens in every region, including the south and east, support Euro-Atlantic integration, says Anton Hrushetskyi, Executive Director of the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), UkrInform reports. 

After years of war with Russia, Ukrainian society has overcome longstanding geopolitical divisions.

“We have bridged the main divides. Issues that once split us, NATO, the EU, language, and attitudes toward Russia, now unite us,” the sociologist notes.

Key findings from KIIS:

• Support for NATO and the EU has surged to 80–90% across all regions
• There is a broad consensus that Russia is the aggressor
• Ukrainian remains the sole state language, though one-third still favor optional study of Russian

Researchers emphasize that this is not a fleeting trend but a lasting transformation rooted in 2022. However, they caution that “the work is far from complete,” as some politicians continue to exploit language issues for electoral advantage.

“Society is evolving — Russian is no longer part of our identity but is perceived as just another foreign language,” Hrushetskyi adds.

Earlier, a poll showed that a large majority of Ukrainians, 84%, believe there is no systematic discrimination or restriction of rights against Russian-speaking citizens in Ukraine. Among Russian-speaking Ukrainians themselves, 81% share this view.

The poll’s findings reject Russian propaganda that has systematically fabricated claims of discrimination against Russian speakers in Ukraine to justify its aggression. 

Moscow is lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons and strengthening its infrastructure less than 300 km from Sweden’s border, EurActiv.com reports. 

Russia has significantly intensified the construction and modernization of nuclear facilities near Sweden, particularly in Kaliningrad, Belarus, and the Arctic, according to new satellite imagery.

“We are closely monitoring Russian capabilities in this area. It is about both Russian investments in nuclear weapons capability and the development of a new doctrine,” said Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson.

Key developments include:

• Kaliningrad base – new fencing, communications systems, and up to 100 tactical nuclear weapons
• Asipovichy, Belarus – reinforced storage facilities and improved transport logistics
• Kola Peninsula and Novaya Zemlya – new underground storage for sea-launched missiles

In November 2024, the Kremlin revised its nuclear doctrine to permit the use of nuclear weapons not only in response to a nuclear strike, but also in cases of any “critical threat,” including conventional attacks supported by NATO countries. Such strikes can now be interpreted as “joint aggression” against Russia or Belarus.

These changes, along with Russia’s withdrawal from key arms control treaties, are creating a dangerous precedent, with Moscow increasingly using nuclear rhetoric to intimidate the West.

“Russia has lowered the threshold for threatening to use nuclear weapons, and we have seen since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine that it has done so more than 200 times at different political levels,” Jonson emphasized.

Earlier, expert Oleksii Izhak said that Russia was creating a risk for its nuclear force with its own hands. By deploying elements of its nuclear triad in the war against Ukraine, it is turning its strategic delivery systems into legitimate military targets, including strategic aviation. 

The battle for air superiority is no longer just about seeing — it’s also about hearing. In 2025, Germany plans to launch combat drones equipped with acoustic sensors that can detect the origin of enemy artillery fire, Army Inform reports. 

According to Hartpunkt, German company Quantum-Systems, in collaboration with Polish firm Weles Acoustics, is integrating advanced acoustic detectors into reconnaissance UAVs. These sensors capture sound waves from artillery and mortar fire, allowing for rapid identification of enemy firing positions.

Weighing under 50 grams, the sensors operate in the 20 Hz to 10 kHz range and can detect shots from up to 15 km away. Directional accuracy reaches 5° at a 5 km distance. Integration with neural networks enables the system to automatically identify weapon types, distinguishing, for example, a howitzer from a mortar.

In the initial phase, the operator receives a signal and visually confirms the target. In the future, machine vision algorithms will handle targeting automatically.

The technology is designed to:

• Reduce the time needed to locate enemy batteries
• Improve counter-battery effectiveness
• Minimize losses among Ukraine’s defense forces

Defense Express notes that a major challenge is filtering out noise from drone rotors and wind. Still, field test results have been convincing, and serial production is planned for late 2025.

Earlier, experts reported that Russia likely used a new jet-powered attack drone, the Geran-3, in a recent missile and drone strike on Kyiv. This model marks a significant upgrade over the slower Shahed-136 (Geran-2), boasting reported speeds of 550–600 km/h and a range of up to 2,500 km, compared to the Shahed-136’s 185 km/h.

Residents of Kyiv reported hearing a distinct whistling sound during the strike, consistent with a jet-powered drone and unlike the quieter propeller-driven models previously used. 

It is time to say no to Russian resources. The G7 countries should completely stop purchasing energy from Russia, replacing it with Canadian alternatives, said John Kirton. He is the head of the G7 research group at the University of Toronto, UkrInform reports.

“It is necessary for the G7 to continue pressuring India to stop purchasing Russian oil,” the expert says.

But it is equally important for the G7 countries to completely abandon imports of Russian energy resources, such as oil, coal, gas, and uranium.

“Canada, which holds the fifth-largest oil reserves in the world and is among the top three uranium producers, can help,” Kirton continues.

He emphasizes that Canada “can supply the US with all necessary isotopes so they do not depend on Russia or even Kazakhstan.”

“Although Kazakhstan may ultimately be closer to us than to Russia,” the expert believes.

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy plan to meet during the G7 summit. This meeting will be their first encounter since April, when they had a 15-minute conversation before Pope Francis’ funeral.

After that meeting, Trump stated that Russia had no justification for recent attacks on Ukrainian civilian areas and suggested that the Russian leader might not want to end the war. Following the meeting, there were talks about imposing new sanctions on Russia, but the US did not enact them.

After their conversation, Moscow launched the largest attack on Ukraine’s city of Kremenchuk, targeting an oil refinery and the thermal power plant. Witnesses say the skies over the town turned red during 30 strikes. Ukraine extinguished the fire for at least eight hours.

Putin calls to congratulate Trump on his birthday — then launches hypersonic missiles on small Ukrainian city in one of largest attacks of war

There is no peace because Russia refuses to end the war. On 16 June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of derailing all global efforts to achieve peace, speaking at a press conference in Vienna following talks with Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, UNIAN reports. 

Zelenskyy emphasized that Kyiv remains open to diplomacy, but the Kremlin blocks every initiative.

“We’re doing everything we can to end this war… but there’s no ceasefire, no honest diplomacy, no lasting security. And that’s only because of Russia,” he said.

He called for increased pressure on Moscow to stop the bloodshed and destruction, adding that this was a key focus of his discussions in Vienna.

Zelenskyy urged the EU to adopt a strong 18th sanctions package and maintain existing restrictions, including the freeze on Russian assets.

According to the Ukrainian leader, President Van der Bellen expressed readiness to support peace efforts and provide “credible mediation” in any potential talks with Russia.

Zelenskyy also stressed the importance of preserving transatlantic unity.

“We all want the US–Europe alliance to stay strong. If it collapses, Europe will have to rapidly build up its defense industry, which takes big money and very little time,” he warned.

Finally, Zelenskyy announced plans to speak with US President Donald Trump about a new defense package Ukraine is ready to purchase.

Russia deliberately destroyed Mariupol. The Center for the Study of Occupation has released the first direct evidence that Moscow was preparing to seize the Ukrainian city long before the full-scale invasion began.

According to Petro Andriushchenko, the head of the organization, in 2019, Russia officially developed and published a project for a “transport and transit hub” on the territory of Mariupol.

This confirms that the occupation and destruction of the city were not a chaotic result of warfare, but part of a premeditated plan.

The project in question already listed Mariupol as part of the Russian-controlled illegal entity located in Donetsk Oblast territory. The documentation outlined the creation of an infrastructure hub in the Zhovtnevyi and Prymorskyi districts, south of the historic center, with specific geographic boundaries: from Pushkin and Kotovsky streets to the shoreline of the Taganrog Bay.

Two Russian institutions, the Arena Institute and the Unified Institute for Spatial Planning of the Russian Federation, which is responsible for urban policy in occupied territories, prepared the project.

“This is the first public proof of preparations for the complete destruction of Mariupol prior to the full-scale invasion,” Andriushchenko emphasizes.

Earlier, Zaur Gurtsiyev, deputy mayor of Stavropol and former commander of the air operation over Mariupol, was killed in a grenade explosion that occurred overnight on 29 May. The explosion reportedly occurred in southern Russia’s Stavropol city near a residential building.

He was awarded multiple Russian state honors, including an order for his role in the occupation of Mariupol.

Grenade explosion kills Russian commander behind 2022 Mariupol deadly airstrikes

Read also: 

• Putin calls to congratulate Trump on his birthday — then launches hypersonic missiles on small Ukrainian city in one of largest attacks of war
• War diary: “Terrified of what He saw, God has left Mariupol, my neighbor said”

The sky turned red from the explosions. Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated US President Donald Trump on his birthday on 14 June, and almost immediately launched a strike on the Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles. 

Russia was likely to target critical infrastructure, particularly the Kremenchuk Thermal Power Plant and oil refinery, which are both essential to Ukraine’s energy system and defense. The city lies on the Dnipro River and has important railway connections and major logistics hubs.

It is reported that energy and agricultural infrastructure facilities in six locations in Kremenchuk in Poltava Oblast were hit. Fires broke out due to direct strikes and falling debris, Liga.net reports. 

The attack rocked the Ukrainian city hours after Putin called Trump on his birthday to offer congratulations and discuss the situation in the Middle East and Ukraine. Their conversation lasted approximately one hour, according to Ukrainska Pravda. 

Destruction of Iran’s nuclear program means Trump has no reason to offer Putin concessions on Ukraine in exchange for Tehran’s pressure, says expert

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched 194 aerial weapons — 167 were neutralized: 119 were shot down, and 48 are considered lost over Ukrainian territory.

Among the downed targets were:

• 111 drones,
• Two Kinzhal hypersonic missiles,
• Three Iskander-K cruise missiles
• Three Kalibr cruise missiles.

The Ukrainian air defense regularly intercepts Russian aerial targets, but debris still scatters over the homes and apartments of civilians. No casualties have been reported after the aerial assault. 

That’s about four times more drones than Iran launched at Israel in attacks beginning on 13 June, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty writes. At the same time, US troops assisted Jerusalem in repelling Tehran’s assault.

Israel’s recent strike on Iran has triggered a rise in oil prices, which could help Russian President Vladimir Putin improve Russia’s economy. Ukrainian investment banker Serhii Fursa says the current price of oil is about $74 per barrel, which is roughly $10 higher than before, 24 Channel reports. 

Fursa notes that oil prices could soar to as much as $120 in a worst-case scenario. He foresees a prolonged, intense war between Iran and Israel. A major concern would be if Iran closes the Strait of Hormuz, which would impact about 20% of the world’s oil supply.

“If that happens and lasts more than a day, it will create enormous stress on the oil market. This is exactly what economists around the world fear, as we will see oil prices much higher than they are now,” the investment banker says.

He adds that Israel’s strikes were highly effective.

“If the Iranians strike back against the Americans and this pulls the US into the war, then we may see even more radical moves from Iran, including blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” Fursa emphasizes.

According to him, if that happens, the situation would be addressed by both diplomatic and military means. Additionally, countries have stockpiled oil reserves that would likely be released in such a crisis. Still, in any case, it would cause massive economic stress, including for the US.

Alexander Motyl, a political science professor at Rutgers University-Newark, says the crisis in Los Angeles is overblown, as 90% of the protests were peaceful, Espreso reports. 

There were protests, some involving violence. Groups of anarchists threw stones and set cars on fire. But 90% of the protests were peaceful demonstrations by peaceful people. There was no real crisis, the expert explains. 

“The most important thing is that Trump and his advisors consider this an uprising and believe they have the right to involve the military, calling it an invasion,” Motyl continues.

They refer to a law allowing the US president to deploy the military in case of such an invasion. The expert believes Trump did this intentionally because he wanted to remove the government from California. 

“He hates not only Kamala Harris but also the governor of the state. He hates California because its liberalism represents everything Trump opposes,” Motyl emphasizes. 

Motyl also reports that 1,800 anti-Trump protests were planned across the country today under the slogan “No Kings”.

“People are protesting, and this is very positive. Americans are showing that they are fed up,” he concludes. 

At the same time, two armed attacks on Democratic politicians occurred in the US, resulting in two deaths and two severe injuries, ABC News reports, citing Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, where the attacks took place. According to him, Melissa Hortman, a Democratic member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, and her husband were shot in what is likely a “politically motivated murder.”

Earlier, Konstantin Blokhin, a political scientist with the Russian Academy of Sciences, advised Trump to suppress the California protests by force.

A Russian official, Alexei Pushkov, chair of the Russian Federation Council’s Commission on Information Policy, claimed that the US is “the top candidate for disintegration” due to the protests in Los Angeles.

Estonia continues to support Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression, this time by delivering a new batch of artillery ammunition. The exact number of shells in the latest shipment was not disclosed.

The announcement was made by the Estonian Ministry of Defence on the X platform on 13 June.

“Estonia has delivered more artillery ammunition to Ukraine. Ukraine’s security is European and transatlantic security. We must keep supporting Ukraine, so it can defend itself and achieve a just, lasting peace,” says Estonia’s Defense Ministry. 

Previously, Estonia had provided Ukraine with 10,000 artillery shells and 750,000 food kits for soldiers, Slovo ta Dilo reports. It also delivered equipment and machinery to Ukrainian rescue services. In March, Estonia announced plans to purchase military equipment and gear worth €100 million for Ukraine.

Earlier, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský stated that Prague plans to supply Ukraine with even more ammunition in 2025 and continue its support in 2026. 

Meanwhile, Russia continues to receive military support from Iran and North Korea, and other states that do not support Western sanctions. 

The confrontation between Israel and Iran is gaining momentum. These developments will have a direct impact on the Russia-Ukraine war. The coming weeks will show how intensely the situation in the Middle East will escalate, Ukrainian diplomat and former Ambassador to the US Valery Chalyi told Channel 24.

In the short term, Chalyi believes the events in the Middle East will not significantly affect Ukraine. However, global risks are very real.

“It is important that Russia loses money. That would be possible if oil prices dropped,” Chalyi explains.

Bloomberg: US blocks EU and UK push to cut Russian oil price cap to $45

But if Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz and oil prices skyrocket, the Kremlin would receive additional profits to fund the war.

Another threat is the West’s shifting focus. In the event of a major war, the US might choose to prioritize arms supplies to Israel over Ukraine, Chalyi warns.

However, there is also an opportunity: if Israel destroys Iran’s ballistic missiles and Shahed drones, that would directly reduce Russia’s ability to strike Ukrainian cities.

“Although the Russians are manufacturing drones, they’re doing it using Iranian technology. The Iranians are helping them tremendously,” the diplomat notes.

According to Chalyi, a prolonged Israel-Iran war would clearly work against Ukraine. The Kremlin could attempt to exploit the situation to negotiate with the West. 

Chalyi emphasizes that Iran is an enemy of Ukraine. In 2020, its military shot down a Ukrainian passenger plane, killing all 176 people on board. Today, Iran supplies Russia with drones, and possibly missiles.

Iran’s downed Ukrainian airliner trial lacks impartiality and transparency

“If Israel destroys the rockets and Shaheds that could kill Ukrainians—maybe that’s karma,” Chalyi suggests.

He adds that Ukraine is now a global player with one of the strongest armies in the world. Therefore, it must act strategically in cooperation with the EU and the US to prevent a drawn-out war in the Middle East while simultaneously securing victory on its own front.

Countries are losing trust in Washington. Retired US Army General Ben Hodges told Ukrinform that recent military operations by Ukraine and Israel against enemy targets reflect a growing distrust in the US by both countries.

Hodges says he believes the Israelis also do not trust the Trump administration because they did not ask permission or inform the Trump administration directly before the operation. Similarly, Ukrainian forces did not do this immediately before Operation Spiderweb. 

He emphasizes that this is a negative result for the US, but he does not blame Israel for its decision.

At the same time, the general hopes that Washington will support Jerusalem and help “finish the job,” which could lead to the elimination of the nuclear threat from Iran.

Another important lesson from Israel’s strikes is that Russia “did nothing” to assist Iran, once again proving its unreliability. He added that although Iran provided military assistance to Russia, it is currently unknown whether this continues and to what extent.

When asked about the possibility of US troop withdrawal from Europe, the general didn’t rule it out, but believes it is unlikely to happen in the near term.

In an interview with the American TV channel Newsmax, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Russia has consistently supported Iran.

“Will the Russians help Iran? I think they always have. The question is whether they will openly support Iran,” Zelenskyy said.

He stressed that everything depends on a strong US position, backed by European support. Without it, Russia will understand that it can openly assist Iran, triggering a new wave of conflict in the Middle East.

The Ukrainian president also highlighted that a strong stance by Donald Trump could stop Russia’s plans to seize Ukraine.

“Trump can stop him. For that, Putin must lose money. Only then will he be unable to increase spending on his army,” he emphasized.

He added that tough sanctions are necessary.

“He is the president of the US. He must influence any aggressor in the world. Undoubtedly, Putin is one of the most dangerous,” the Ukrainian leader concluded.

Earlier, the US attempted to block European efforts to cut the G7 price cap on Russian oil from $60 to $45 per barrel, frustrating EU and UK attempts to ramp up pressure on Moscow’s war financing. 

Once dreaming of living by the sea, now mass-selling apartments and fleeing back. Russians who moved to Crimea after the occupation are disappointed by the heat, lack of jobs, air raid alarms, and Russian military bases, OBOZ reports. 

Real estate agents in Crimea confirm: more than half of new property owners are trying to sell or rent out their apartments.

“Residents from Siberia, the Urals, even Moscow suburbs increasingly contact us asking to sell or rent out their property,” says Kseniia, a Crimean realtor speaking anonymously.

When you start working with them, it turns out they have lived here for a year or two, some even five years, but concluded Crimea is not for them. The reasons vary, from the climate not suiting them to military actions, she continues.

Many Russians came here to live peacefully by the sea, enjoying the fruits and beaches, but reality turned out differently.

Constant air raid alarms, explosions, military equipment on the streets, and frequent inspections create an atmosphere of ongoing tension.

“Neither they nor their children can endure constant air raid alarms, let alone explosions. Some told me their children start to panic. They are irritated by the military bases literally scattered across the Southern Coast of Crimea,” Kseniia adds.

Besides military issues, Crimea lacks decent jobs with reasonable salaries. The tourism business has shrunk due to the war, and most office workers and managers simply cannot find work here.

“If you’re a plumber, electrician, mechanic, builder, or air conditioner technician, you can find work here. But salaries will be Crimean, not Moscow level,” says Mykola, a resident of Yalta.

Infrastructure and healthcare problems also do not contribute to comfortable living. Crimea lacks international chain stores, and medical services are often expensive and inaccessible.

“Corruption thrives in medicine, nobody pays attention to medical insurance here, and you have to buy medicine and even bandages out of pocket,” reads the report.

Local Crimeans also have a negative attitude toward the newly arrived Russians, blaming them for price hikes, pollution, and uncivilized behavior. The Russians, in turn, call locals rude and backward.

Add to this the harsh Crimean climate, with intense heat in summer, cold, rainy winters, mud everywhere, and sea storms, and it becomes clear why many hurry to return home.

For now, Crimea remains a place for summer vacation for most Russians, and their dream of a peaceful life by the sea has yet to come true.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin does not want peace. Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy states that current communication between the US and Russia resembles a “warm conversation,” which only reinforces the Russian ruler’s confidence, Newsmax reports. 

“I don’t think this can stop Putin. On the contrary, he enjoys it. I believe the tone must change. Putin must clearly understand that America will continue to support Ukraine, with sanctions and military assistance,” Zelenskyy emphasizes.

According to him, Putin is currently trying to deceive Donald Trump by pretending to show a willingness for peace, not to end the war, but to avoid new sanctions.

“Putin doesn’t want to end the war. But he needs to show Trump something positive to dodge sanctions,” the Ukrainian president continues.

Zelenskyy also stresses that Russian society has become radicalized by propaganda and that Russia’s military-industrial complex receives around $300 billion annually.

“It’s like a high-speed train with no one at the controls,” he compares.

He acknowledges that even if Trump manages to bring Putin to the negotiating table, it would only be a partial victory. The aggression, he warns, may return in another form.

“Either it will come back later, or the target of aggression will change,” the Ukrainian president adds.

Earlier, the US attempted to block European efforts to cut the G7 price cap on Russian oil from $60 to $45 per barrel, frustrating EU and UK attempts to ramp up pressure on Moscow’s war financing. 

As part of a painful but vital repatriation process, Ukraine has reportedly received another 1,200 bodies of fallen soldiers from Russia, part of an agreement brokered in Istanbul, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (CHTPW) announces. 

This exchange follows two earlier repatriations on 13 June and 11 June, during which 1,200 and 1,212 bodies, respectively, were returned to Ukraine.

According to Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who led the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul, this exchange symbolizes a necessary step toward restoring dignity to fallen defenders.

“An agreement was reached to return 6,000 bodies of fallen soldiers in exchange for 6,000,” he explains.

In the coming days, Ukrainian law enforcement, forensic teams from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and other agencies will conduct examinations and procedures to return names to those unidentified.

Russia is already at Estonia’s gates. Tallinn may become the next target for Russia’s aggressive war because the Russians have several convenient pretexts for it, The Economist reports. 

For several years, Russia has been conducting a covert campaign of intimidation and destabilization against Estonia, using cyberattacks, undercover agents, sabotage, and legions of disinformation bots on social media.

NATO recognizes these risks and has been increasing its military presence in the region: currently, over 2,000 troops from allied countries are stationed in Estonia.

However, amid the reduction of American forces in Europe, Estonia could become the place where Russia first attempts to test the reliability of NATO’s Article 5 on collective defense. 

Between the 1950s and 1980s, the Kremlin resettled hundreds of thousands of ethnic Russians to Estonia, and today they make up one-fifth of the country’s 1.4 million population. The largest number of them are living in the city of Narva, located right on the border with Russia. Nearly the entire population there is descended from Russian settlers.

More than 30 years later, Russians have shifted from a politically dominant group to a lower-class minority, though many in Narva still feel attached to the Soviet version of history.

Since the war in Ukraine began, Russian destabilizing efforts have intensified throughout Estonia. Last year, a sociology professor who seemed liberal was exposed as a Russian agent. In 2023, vandals damaged the cars of the Minister of Internal Affairs and the editor of a Russian-language news website.

At the same time, Russian attempts to recruit Russian speakers for minor sabotage through social media have found little support.

Russia recruits elderly in covert sabotage campaign across Ukraine and Europe

The war in Ukraine has united Estonians but divided the Russians living there. Some feel sympathy for their homeland, where many have relatives; some resent Estonian nationalism. Some are Putin supporters or simply wish for a brotherly alliance like in the old days. Others, especially younger people, warmly welcome Ukrainian refugees into their schools and communities.

Since 2022, the Estonian government has taken steps to isolate Estonia from Russia. It stopped issuing visas to Russian citizens, restricted Russian business activities, banned Russian TV channels from cable packages, and removed Soviet-era monuments. This year, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania disconnected their electricity grids from Russia.

Most of the well-known and most controversial Estonian residents holding Russian passports, who previously could vote in municipal elections, will no longer be able to do so after this year’s elections.

The war in the Middle East could decide the fate of Ukraine’s fight against Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that Israeli “strikes have led to a sharp rise in oil prices,” which is a negative factor. According to him, “the Russians are strengthening due to higher revenues from oil exports,” UNIAN reports. 

“If there are price caps, the price will be limited, so probably the risks will decrease. Although someone will circumvent even that. That is, you cannot completely avoid the risks,” the president explains.

He claims that Ukraine will increase proposals to the American side for the introduction of price caps and sanctions against Russia’s energy sector.

“I will soon be in contact with the American side, probably with the president, and we will raise this issue,” Zelenskyy states.

At the same time, he draws attention to the military aspect.

“If we say that Iran is an ally of the Russians in supplying weapons, then have serious strikes been inflicted on the production of Shaheds and rockets, and other capabilities? We hope that it will decrease,” he says. 

Furthermore, he notes that the escalation in the Middle East leads to increased aid to Israel from the US.

“No one challenges the relationship between America and Israel, but we would like the aid to Ukraine not to decrease because of this,” the Ukrainian president stressed and recalled that previous tensions “slowed down aid to Ukraine.”

Earlier, expert Abbas Galliamov said that the Kremlin is losing one of its key bargaining chips in negotiations with Donald Trump amid Israel’s strikes on Iran. Up to 13 June, there was a kind of trade-off: “Ukraine in exchange for Iran.”

According to him, Trump would offer Putin not to put too much pressure on him over Ukraine for now, but in return, he counted on the Russian president’s support in negotiations with Tehran on its nuclear program. 

Every new Russian shelling of Kharkiv results in thousands of broken windows and damage, says Kharkiv’s mayor, Ihor Terekhov, UkrInform reports. 

“Currently, the need for windows exceeds 50,000. Every strike increases this number by another thousand, one and a half, two. The record was more than five thousand in one attack,” the mayor reveals.

Municipal services promptly seal off the building envelopes to preserve heat and ensure residents’ safety. Some construction materials are provided by charitable organizations, but, according to Terekhov, the volumes are significantly less than in previous years of the war.

“We are receiving very little now from the funds. The assistance is shrinking, probably due to a lack of financial resources. And it’s not getting easier for us,” the mayor continues.

Volunteers actively help municipal workers eliminate the consequences of the strikes, especially in hard-to-reach buildings.

For example, in a 24-story building in the Saltivka district damaged during the night shelling on 12 June, construction materials had to be carried up manually because the elevators were without power.

The mayor also emphasizes that after each attack, Kharkiv residents unite and support the municipal and emergency services. He recalls an incident when, during a morning shelling on Hymnaziyna Embankment, a local resident brought sandwiches to workers clearing the damage.

“We don’t know if an exchange of nuclear strikes will begin.” Nuclear conflict risk between Iran and Israel threatens not only the Middle East but also Ukraine, says former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko, Radio NV reports. 

The West might shift its focus to a new crisis, while Russia could financially benefit from rising oil prices.

“If, after all these events, Iran reduces its support to Russia, that would be in our interests,” the diplomat notes.

At the same time, he warned that Israel’s actions might have a dangerous effect: “Who has power is right, and Iran will certainly respond to that.”

Ohryzko emphasizes that Tehran has already declared a strong response, using not only drones but also cruise and ballistic missiles.

“We don’t know what else is stored in Iran’s other sites, whether there are already ready nuclear warheads,” he adds. 

According to the expert, Israel’s possession of nuclear weapons is almost an objective reality. Therefore, the risk of nuclear escalation becomes not hypothetical but an extremely realistic scenario.

“So, we don’t know if at some point an exchange of nuclear strikes will begin, and that would be not just dangerous, but horrific,” Ohryzko stresses.

Besides the military threat, there is another consequence — rising energy prices.

“There are reports that oil prices jumped by 12%. That means Russia will profit from this,” the former minister notes. 

In such a situation, Ukraine risks losing part of the West’s attention while simultaneously facing the economic strengthening of its main enemy.

Czechia plans to supply Ukraine with even more ammunition in 2025 and continue its support in 2026, UkrInform reports. 

Czechia intends to deliver more large-caliber ammunition to Ukraine this year than in 2024, said Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha in Prague.

“We want to supply more large-caliber ammunition this year than in 2024, and continue this initiative in 2026,” Lipavský states.

According to him, Czechia’s participation in the Coalition of the Willing and the expansion of the Ammunition Initiative demonstrate long-term solidarity. He emphasized that the intensity of contacts between Kyiv and Prague shows that Czechia is a key partner of Ukraine.

Sybiha, in turn, thanked Czechia for its systematic support, especially in defense and weapons supplies. He also highlighted humanitarian efforts, assistance to internally displaced persons, hospital reconstruction, provision of 3D printers, and drones.

“I was impressed by the volume of help provided by Czech society, volunteer and non-governmental organizations that assist Ukraine every day,” said Sybiha.

Czechs raise € 8.15 mn for Ukraine military drones

Among the projects Czechia is implementing in Ukraine is the restoration of six hospitals. Both sides also see great prospects in developing defense-industrial cooperation.

“With Czechia, we have reached the highest level of bilateral dialogue. Czechia is one of the few countries with which Ukraine has established strategic relations during the war,” emphasized Sybiha.

Meanwhile, Russia continues to receive military support from Iran and North Korea, and other states that do not support Western sanctions. Thus, while Czechia and its allies actively assist Ukraine with ammunition and equipment, Russia receives support from countries, complicating the frontline situation and prolonging the war.

Ukraine has made a breakthrough in its weapons developement. The new, domestically produced Sapsan ballistic missile has completed successful tests and is now headed for mass production, says Valentin Badrak, director of the Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies, LIGA.net reports. 

“The first successful test of Ukraine’s first ballistic missile took place in July 2024,” Badrak confirms.

Ballistic missiles are notoriously hard to intercept due to their parabolic trajectory, a tactical advantage confirmed by battlefield experience.

“Even the older American ATACMS missiles have proven this in combat, as the enemy failed to intercept them,” the expert adds. 

In May 2025, Sapsan saw its first combat use, and it was an immediate success. The missile struck a Russian military target approximately 300 km away with high precision.

The Ministry of Defense has now greenlit full-scale production, and according to Badrak, “there are no obstacles remaining for this step.”

Beyond its speed, Sapsan boasts a powerful warhead of 480 kg, more than double the explosive payload of the standard US ATACMS – 227 kg.

“It’s clear Ukraine is moving toward missile force buildup — and this matters not only for today’s defense, but for securing the nation’s long-term future,” Badrak concludes. 

Earlier, Mykola Shcherbakov, commander of a State Border Guard Sea Guard vessel, said the war in Ukraine is bringing revolutionary changes to modern military strategy. After Ukrainian soldiers destroyed Russia’s Black Sea Fleet flagship, the Moskva cruiser, it became clear: the era of large warships is over

The world holds its breath after an Israeli strike on Iran, but Kyiv braces for worse as Washington’s priorities may shift, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports. 

Global reaction has been mixed, ranging from calls for restraint to avoid a regional war to open support for Israel’s decisive action. But for Ukraine, this escalation spells troubling consequences.

Analysts warn that the rising tensions between Israel and Iran could prompt the United States to divert its attention and resources from the war in Ukraine to the Middle East. This would be a deeply dangerous shift for Kyiv, which depends on uninterrupted allied support to resist Russian aggression.

“Without a doubt, this will distract some attention from the defense of Ukraine against Russian aggression,” said Roland Freudenstein, a Brussels-based analyst.

The Trump administration has been clear about its intent to bring the war in Ukraine to a swift close, even at the cost of painful compromises. A new crisis in the Persian Gulf only reinforces this narrative. Meanwhile, Trump’s self-imposed “two-week” window for striking a deal with Russia has just expired.

Beyond geopolitics, energy markets are also feeling the impact. Following Israel’s strikes, oil prices surged to $75 per barrel, a $5 spike in just hours. That’s direct profit for the Kremlin’s war chest.

“If the Middle East crisis deepens, it will inevitably push energy prices up. And in some ways, this benefits Russia,” warns analyst Ian Lesser.

While considering a price cap of $45 per barrel on Russian oil, the European Union risks losing leverage. Kyiv is demanding even tougher measures, a $30 cap, to strangle the Kremlin’s war financing. But in the current chaos, this plan may become harder to implement.

Once again, Ukraine stands to become a victim in a war, this time between Israel and Iran.

Following recent repatriation efforts, Ukraine has brought home the bodies of 1,200 fallen soldiers, according to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

“According to the Russian side, the remains belong to Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel. The repatriation was carried out in line with the agreements reached in Istanbul,” the Coordination Headquarters stated.

• What happens next:
  The bodies will undergo forensic examination and identification by Ukrainian investigators and Interior Ministry experts
• This process will restore the names of the fallen heroes and allow families to be notified

On 2 June, during negotiations in Istanbul, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, head of the Ukrainian delegation, announced that both parties had agreed to exchange 6,000 fallen soldiers’ remains in a 6,000-for-6,000 swap. 

Earlier, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky said to the Ukrainian delegation during recent peace talks in Istanbul that Russia is prepared to fight forever. 

Russia conditioned a ceasefire on Ukraine withdrawing all forces from Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia—regions claimed by Moscow since 2022 but only partially occupied. Ukrainian diplomatic sources said Russia also threatened to seize Kharkiv and Sumy, expanding its territorial demands.

“Maybe more of your loved ones will die”: Russia’s threat at Ukraine peace talks revealed

Europe extends protection for Ukrainians as Russia intensifies attacks on towns and cities. The Council of the European Union has endorsed the European Commission’s proposal to extend temporary protection for over 4 million Ukrainians until 4 March 2027. These individuals have taken refuge in the EU, fleeing Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine.

What has been decided:

• The protection status is extended for one year, from 2026 to 2027 
• The conditions remain unchanged: Ukrainians retain their rights to residence, education, healthcare, and employment
• No new restrictions or exclusions have been introduced

While Russia continues to terrorize Ukraine’s civilian population with indiscriminate airstrikes, the European Union reaffirms its solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

“We will continue to offer protection for millions of Ukrainian refugees for another year,” emphasizes Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak.

Poland, which currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency, also initiated discussions on a strategy for phasing out temporary protection, once peace is achieved. In the coming months, the EU will work toward joint, coordinated decisions on this matter, particularly regarding the return of refugees to Ukraine.

Since March 2022, the EU has granted shelter to more than 4 million Ukrainian refugees under the Temporary Protection Directive. This protection was originally set to expire on 4 March 2026, but will now be extended by another year.

The extension does not alter the scope of the original March 2022 decision—the rights of those eligible for temporary protection remain unchanged.

The Kremlin is losing one of its key bargaining chips in negotiations with Donald Trump. Political expert Abbas Galliamov says that for Ukraine, the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Iran is a promising prospect, as Tehran remains the closest ally of Russian ruler Vladimir Putin, Radio NV reports. 

“This is Putin’s closest ally. Ukrainians have seen enough of Iranian drones flying overhead. That alone is enough to wish those guys some serious trouble, which the Israel Defense Forces is currently delivering,” Galliamov explains.

According to him, Putin is losing a trump card in his dialogue with the US president.

“Up to now, there’s been a kind of trade-off: Ukraine in exchange for Iran. Trump would say to Putin, ‘Fine, I won’t put too much pressure on you over Ukraine for now, but in return, I need your support on Iran,’” Galliamov explains.

Once the Iranian nuclear issue is resolved, especially if the Iranian regime falls, Trump will have no need to seek Putin’s support in that arena.

Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the first wave of airstrikes on Iran “very successful,” UNIAN reports. 

Israeli military sources clarify that among those killed in the attack were former head of Iran’s nuclear agency Fereydoon Abbasi, nuclear scientist Mehdi Tehranchi, and physicist Abdolrahim Minuchehr.

During the first wave of Israeli strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hossein Salami, may have also been eliminated.

Russia emerges as potential mediator in Trump’s new Iran nuclear deal talks

An Israel Defense Forces spokesperson states that other Iranian commanders and leading scientists involved in nuclear development may also have been killed as a result of the Israeli strikes.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei later acknowledged the deaths of several high-ranking military officials and nuclear scientists in the Israeli attacks. Iran’s armed forces had earlier vowed a “firm response” to the Israeli assault. Khamenei declared he was giving full freedom of action to the military to answer the strike.

On 13 June, Israel eliminated Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the Aerospace Forces of the Iranian Armed Forces. He was directly involved in supplying Shahed drones to Russia, says Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation.

Hajizadeh was also involved in the transfer of Iranian short-range ballistic missiles to Russia, as well as in joint missile development programs. Due to these activities, the UK, the US, and the EU have imposed personal sanctions against him.

The Israeli Defense Forces officially confirmed the elimination of the Iranian Aerospace Forces commander, a central figure in Iran responsible for direct aerial attacks on Israel.

Amir Ali Hajizadeh was a military official of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a branch of Iran’s executive power operating parallel to the army. The IRGC oversees ballistic missile development and domestic repression, 24 Channel reports. 

As part of a coordinated initial strike, Israeli Air Force jets targeted the command center where IRGC Aerospace Forces commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh was located, along with other senior officials. Among those killed were IRGC drone commander Taher Pour and IRGC Air Force commander Davoud Sheikhian.

In total, at least 20 high-ranking Iranian commanders were killed during Israel’s strike. 

Israel has carried out a large-scale military operation targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities, an action reportedly prepared over the years, which resembles tactics used in Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb, according to UNIAN. 

According to Israeli media, the Israel Defense Forces established a covert base for strike drones within Iranian territory. From this hidden launch site, a wave of kamikaze drones attacked key components of Iran’s nuclear and missile infrastructure.

Al Jazeera reports that the drones struck earth-to-earth missile launchers at Iran’s Asfaghabad military base near Tehran.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has stated that the military “will continue its mission to disrupt Iran’s nuclear ambitions.”

Simultaneously, Israeli fighter jets reportedly bombed uranium enrichment facilities in Natanz and Fordow, as well as missile bases in Kermanshah and Khorramabad. Other major cities, Tehran, Isfahan, and Tabriz, were also hit, with precision strikes aimed at top military leadership and nuclear scientists, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports. 

The holy city of Qom, home to much of Iran’s clerical elite, also came under attack.

According to unconfirmed reports cited by Iranian state media, the strikes killed several high-ranking figures, including IRGC Commander Hossein Salami, Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri, and nuclear physicist Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi.

Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson Efi Defrin says the operation was a preemptive warning against Iran’s near-completion of a nuclear weapon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Iran had already stockpiled enough enriched uranium for nine nuclear bombs and planned to produce 10,000 ballistic missiles within three years.

Russia could reach the borders of Romania, a NATO member, and attack other countries if Europe fails to help defend Moldova. On 11 June, at the Ukraine–Southeastern Europe summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that after targeting Moldova, Moscow plans to occupy the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, UNIAN reports. 

According to Zelenskyy, Southeastern Europe and Ukraine are among Russia’s targets for provoking chaos in Europe. Moscow has already stirred unrest in the Balkans, attempted to manipulate public opinion in Romania, and has kept Moldova in poverty and instability for three decades in an effort to bring it under its control, he said. 

“If Europe loses Moldova this year, it will encourage Russia to interfere even more in your countries, seizing your resources, your sovereignty, and even your history,” Zelenskyy warned.

The Ukrainian leader stressed that Russia does not see Ukraine as a sovereign state, but rather as a heap of resources and a military platform for future invasions.

Putin’s Victory Day speech may reveal his next target in Ukraine

Regardless of what Putin believes, Zelenskyy said, European countries must put Russia in a position where the aggressor is forced to seek peace. He emphasized that this is entirely possible and depends on Ukraine’s defense capabilities.

“Air defense systems and drones are crucial. Another key tool is sanctions,” he claimed.

Zelenskyy explained that Ukraine needs stronger support, especially regarding Russian oil tankers and the aggressor’s financial sector.

“About the oil price cap: $45 per barrel is better than $60—that’s obvious, that’s true. But real peace will come with a cap of $30 per barrel,” he emphasized.

He also urged European countries to treat postwar security guarantees as a matter of practical necessity.

Everything was burning, death was all around — but Kharkiv remains unbroken. After a nighttime kamikaze drone attack on Kharkiv, rescuers heard an injured man singing the Ukrainian national anthem beneath the rubble of a destroyed building, says Oleksii Biloshytskyi, First Deputy Head of the Patrol Police Department.

During the night of 11 June, Russian attack drones struck residential neighborhoods in Kharkiv. Direct hits were recorded on apartment buildings and a civilian enterprise. Three people were killed, and more than 60 were injured, including children.

A 65-year-old man, a 47-year-old woman, and another 65-year-old man who died in the hospital in the morning were among the victims of the strike. At least 60 people were wounded, among them nine children, UkrInform reports. 

Oleksii Biloshytskyi described an extraordinary moment during the rescue operation. 

“We pulled people from the rubble, extinguished fires burning right on people’s bodies. In that darkness, amid the dust, smoke, and pain, a man under the debris was singing the Ukrainian National Anthem. That’s something you don’t forget. That’s something you cannot forgive,” he said. 

Earlier, on 7 June, Russia launched a mix of drones, guided bombs, and at least one missile on Kharkiv, killing six civilians.

One of the Shahed drones struck civilian infrastructure, causing severe destruction. Among the damaged objects was an Audi A7 that ended up at the epicenter of the explosion, writes Blik. Yet, contrary to expectations, the car not only “survived” but also started and drove away, astonishing everyone who witnessed the moment. Footage of the car instantly went viral on social media.

Swedish company Saab and German defense startup Helsing have conducted combat trials of a Gripen E fighter jet piloted by artificial intelligence, pitted against a real-life human pilot, The War Zone reports. 

The first of these test flights took place on 28 May. By the third combat sortie on 3 June, the AI agent, dubbed Centaur, was ready to engage in a beyond-visual-range (BVR) air battle against a crewed Gripen D fighter.

During the process, the AI agent rapidly accumulated experience and improved its decision-making skills in BVR combat, a battlefield Saab describes as “like playing chess in a supersonic with advanced missiles.”

Saab has confirmed that the Centaur AI system could potentially be expanded to close-range dogfights within visual range (WVR) as well. However, the initial focus remains on BVR engagements, which the company describes as the most critical aspect of air combat, a point reinforced by the ongoing air war in Ukraine.

In a series of dynamic BVR scenarios, the Gripen E’s sensors received target data, and the Centaur AI autonomously executed complex maneuvers on behalf of the test pilot. The culmination of these scenarios saw the AI agent providing the pilot with firing cues for simulated air-to-air weapon launches.

Meanwhile, Marcus Wandt, Saab’s Chief Innovation Officer and a test pilot himself, remarked that the test flights “so far point to the fact that ‘it is not a given’ that a pilot will be able to win in aerial combat against an AI-supported opponent.”

“This is an important achievement for Saab, demonstrating our qualitative edge in sophisticated technologies by making AI deliver in the air,” said Peter Nilsson, head of Advanced Programs within Saab’s Aeronautics business area.

Insights gained from this program will feed into Sweden’s future fighter program, which aims to select one or more next-generation air combat platforms by 2031.

Russian officials predict the US’s collapse amid the protests in Los Angeles. Alexei Pushkov, chair of the Russian Federation Council’s Commission on Information Policy, has claimed that the US is now “the top candidate for disintegration” due to mounting internal divisions, Ukrinform reports.

Pushkov, a prominent member of the ruling United Russia party, has shared his statement on Telegram.

“California is in a state of chaos and lawlessness. Rioters are pelting police cars with bricks, conveniently pre-positioned on pallets throughout Los Angeles, just like during the 2020 riots,” he writes. 

He has also accused California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, of siding with rioters and blaming federal authorities.

“While Brussels fantasizes about Russia’s collapse, which won’t happen, it is the US that may not survive the deep divisions shaking its society,” Pushkov has argued. 

He has concluded with a provocative prediction: “In the 21st century, the US may well become the Disunited States.”

Pushkov is no ordinary lawmaker. A career diplomat, he also heads the Russian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and was among the authors of the constitutional amendments that enabled Vladimir Putin to extend his presidency indefinitely.

Meanwhile, Konstantin Blokhin, a political scientist with the Russian Academy of Sciences, has advised Trump to suppress the California protests by force. He has downplayed concerns over public opinion in what he described as a “non-Republican” state.

“I’m 100% certain that Democrats and liberals will immediately label him a dictator, despot, fascist — they’ll do it no matter what. If the situation develops rapidly and unpredictably, force will be necessary. If national security is at risk, no one will sit idly by,” he has claimed. 

Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a formal message congratulating the Russian people on Russia Day, which coincided with Kyiv’s announcement that Russian troop losses in Ukraine have surpassed one million.

Rubio’s greetings come as Russia continues its escalated daily airstrikes on Ukrainian cities, causing numerous civilian casualties.

The war in Ukraine is bringing revolutionary changes to modern military strategy. After Ukrainian soldiers destroyed Russia’s Black Sea Fleet flagship, the Moskva cruiser, it became clear: the era of large warships is over, UkrInform reports. 

The Moskva proved that a large warship in the Black Sea is an easy target, says Mykola Shcherbakov, commander of a State Border Guard Sea Guard vessel.

“That’s why we need to be small, fast, and maneuverable. I think swarm tactics are what the future holds for us,” he believes.

Shcherbakov is convinced that Ukraine’s navy’s future lies in high automation, mobility, and modular platforms that can be reconfigured for various missions.

“A fleet is always very expensive. But small platforms with modular weaponry, missiles, air defense — that’s the path to success. And support from drones is essential,” he emphasizes.

He adds that the Sea Guard can also assign some tasks to unmanned systems—for example, during reconnaissance missions or in high-risk zones.

“Not all of our tasks require people on board. When it’s about documenting violations or communicating with fishermen, drones can’t replace a human. But when it comes to scouting or assessing the situation, maritime drones would be very appropriate,” Shcherbakov explains.

He says Ukraine has already shown the world its capabilities in unmanned maritime technology.

“There are already sea-based FPV drone variants, vessels equipped with air defense systems — even something resembling mini aircraft carriers that can carry reconnaissance or strike systems,” Shcherbakov notes.

Ukraine is currently at the forefront of using unmanned systems at sea, the Ukrainian commander emphasizes.

Kyiv urgently needs weapons amid the summer offensive, while Canada is still counting the guns, CBC reports. The Canadian federal government has yet to fulfill its commitment to transfer firearms seized through the government’s banned weapons buyback program to Ukraine, despite promises made last year.

Although Canada pledged in December 2024 to deliver some of the assault rifles confiscated from civilians to Ukraine, not a single weapon has been sent for military use so far.

During the first phase of the buyback program, over 12,000 banned firearms were purchased from businesses. However, the government has yet to determine how many of these could be transferred to Ukraine.

“The Government of Canada continues to work with businesses to identify prohibited firearms in their inventory of NATO calibre that could be donated to Ukraine,” said Max Watson, spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Safety.

When the program was announced in December, the government stated it was working with Ukraine to identify which specific weapon models could be used in the conflict.

The banned weapons buyback program expanded the list of prohibited firearms from around 1,500 to over 2,000 models. The weapons purchased from businesses are to be destroyed, except for those planned for shipment to Ukraine.

They call you — and suddenly, you’re an “agent,” without even realizing it. Ukrainian law enforcement is reporting a surge in cases where the Russians target pensioners by phone, impersonating officers from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) or the National Police. Victims are then blackmailed into carrying out sabotage missions for Russia, according to the National Police.

Russia’s strategy is clear: recruit people who are unaware they have become pawns in a campaign of international sabotage.

In Ukraine, elderly people are typically contacted via Viber. The goal: coerce them into following “orders” based on fake draft notices, fabricated criminal cases, or alleged links to Russia through purchases of medicines or dietary supplements.

One common scheme involves telling a pensioner that a drug they bought is banned because it was “produced in Russia.” That, the scammers claim, amounts to “collaboration with the enemy.” What follows is extortion — and a so-called “way out”: either wire money or complete a “small task.”

Pensioners in Kyiv have already contacted police after being defrauded or drawn into dangerous schemes. Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs emphasizes that legitimate security agencies never issue illegal or covert orders to citizens.

According to the SBU, Russian operatives are also attempting to recruit minors. These efforts often begin with photographing sensitive sites or tagging graffiti, and escalate to acts of sabotage against railway and energy infrastructure.

Moreover, in Europe, the Russians recruit Ukrainian agents to cause a double wave: shock in the West and propaganda within Russia. 

Ukraine begins the return of severely wounded and ill soldiers from Russian captivity. On 10 June 2025, the first stage of returning Ukrainian prisoners of war took place. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the news on his Telegram channel, emphasizing that the exchange is part of agreements reached in Istanbul.

“Today marks the first stage of bringing home our severely wounded and injured warriors from Russian captivity. All of them require urgent medical assistance,” the Ukrainian president stressed.

The returned defenders come from various branches of the Defense Forces, including the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Navy, Ground Forces, Territorial Defense, Air Assault Forces, State Border Guard Service, National Guard, and the State Special Transport Service. Among them are Mariupol defenders who had been held in Russian captivity for over three years.

Many of those freed suffer from serious injuries and chronic illnesses: amputated limbs, abscesses, infections, shrapnel wounds, vision problems, hepatitis, and tuberculosis, the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence reports. 

Upon return, all released Ukrainian defenders will be transported to medical facilities for full examinations, treatment, rehabilitation, documentation recovery, and compensation for the time spent in captivity.

For security reasons, the exact number of released prisoners will be announced later. Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War emphasizes that efforts to free Ukrainian captives are ongoing, and the next stages of the exchange are already being prepared.

“Unfortunately, this is a real photo.” A doctor caring for prisoners of war could not bear what he saw on the body of his patient, a Ukrainian soldier, who returned from Russian captivity, according to UkrInform. 

The photo showing a Ukrainian soldier with the “Glory to Russia” inscription burned into his body has shocked the Ukrainian community. It is an image of a soldier who was returned to Ukraine during previous exchanges.

Representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, Andrii Yusov, has confirmed the authenticity of the shocking image.

“Unfortunately, this is a real photo. During an examination at one of the regional centers where the guys undergo rehabilitation, the doctor simply couldn’t bear what he saw, photographed and posted it,” Yusov says.

Some 90% of Ukrainian military personnel who were freed from Russian captivity reveal violations of detention conditions in one form or another, he adds.

“Violations of detention conditions, necessary nutrition standards, medical care – this is a very common phenomenon in Russian captivity. It is something that the International Committee of the Red Cross and the entire international community must work on and pressure,” Yusov claims.

Ukraine carefully documents all such facts. Yusov notes that critical weight loss by prisoners is regularly recorded during exchanges.

“This is very visually apparent, and there’s a difference in what condition the occupiers return to the so-called Russian Federation and in what condition Ukrainian defenders return,” the HUR representative emphasizes.

This information becomes part of the work of the Ukrainian investigation and justice, as well as Ukraine’s work on international legal platforms.

Russia has begun striking targets in Ukraine with “deadly accuracy.” Improved North Korean KN-23 ballistic missiles have given Moscow a much-needed source of short-range missiles, Kyrylo Budanov, chief of Ukrainian military intelligence, told The War Zone.

“Initially, with the beginning of the transfer to Russia, they were flying with a deviation of a few kilometers, but now they are exactly hitting the target. This is the result of the common work of Russian and North Korean specialists,” he said.

He also noted that Russia is providing North Korea with technology in exchange for troop and weapons supplies.

“Also, there is the modernization of the aviation means of engagement — long-range air-to-air missiles. Particular technologies on submarines. Unfortunately, ballistic missiles which are carriers of nuclear payloads,” the intelligence chief explained.

Budanov also added that agreements exist to begin establishing production facilities on North Korean territory for manufacturing “Harpy” and Shahed-136 drones, which will lead to changes in the regional military balance between North and South Korea.

Additionally, North Korea supplies Russia with:

• 122mm D-74 guns
• 107mm infantry variant MLRS
• 240mm MLRS
• 170mm M1989 Koksan self-propelled artillery

The latter system performs quite well in combat. It fires from a considerable distance and is quite accurate, Budanov noted.

He added that, according to intelligence data, Pyongyang has transferred 120 such systems to Russia. Budanov believes that supplies of these systems to Russia will continue.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has revealed Russia’s real objectives in peace negotiations. On 9 June, he said that after talks in Istanbul, Moscow would continue to fight against Ukraine, but is ready to address humanitarian issues through diplomacy, TASS reports. 

Lavrov made this statement at the Future Forum 2050 in Moscow. 

“The special operation will be continued after negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul. However, Russia is ready to simultaneously advance the resolution of humanitarian issues through diplomacy,” Lavrov said.

One cannot exist if other does: Kremlin directly says war on Ukraine is about elimination, not land

At the same time, the Russian foreign minister added that Ukraine allegedly shows “growing terrorist threats.”

“Risks of growing terrorist threats exist. We see them and will do everything to ensure they are suppressed and do not harm our citizens,” he declared.

He also accused Britain of helping carry out attacks on targets within Russian territory, conveniently forgetting about Russia’s own strikes on Ukraine.

According to him, Ukraine “would be helpless without British support.” Lavrov also did not overlook the US’s involvement in the operation, according to UNIAN.

“Who knows, maybe US intelligence services are also involved, but the British—100%,” he said.

Also, Errol Musk, Elon Musk’s father, came to Moscow for the forum, Channel 24 reports. He praised Russia and Putin personally. He regretted not having visited Russia earlier, as it is “incredible.”

This is not his first statement of this kind. Previously, he argued that Putin “says logical things,” forgetting to mention that Russia’s war against Ukraine has killed nearly 13,000 civilians, including 618 children.

Ukraine’s new ballistic missile may already be used on the battlefield. In May 2025, the Ukrainian Armed Forces sharply increased the number of destroyed Russian command posts, indicating new strike capabilities, including ballistic ones, says military expert Valery Ryabykh, Espreso reported.

The expert says that remarkably interesting developments are happening on the battlefield. Ukraine has expanded its ability to strike Russian occupiers.

“This includes the successful operation to destroy a division of three Iskander missile systems. All points to the fact that Ukraine has acquired all the necessary elements for such strikes,” Ryabykh continues.

In addition, all elements have been linked together using the Link system for F-16 aircraft.

He suggests that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have likely been using ballistic missiles for about a year, as experts could not clearly identify the strike means in many cases.

“This system, apparently, is already undergoing real combat testing. We are talking either about the start of serial production or it just begins now,” the expert explains.

In 2024, Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine had successfully tested its first domestically produced ballistic missile. However, no more details on timing, production, and the number of missiles have been disclosed. 

Russia turns the war into a marathon of continuous arms production. Moscow produces more ammunition than all NATO countries combined, and does so many times faster, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated at the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London on 9 June. 

“In terms of ammunition, Russia produces in three months what the whole of NATO produces in a year,” said Rutte.

He added that Russia’s military machine is not slowing down. On the contrary, it is strengthening its potential. Russia is actively replenishing its arsenal with help from China, Iran, and North Korea. 

Rutte also noted that Russia is using Chinese technology to modernize its army.

“And its defence industrial base is expected to roll out 1,500 tanks, 3,000 armoured vehicles, and 200 Iskander missiles this year alone,” the NATO chief highlighted.

He warned that Russia could be ready for aggression against NATO within the next five years. According to Rutte, “President Putin does not act like someone who is interested in peace.” 

NATO needs to increase air and missile defence by 400% – Rutte says ahead of June summit

Russia is creating a risk for its nuclear force with its own hands. By deploying elements of its nuclear triad in the war against Ukraine, it is turning its strategic delivery systems into legitimate military targets, says expert Oleksii Izhak from Ukraine’s National Institute for Strategic Studies, Espreso reports. 

This trend became especially evident after Ukraine’s large-scale Operation Spiderweb, a series of precision strikes on Russia’s strategic airbases. These attacks exposed the vulnerability of sites previously believed to be immune to any assault. It was only after this campaign that Moscow began warning of a “threat to Russia’s nuclear security.”

But the expert is convinced: if Russia itself involves potential nuclear delivery systems in a conventional war, it forfeits its so-called nuclear immunity.

Moscow employs nuclear force components in its war effort. Russian dual-use systems, Iskander-M, Iskander-K, Kinzhal missiles, Su-24M, Su-34, and Tu-22M3 bombers, are regularly used with conventional warheads to strike targets in Ukraine.

“Ukraine is systematically destroying and will continue to destroy these systems on the battlefield, and there is no argument the West can make that undermines the logic of Ukraine’s actions,” says Izhak.

In such circumstances, Russia cannot expect that the mere nuclear potential of its systems will grant them any immunity.

According to him, Moscow has chosen a dangerous path, invoking nuclear weapons in rhetoric while actively using their delivery systems in a conventional war. But the war against Ukraine has proven these platforms are far from invulnerable.

It’s not just the strategic bombers that have proven to be large, exposed targets. Even mobile launchers like the Topol-M and Yars are barely protected.

For decades, the Kremlin justified its opposition to NATO expansion by claiming that non-nuclear missile deployments near Russian borders would undermine its nuclear security. But now, as Ukrainian drones and missiles destroy nuclear-capable delivery systems deep inside Russia, that argument is losing all credibility.

“NATO may expand or not — the new vulnerability of Russia’s nuclear forces will remain,” says Izhak.

At the same time, he stresses that no one would target Russia’s nuclear triad if it posed no threat. If Russia were to cease its aggression against Ukraine, it would no longer need its strategic arsenals.

Ukraine is quietly building a new class of weapons — drone-powered cruise missiles that are small, cheap, and deadly. Ukrainian arms expert Bohdan Dolintse told ArmyInform that these new systems blend drone and missile technologies into a hybrid “drone-missile” category.

The development comes in the wake of Operation Web, widely seen as a watershed in modern warfare, where Ukraine used synchronized drone swarms to destroy high-value Russian assets, reshaping global perceptions of non-nuclear deterrence.

Now, Kyiv is scaling up. If serial production is launched, Dolintse says, Ukraine could manufacture hundreds of these precision-guided munitions monthly.

Though still in development or limited deployment, their battlefield potential is vast — from striking air defense and radar sites to disabling critical logistics nodes deep behind enemy lines.

“This is a scalpel — a precise, mobile solution to hit vulnerable yet decisive targets,” Dolintse emphasizes.

Highly modular, these missiles can be launched from aircraft, drones, or ground platforms. Instead of a single $10 million missile, Ukraine envisions waves of compact, lethal munitions that can shift the balance of power in the skies — and the future of warfare itself.

The Israeli Patriot systems that once defended Tel Aviv in the ’90s are now saving Ukrainian cities from Russian missile strikes.

Israel has been helping Ukraine militarily, specifically by transferring Patriot air defense systems that are currently operating to protect Ukrainian skies. This was confirmed by the Israeli Ambassador to Ukraine, Michael Brodsky.

“These systems are now in Ukraine. These are Israeli systems that were in service in Israel in the early 1990s. We agreed to transfer them to Ukraine,” Brodsky said in an interview with Marichka Dovbenko.

The ambassador stressed that claims that Israel is not providing military aid are false.

“When people say Israel didn’t help militarily — that’s not true,” Brodsky emphasized.

The Patriot systems in question recently proved their effectiveness — on the night of 9 June, Ukrainian forces shot down all four Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles launched by Russian troops.

“The existing Patriot systems performed at 100% today. There is no other way to intercept such targets,” said Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat during a live broadcast on Channel 5.

He noted that the Patriots allow the Armed Forces of Ukraine to effectively destroy not only Kinzhal missiles but also other complex targets, including Iskander systems, capable of launching 800 kg missiles. 

War intensifies amid Russia’s summer offensive. Ukraine has spotted a massive redeployment of Russian self-propelled artillery and air defense systems to Sumy Oblast. 

Ukrainian forces have recorded a large-scale transfer of Russian military equipment from Crimea and Kherson towards Sumy Oblast. According to Petro Andriushchenko, head of the Occupation Studies Center, this is the largest movement of weaponry in the past six months.

“More than 10 self-propelled artillery systems, air defense systems, and convoys of over 40 trucks carrying ammunition and personnel,” Andriushchenko says.

The equipment is being loaded onto trains and sent to Russia’s Kursk Oblast, effectively heading to Sumy. The Russians are now stationed approximately 25-30 km from it. If they reach the city’s border, they will use artillery to strike it. 

Special attention is drawn to the military equipment markings, which, with their dominant tactical symbol of a triangle within a triangle, indicate reinforcement of this specific direction.

Amid this buildup, Sumy faces heavy drone attacks. Konotop mayor Artem Semenikhin stated that on 8 June, the region endured the most powerful drone assault since the war began: “The entire sky over the region turned red with targets.”

Ukrainian drones strike a plant producing Shahed “brains” in Russia’s city of Cheboksary. Loud explosions and a fire erupted in the town, located approximately 940 kilometers from Ukraine’s Kharkiv, overnight on 9 June.

Ukrainian drones targeted the VNIIR-Progress plant, which produced components for Shahed drones, UMPK kits, and other details for Russian precision-guided weapons.

Ukraine’s General Staff has officially confirmed that the Russian defense industry enterprise, JSC VNIIR-Progress, was struck as part of an operation to degrade the enemy’s capacity to manufacture air-attack systems.

“The facility was confirmed hit by at least two unmanned aerial vehicles, followed by a large-scale fire,” the General Staff has reported.

After the strike, powerful explosions were heard in the city, and the plant halted production, UNIAN writes.

“Two unmanned aerial vehicles crashed on the premises of JSC VNIIR, prompting a decision to suspend operations,” says Oleg Nikolaev, head of Russia’s Chuvashia Republic.

Besides Cheboksary, drone strikes also targeted facilities in Nizhny Novgorod, Tambov, and Voronezh regions. Aviation restrictions were imposed in Kazan, Saratov, and other Russian cities.