French automotive and defense companies will produce drones on Ukrainian soil, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced on June 6, Le Monde reported. "We are going to embark on a completely unprecedented partnership where a large French car company – I won't name it because it's up to them to announce it – will join forces with a French defense SME (small to medium-sized enterprise) to equip production lines in Ukraine to be able to produce drones," Lecornu said, as quoted by the news
French automotive and defense companies will produce drones on Ukrainian soil, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced on June 6, Le Monde reported.
"We are going to embark on a completely unprecedented partnership where a large French car company – I won't name it because it's up to them to announce it – will join forces with a French defense SME (small to medium-sized enterprise) to equip production lines in Ukraine to be able to produce drones," Lecornu said, as quoted by the newspaper.
Lecornu did not specify the types of drones to be produced.
He said that, apart from Ukraine, the drones will be also provided "to our own armies… to have ongoing tactical and operational training that reflects the reality."
Lecornu also said there is "no need" to send French citizens to work on the production line, since it will be set up in Ukraine, where Ukrainians "are better than us at designing drones and especially at developing the strategies that accompany them."
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has been developing and deploying technological innovations and cutting-edge unmanned systems. Both Ukraine and Russia have increasingly relied on drone warfare, using aerial, naval, and ground-based drones for reconnaissance and combat missions.
Ukraine has denied Russian claims that it had delayed a planned exchange of prisoners of war (POWs) and the bodies of fallen soldiers, reportedly scheduled for June 7-8.Ukrainian and Russian delegations agreed to conduct a major swap, which would include severely injured prisoners and young people aged 18 to 25, during their second round of direct peace talks in Istanbul on June 2. After the talks, Russia also pledged to transfer 6,000 bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers and officers to Ukraine.
Ukraine has denied Russian claims that it had delayed a planned exchange of prisoners of war (POWs) and the bodies of fallen soldiers, reportedly scheduled for June 7-8.
Ukrainian and Russian delegations agreed to conduct a major swap, which would include severely injured prisoners and young people aged 18 to 25, during their second round of direct peace talks in Istanbul on June 2.
After the talks, Russia also pledged to transfer 6,000 bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers and officers to Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that preparations for exchanging the bodies would begin after the POW swap.
On June 7, however, Vladimir Medinsky, head of the Russian delegation in peace talks, claimed that the contact group of the Russian Defense Ministry was reportedly stationed at the border with Ukraine, but the Ukrainian side "unexpectedly postponed both the transfer of bodies and the POW exchange indefinitely."
Ukraine's Defense Ministry dismissed the claim as false, saying it was an attempt by Russia to avoid returning Ukrainian POWs from captivity and take their POWs back to Russia.
"Unfortunately, the Ukrainian side is once again facing attempts to retroactively revise agreements. If the Russian side is now backing away from what was promised in Istanbul, it raises serious questions about the reliability and capability of their negotiating team," the ministry wrote on Telegram.
Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of POWs also refuted Russia's claim, saying that "instead of constructive dialogue, Ukraine once again faced manipulations and attempts to exploit sensitive humanitarian issues for information purposes."
According to the headquarters, Ukraine submitted lists of POWs "formed according to clearly defined categories agreed upon during the negotiations in Istanbul," while the Russian side "provided different lists that do not correspond to the agreed approach."
The headquarters also added that an agreement on the repatriation of bodies of fallen soldiers was made, but the date was not set.
"Instead of consistently implementing the agreed procedure, the Russian side took unilateral actions that were not coordinated within the joint process," the statement reads.
"Unfortunately, instead of constructive dialogue, we are once again faced with manipulations and attempts to exploit sensitive humanitarian issues for information purposes. We remain committed to a real outcome — the return of our prisoners and the bodies of the fallen — and are ready to continue working within the agreed framework."
The latest direct Russia-Ukraine talks, hosted by Turkish officials, followed the first round of negotiations on May 16. The initial meeting ended with an agreement on the largest prisoner exchange of the war, but without any tangible progress toward a peace deal.
Ukraine has returned over 5,000 prisoners via exchanges with Russia since March 2022, according to officials. Kyiv has repeatedly pressed Moscow to agree to an "all-for-all" prisoner exchange, but Russia has rejected the proposal.
Canada will provide Ukraine with over $25.5 million in military equipment, the Canadian Defense Ministry said in a statement on June 6. The country pledged to provide Ukraine with almost $22 million worth of Coyote and Bison armored vehicles, as well as new equipment and ammunition supplied by Canadian companies.It adds to Canada’s earlier delivery of 64 Coyote armored vehicles, which were sent to Ukraine in December 2024. Apart from that, Canada will provide Ukraine with around $3.6 million for
Canada will provide Ukraine with over $25.5 million in military equipment, the Canadian Defense Ministry said in a statement on June 6.
The country pledged to provide Ukraine with almost $22 million worth of Coyote and Bison armored vehicles, as well as new equipment and ammunition supplied by Canadian companies.
It adds to Canada’s earlier delivery of 64 Coyote armored vehicles, which were sent to Ukraine in December 2024.
Apart from that, Canada will provide Ukraine with around $3.6 million for electronic warfare anti-jammer kits from Canada’s defence industry, reads the statement.
The decision was announced by Canadian Defense Minister David McGuinty during the 28th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in the Ramstein format in Brussels on June 6.
“As a founding member of NATO, Canada believes that the alliance is the cornerstone of transatlantic security and we are moving quickly to accelerate our defense spending and increase our contributions to NATO,” McGuinty said, as quoted in the statement.
“During the meeting of NATO defense ministers, Canada reaffirmed unwavering support to Ukraine as its citizens fight for their freedom, and we look forward to working closely with allies to strengthen our collective security.”
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Canada has pledged over $19.5 billion in overall aid to Ukraine, with $4.5 billion allocated for military support, including multi-purpose drones, armored support vehicles, anti-tank weapons, small arms, M777 howitzers with ammunition.
Six people are most likely trapped under the rubble of an industrial facility in Kharkiv that was hit by a Russian attack earlier in the day, the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office reported on June 7. The rescue operation was ongoing as of 1:45 p.m. on June 7, reads the report. Contact with those trapped has been lost, the prosecutors added. Russian forces attacked Kharkiv with drones, missiles, and KAB guided bombs overnight on June 7, killing at least three people and injuring 22, according to
Six people are most likely trapped under the rubble of an industrial facility in Kharkiv that was hit by a Russian attack earlier in the day, the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office reported on June 7.
The rescue operation was ongoing as of 1:45 p.m. on June 7, reads the report.
Contact with those trapped has been lost, the prosecutors added.
Russian forces attacked Kharkiv with drones, missiles, and KAB guided bombs overnight on June 7, killing at least three people and injuring 22, according to Governor Oleh Syniehubov.
Syniehubov said that drones had struck civilian targets across the city, including a 9-story residential building, a local enterprise, a home, and other facilities.
Two children were injured in the attack, including a 1-month-old baby, Syniehubov said.
At least 40 explosions were recorded across the city amid the attack, local media reported. Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported that the Osnovyanskyi and Kyiv districts of the city suffered strikes.
According to Terekhov, 48 Shahed drones, two missiles, and four guided aerial bombs were launched toward the city.
Located along the front line, Kharkiv Oblast in Ukraine's northeast is a regular target of Russian missile, drone, and glide bomb attacks from across the border.
President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s comparison of Russia’s war against Ukraine to “children fighting in a park” during his interview with ABC News published on June 6."We are not kids with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin at the playground in the park," Zelensky said, as quoted by the TV network. "He is a murderer who came to this park to kill the kids."The U.S. president, who has repeatedly claimed he alone can bring an end to the war, said on June 5 that it mi
President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s comparison of Russia’s war against Ukraine to “children fighting in a park” during his interview with ABC News published on June 6.
"We are not kids with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin at the playground in the park," Zelensky said, as quoted by the TV network. "He is a murderer who came to this park to kill the kids."
The U.S. president, who has repeatedly claimed he alone can bring an end to the war, said on June 5 that it might be best not to intervene in Russia’s war against Ukraine for now.
"Sometimes you see two young children fighting like crazy,” Trump said at a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House. “They hate each other, and they’re fighting in a park, and you try and pull them apart. They don’t want to be pulled. Sometimes you’re better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart."
Trump's statement came amid stalled negotiations, rising casualties from Russian drone strikes, and Russia's refusal to make any concessions.
Kyiv has repeatedly urged Russia to accept a Western-backed 30-day ceasefire as the first step toward a broader peace deal — a move that Moscow again rejected during the latest round of negotiations in Istanbul on June 2.
In the interview with ABC News, Zelensky also spoke of the "limitless" pain endured by a Ukrainian father who lost his wife and three children in a missile strike.
Zelensky added that Trump "could not feel fully and understand this pain."
"And it’s not about President Trump, it’s about any person who is not here in the country, who is some thousands of miles away — (they) cannot feel fully and understand this pain," Zelensky said, as quoted by ABC News.
Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) used exclusively domestically produced drones and did not deploy any equipment from allied stockpiles in its recent attack on Russian heavy bombers, President Volodymyr Zelensky told ABC News in an interview published on June 7. "I wanted very much to use only what we produce and to have the separation (be) very clear," Zelensky said, as quoted by the TV network. On June 1, Ukraine launched a game-changing drone attack on four Russian military airfields, damaging
Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) used exclusively domestically produced drones and did not deploy any equipment from allied stockpiles in its recent attack on Russian heavy bombers, President Volodymyr Zelensky told ABC News in an interview published on June 7.
"I wanted very much to use only what we produce and to have the separation (be) very clear," Zelensky said, as quoted by the TV network.
The Kyiv Independent could not independently confirm the number of planes allegedly damaged and destroyed by the SBU. At least 21 planes were damaged or destroyed, according to open-source intelligence analysts.
Kyiv has claimed it had disabled 34% of Russia's strategic bomber fleet in what is seen as one of the most daring operations during the full-scale war.
To do so, Ukraine used one of the cheapest weapons already used on the battlefield — first-person-view (FPV) drones.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has been developing and deploying technological innovations and cutting-edge unmanned systems. Both Ukraine and Russia have increasingly relied on drone warfare, using aerial, naval, and ground-based drones for reconnaissance and combat missions.
A year-and-a-half in the planning, and reportedly personally overseen by SBU Chief Vasyl Malyuk and Zelensky, Operation Spiderweb was an "absolutely unique operation," according to the president.
According to the SBU, the drones were smuggled into Russia, where they were then hidden on the roofs of wooden cabins, which were then transported by truck to the air bases being targeted.
When they reached their destinations, the roofs were retracted remotely, and the drones simply flew off towards the Russian bombers.
In the interview with ABC News released on June 7, Zelesnky said truck drivers who transported the drones did not know anything about their role in the attack.
"They didn't know anything," Zelensky said. "They just did their job."
Ukraine shot down a Russian Su-35 fighter jet in Russia's Kursk Oblast on the morning of June 7, the Air Force reported. Although no details of the operation were disclosed, the downing brings the total number of Russian aircraft destroyed since the start of the full-scale invasion to 414, according to Ukraine's General Staff. Ukraine launched a cross-border incursion into Kursk Oblast in August 2024, marking the first large-scale invasion of Russian territory by foreign forces since World War I
Ukraine shot down a Russian Su-35 fighter jet in Russia's Kursk Oblast on the morning of June 7, the Air Force reported.
Although no details of the operation were disclosed, the downing brings the total number of Russian aircraft destroyed since the start of the full-scale invasion to 414, according to Ukraine's General Staff.
Ukraine launched a cross-border incursion into Kursk Oblast in August 2024, marking the first large-scale invasion of Russian territory by foreign forces since World War II.
Reinforced by North Korean troops, Russia launched a push to recapture the region in early March, with Ukraine being forced to pull back from much of the initially taken territory, including the town of Sudzha.
On June 1, Ukraine launched its Operation Spiderweb, conducted by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), reportedly hitting 41 Russian bomber planes and other aircraft. According to Kyiv, Ukraine inflicted $7 billion in damage and disabled over a third of Russia's strategic bomber fleet.
The Kyiv Independent could not independently confirm the number of planes allegedly damaged and destroyed by the SBU. At least 21 planes were damaged or destroyed, according to open-source intelligence analysts.
The SBU said 117 drones, launched from concealed trucks positioned across Russian territory, simultaneously struck airfields in at least four regions, including sites thousands of kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
The targeted air bases reportedly housed Tu-95 and Tu-22M3 bombers, essential carriers of long-range cruise missiles used in Moscow's air strikes on Ukrainian cities.
Russia attacked Ukraine with 206 Shahed combat drones and decoys, as well as nine missiles, overnight on June 7, Ukraine’s Air Force reported. Ukrainian air defenses shot down six Kh-59/69 cruise missiles launched by Russian tactical aircraft from the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast and one Iskander-K cruise missile launched from Russia’s Rostov region, according to the Air Force. Ukraine also downed 87 Russian combat drones, while 80 drones were neutralized by electronic warfare systems o
Russia attacked Ukraine with 206 Shahed combat drones and decoys, as well as nine missiles, overnight on June 7, Ukraine’s Air Force reported.
Ukrainian air defenses shot down six Kh-59/69 cruise missiles launched by Russian tactical aircraft from the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast and one Iskander-K cruise missile launched from Russia’s Rostov region, according to the Air Force.
Ukraine also downed 87 Russian combat drones, while 80 drones were neutralized by electronic warfare systems or disappeared from radar, the Air Force said.
Russian airstrikes hit 10 undisclosed locations, while wreckage from downed aerial targets landed in seven more, the Air Force said.
Earlier in the day, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported that Russian forces attacked the city with drones, missiles, and KAB guided bombs overnight, killing at least three people and injuring 19.
Located along the front line, Kharkiv Oblast in Ukraine's northeast is a regular target of Russian missile, drone, and glide bomb attacks from across the border.
According to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Serhii Lysak, six missiles and 27 drones were also downed in his oblast, leaving two people injured in the regional capital.
The attack took place just a day after Russia launched a large-scale attack on Ukraine, launching 452 drones, including Iranian-designed Shahed kamikaze drones and 45 missiles of various types.
It killed four people, including first responders, and injured 80 across the country.
"A cynical Russian strike on ordinary cities. More than 400 drones, more than 40 missiles. ... We need to put pressure on Russia to (accept a ceasefire) and to stop the strikes," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The parliamentary foreign affairs committees of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania issued a joint statement on June 6, affirming their firm support for Ukraine both in its defense against Russia and in its pursuit of EU and NATO membership.Following their meeting in Lithuania on June 6, the Baltic states reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Ukraine’s EU integration, stating their goal of concluding accession talks and welcoming Ukraine as a full EU member by Jan. 1, 2030.Ukraine applied for EU
The parliamentary foreign affairs committees of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania issued a joint statement on June 6, affirming their firm support for Ukraine both in its defense against Russia and in its pursuit of EU and NATO membership.
Following their meeting in Lithuania on June 6, the Baltic states reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Ukraine’s EU integration, stating their goal of concluding accession talks and welcoming Ukraine as a full EU member by Jan. 1, 2030.
Ukraine applied for EU membership in 2022 and was granted candidate status within months. Accession talks began in June 2024, with European leaders setting 2030 as a target for Ukraine's potential accession.
Despite broad EU support for Ukraine's accession, Hungary remains a major obstacle. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced on March 7 that his government would conduct an opinion survey on Ukraine's potential EU membership.
In their statement, the Baltic states also urged the 2025 NATO Summit in The Hague to take "concrete political steps" toward Ukraine’s membership in the alliance. They argued that Ukraine's NATO accession would “consolidate a just and lasting peace not only in Ukraine but also in all of Europe" and help uphold the rules-based international order globally.
"Ukraine’s NATO membership would provide a more effective and enduring framework for safeguarding Euro-Atlantic security," the statement reads.
Ukraine applied for NATO membership in September 2022, months after the outbreak of the full-scale war. The country has not received a formal invitation, as the 32 members have not reached a consensus.
The statement also reaffirmed the Baltic countries’ pledge to support Ukraine “until its full victory,” and welcomed expanding defense cooperation between Ukraine and like-minded partners. It encouraged inviting Ukraine to join the U.K.-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), calling it a meaningful step toward deeper regional security integration.
"We call upon the Foreign Affairs Committees of other national parliaments, international parliamentary assemblies, governments, and responsible institutions to endorse this statement and to adopt corresponding actions that would ensure continued and determined support for Ukraine’s victory, reconstruction, and full integration into the Euro-Atlantic community," the statement read.
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The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk
