1 hour ago ‘It’s a robot war’: eastern Ukraine faces onslaught of Russian glide bombs, rockets and kamikaze drones

Putin has escalated strikes on Donetsk region and is likely to demand Ukraine hands it over in talks with TrumpNataliya Petrovna pointed to a crater on the edge of a football field. Around it lay bits of twisted metal. From nearby came loud banging as residents fixed plywood to their damaged five-storey apartment block. Many of its windows were broken. “The last few days have been terrible. We could hear the drones buzzing over us. The one that exploded near the school opposite was a Russian Shahed. Maybe some kind of new type,” she said.Petrovna lives in the eastern garrison city of Kramatorsk, in Donetsk province, about 15 miles from the frontline. The distance is just beyond the range of Russian first-person view (FPV) drones, at least for now. But it is easily reachable by other kinds of enemy objects. They include air-dropped glide bombs, Grad rockets and unmanned kamikaze drones – now cruising Ukraine’s skies in overwhelming numbers. Continue reading...

Events

12 h. ago Ukraine will not cede land that could be Russian springboard for new war, Zelenskyy says

Ukrainian leader sees no sign of Russia preparing for ceasefire after reports of frontline breach in DonbasVolodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine could not agree to a Russian proposal to give up more of his country’s territory in exchange for a ceasefire because Moscow would use what it gained as a springboard to start a future war.The Ukrainian president said he did not believe that Donald Trump supported Russia’s demands, and he expressed hope the US leader would act as an honest mediator when he meets Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. Continue reading...

Events

14 h. ago Trump’s Alaskan summit with Putin is high stakes – why is it not just a sideshow?

World affairs editor Sam Kiley looks at the art of the deal versus the art of the steal, ahead of what could be a pivotal meeting on the Ukraine war

Politics

15 h. ago Voices: When Trump and Putin go head to head in Alaska, who wins?

Friday’s summit in Alaska between the two leaders to discuss how to end the war in Ukraine will show that it is the cunning former KGB officer who understands the art of the deal, says Sean O’Grady

Politics

16 h. ago ‘We wondered if it was ethical to adapt it’: can poetry about deaf resistance wow theatre audiences?

Deaf Republic, a collection of war poems written by the Ukrainian American Ilya Kaminsky, have caused a sensation. Now they have been turned into an extraordinary playIn Vasenka, a fictional town under military occupation, a deaf boy is shot by soldiers and the town’s inhabitants become deaf in response. The opening of Deaf Republic – the remarkable second collection by the Ukrainian-American poet and translator Ilya Kaminsky – sets in train a narrative of resistance through silence, as “deafness, an insurgency, begins” and the soldiers start executing the citizens of Vasenka, who refuse to hear their orders.Since its publication in 2019, Deaf Republic has won multiple awards and been critically lauded for what Andrew Motion has described as “a folk drama that feels archetypal, yet is deeply revealing of our here and now”. That quality of being current, urgent in its commentary on war yet as timeless as a fable, appealed to Bush Moukarzel and Ben Kidd, co-directors of theatre compan...

Events

18 h. ago North Koreans ‘worked like slaves’ to make up for Russian losses in Ukraine – report

Defectors describe 18-hour shifts, violence from managers and round-the-clock surveillance as Moscow bypasses UN ban to bring in labourers

Economics

20 h. ago Trump says he will discuss ‘land swapping’ with Putin at Ukraine war summit

The US President has previously criticised Zelensky for refusing to give occupied land to Moscow as part of a peace deal

Politics

21 h. ago Forget Trump, Europe must show Putin it’s serious about peace in Ukraine – and prepare for war

Politicians in the UK and Europe know the threat from Russia is real, but the public still don’t quite get the danger they are in, writes world affairs editor Sam Kiley

Politics

23 h. ago ‘I’m going to Russia’: Trump appears to forget Alaska is in US as he frets over facing Putin

Trump is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the 49th state on Friday

Politics

25 h. ago ‘I’m going to Russia’: Trump appears to forget Alaska is in US as he frets over facing Putin amid DC crime

Trump is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the 49th state on Friday

Politics

37 h. ago Trump says he and Putin will discuss ‘land swapping’ at Ukraine war summit

US president gives details on Alaska meeting and expresses frustration with Zelenskyy’s insistence on referendum on any peace dealDonald Trump has confirmed that he and Vladimir Putin will discuss “land swapping” when they meet on Friday in Alaska for a high-stakes summit on the Ukraine war.But the US president expressed frustration with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian leader, for putting conditions on such a potential agreement. Continue reading...

Politics

37 h. ago Trump confirms he and Putin will discuss ‘land swapping’ at Ukraine war summit

US president gives details on Alaska meeting and expresses frustration with Zelenskyy’s insistence on referendum on any peace dealDonald Trump has confirmed that he and Vladimir Putin will discuss “land swapping” when they meet on Friday in Alaska for a high-stakes summit on the Ukraine war.But the US president expressed frustration with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian leader, for putting conditions on such a potential agreement. Continue reading...

Politics

39 h. ago Europe must show Putin it’s serious about peace in Ukraine – and prepare for war

Politicians in the UK and Europe know the threat from Russia is real, but the public still don’t quite get the danger they are in, writes world affairs editor Sam Kiley

Politics

41 h. ago EU leaders push to consult with Trump ahead of Putin meeting on Ukraine

Foreign ministers expected to demand Russia agree to ceasefire and include Zelenskyy during emergency meetingEurope live – latest updatesEuropean leaders claiming Russia represents an existential threat to their continent are pushing for consultations with Donald Trump to spell out Europe’s red lines before his meeting with Vladimir Putin to discuss the Ukraine war on Friday in Alaska.The Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, said he was optimistic the US president would formally consult with European leaders before his meeting, adding that the summit between Trump and Putin filled him with hope and fear. Continue reading...

Politics

43 h. ago Three Ukraine beachgoers killed by sea mines in Black Sea after ignoring swimming warnings

The Black Sea has long been a popular holiday destination in Ukraine, but many of its beaches have been declared unsafe since the war began

Events

45 h. ago Soldiers under bombardment in eastern Ukraine say peace still feels far away

‘We are preparing for a long war. We have no illusions that Russia will stop’

Events

53 h. ago Ukraine war briefing: US ambassador to Nato says Zelenskyy could attend Alaska summit but decision is Trump’s

Matthew Whitaker spoke as Europeans put pressure on US to include Ukrainian president in meeting with PutinThe US ambassador to Nato said on Sunday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could attend this week’s US-Russia summit in Alaska, as European leaders push for Kyiv to be part of the negotiations. Ambassador Matthew Whitaker was asked on CNN whether Zelenskyy might join US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Friday. “Yes, I certainly think it’s possible,” he said. “Certainly, there can’t be a deal that everybody that’s involved in it doesn’t agree to. And, I mean, obviously, it’s a high priority to get this war to end.” Whitaker said the decision would ultimately be Trump’s to make. “If he thinks that that is the best scenario to invite Zelenskyy, then he will do that,” he said, adding that “no decision has been made to this point.”Germany warned the White House on Sunday against any deal hatched “over the heads of Europeans and Ukrainia...

Politics

59 h. ago Vance says US is ‘done with funding Ukraine war’ ahead of Trump

American vice president also vows Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky will be ‘forced’ to meet by Donald Trump

Politics

61 h. ago JD Vance says Americans 'done' with Ukraine war cost as Putin

In an interview with Fox News US Vice President JD Vance said Americans are 'sick' of spending money on the war in Ukraine and said Donald Trump needs to get Zelensky and Putin to 'sit down' together

Politics

2 d. ago Path to peace cannot not be decided without Ukraine, says Europe

Ukrainian and European partners to join UK foreign secretary and US vice-president at Chevening for talksThe UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, and the US vice-president, JD Vance, held a meeting with Ukrainian and European partners in Britain on Saturday to discuss the drive for peace in Ukraine.The summit comes before a meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin set for next Friday in Alaska. In a comment that that was met with pushback from Kyiv, the US president said that an end to the war must involve “some swapping of territories”. The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, stressed early on Saturday that “Ukrainians will not give their land to occupiers”. Continue reading...

Politics