17 h. ago Vladimir Putin meets Xi Jinping arrives in China for security summit – Ukraine war live

Russian president and his Chinese counterpart shake hands as more than 20 world leaders attend Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in TianjinFollowing a meeting with Ukraine’s top general, Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that his country’s forces are planning new strikes deep into Russia.In a post on X, the Ukrainian leader wrote:We analysed in detail the situation in the Zaporizhzhia direction and the enemy’s intentions. Also the situation in the border areas of the Sumy and Kharkiv regions.We will continue our active operations in exactly the way needed for Ukraine’s defence. The forces and resources are prepared. New deep strikes have also been planned. Continue reading...

Politics

22 h. ago Vladimir Putin arrives in China for security summit – Ukraine war live

Russian president and Indian prime minister among more than 20 world leaders attending Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in TianjinThe Guardian’s Russian affairs reporter, Pjotr Sauer, has written a piece about Putin’s trip and what it may mean for the war in Ukraine. Here is an extract of his story:Key on the agenda, analysts say, will be for Putin and Xi to align their positions on the war in Ukraine amid US efforts to end the fighting. “It is an important time for them to talk about where the war is headed and how likely it is to be stopped in the near future,” said Alexander Gabuev, the director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre.Gabuev said Moscow wanted to know whether it could expect any further assistance from China and how Beijing would respond if the US were to ask it to put pressure on Russia to end the fighting Continue reading...

Politics

25 h. ago Trump suggests Putin and Zelensky 'may have to fight longer' before talks can happen as he casts doubt on peace progress

Trump conducted high stakes meetings with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as he seeks to restore peace to the region.

Politics

44 h. ago Ukrainian lawmaker shot dead in Lviv as Zelenskyy says hunt for killer is under way – Europe live

Volodymyr Zelenskyy says one person dead and dozens injured after five-story residential block attackedAndrii Parubii, a Ukrainian politician who previously served as the parliament speaker, has been shot dead in western city of Lviv, say officials.Confirming the news, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X:Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs Ihor Klymenko and prosecutor general Ruslan Kravchenko have just reported the first known circumstances of the horrendous murder in Lviv. Andriy Parubiy was killed.My condolences to his family and loved ones. All necessary forces and means are engaged in the investigation and search for the killer. Continue reading...

Events

62 h. ago EU accuses Putin of undermining peace talks after deadly strikes on Kyiv

All member states except Hungary back statement saying Russian ‘war crimes’ only increase EU support for UkraineEurope live – latest updatesEuropean leaders have accused Vladimir Putin of undermining peace talks, after Russian missile strikes on Kyiv this week killed at least 23 people and damaged diplomatic buildings, including EU and British Council offices.A day of mourning was observed in Kyiv on Friday, after the Russian air attack the day before that killed 23 people, including at least four children. Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said eight people were still missing and 53 had been injured. “When instead of diplomacy, Russia chooses ballistics the world must respond accordingly,” he said, urging western allies to impose further sanctions. Continue reading...

Events

65 h. ago All but one EU states demand Russia ‘stop the killing’ in Ukraine as Zelenskyy urges Monday deadline for Putin meeting – Europe live

EU member states, except Hungary, sign joint statement calling out Russia’s disregard for international lawEuropean Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is in Latvia today, and has been speaking to the media in the last few minutes.Speaking alongside Latvia’s prime minister Evika Siliņa, she praised the country’s work on becoming “a true drone and anti drone powerhouse” in Europe, contributing to Nato’s security in the region bordering with Russia.We know that Europe is only safe if the eastern border is safe.“The risks your country and the other Baltic States warned us about, unfortunately, have materialised. Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine is now in its fourth year, Putin is a predator, Putin’s proxies have been targeting our societies for years with hybrid attacks, with cyber-attacks, [and] the weaponising of migrants is another example.” Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy picks Olha Stefanishyna as ambassador to US

Ukrainian officials due in Washington on Friday; Russians short of fuel as oil refineries burn. What we know on day 1,282Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed Olha Stefanishyna, a former top cabinet minister, as Ukraine’s ambassador to the US, ending months of speculation. She takes over as ambassador from Oksana Markarova, who held the position for six years, including more than three years of full-scale war with Russia, and became a target for partisan criticism from Republicans. It was announced in July that Markarova would be replaced. Stefanishyna served in Zelenskyy’s administration as a deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, playing a major role in the country’s integration into western institutions, and as minister of justice.Zelenskyy announced his officials will meet US counterparts in New York on Friday as the Ukrainian president continues to push for a one-on-one meeting with Vladimir Putin despite Kremlin refusals. “Friday, meetings will take plac...

Politics

5 d. ago UN warns Israel that its probe into IDF attack on Gaza hospital must yield actual results – Middle East crisis live

UN official says investigations have been announced before but ‘we haven’t seen results or accountability measures yet’The UN says that Israel must not only investigate alleged unlawful killings in Gaza like the hospital strike that killed 20 people, including journalists, the previous day, but also ensure those probes yield results.“There needs to be justice,” United Nations rights office spokesman Thameen Al-Kheetan told AFP in Geneva, adding that the large number of media workers killed in the Gaza war “raises many, many questions about the targeting of journalists”.The Israeli authorities have, in the past, announced investigations in such killings.It’s of course the responsibility of Israel, as the occupying power, to investigate - but these investigations need to yield results. Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago 'Most important' war film of all time has perfect Rotten Tomatoes score

Grave of the Fireflies has been hailed the 'best war movie ever' and is the top-ranked war film on Rotten Tomatoes - but does it live up to the hype?

Events

6 d. ago Trump says he wants ‘Department of War’ instead of defense department – US politics live

US president floats idea several times on Monday; Trump threatens again to send troops to Democratic-run cities amid misleading claim on crime in ‘red cities’National guard start carrying firearms in DC as Trump says Chicago may be nextThe justice department is alleging in a new court filing that three Smartmatic executives who were indicted last year on bribery and money-laundering charges transferred money from a 2018 voting machine contract with Los Angeles county into slush funds that were originally set up to pay bribes to election officials in Venezuela and the Philippines between 2012 and 2016 to obtain and retain lucrative election contracts.Prosecutors say one of the executives transferred an undisclosed amount from the $282m LA county contract into the slush funds in 2019 but did not say if anyone actually received bribes from the county’s money at that point. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Trump again mulls Russia sanctions as Ukraine peace remains elusive one week after Alaska summit

Russia’s foreign minister says no meeting planned between Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian president Volodymyr ZelenskyyDonald Trump renewed a threat to impose sanctions on Russia if there was no progress toward a peaceful settlement in Ukraine, as Moscow said there remained “no meeting planned” between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.“I’m going to make a decision as to what we do and it’s going to be a very important decision, and that’s whether or not it’s massive sanctions or massive tariffs or both, or we do nothing and say it’s your fight,” Trump said, showing apparent frustration at Moscow a week after his meeting with Putin in Alaska. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Israel has furthered starvation with ‘military model’ of aid distribution, according to new joint report – Israel

A report by Forensic Architecture and the World Peace Foundation says Israel has dismantled the proven model of aid distributionMothers in Gaza have resorted to using legume water and herbs as alternative to infant milk amid Famine, charity warnsDr. Ra’ed Al-Baba, who works at Al Awda Hospital run by ActionAid’s partner Al-Awda, said usage of alternatives to infant milk had “catastrophic” consequences.There are mothers who resort to using legume water, herbs, and other alternatives to infant milk because of the severe shortage. These methods carry catastrophic risks, causing gastroenteritis, food poisoning, delayed growth, severe anaemia, and even the inability to move. We have seen cases of extreme dehydration from polluted water mixed with these substitutes. This is not survival, this is slow death.” Continue reading...

Events

9 d. ago Putin wants to ‘wriggle out’ of meeting, Zelenskyy claims, and says Russia does not want to end war – Europe live

Ukrainian president backs Donald Trump suggestion of more offensive reaction to Russian attacksKim Jong-un has hailed North Korean troops fighting alongside Russia in the war in Ukraine as “heroes”, at a ceremony to honour soldiers who recently returned from the conflict, state media said on Friday.The North Korean leader said in a speech this week that his troops had displayed “fighting spirit of the heroes” during their operation to retake Russia’s Kursk region from Ukrainian forces – which had established a foothold there last year – the state news agency KCNA said. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Famine set to be officially declared in Gaza for first time by UN

The system for classifying food insecurity has been used to declare just four famines since it was established in 2004Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has vowed to destroy Gaza City if Hamas did not agree to disarm, release all remaining hostages in the territory and end the war on Israel’s terms, reports AFP.He wrote on social media:Soon, the gates of hell will open upon the heads of Hamas’s murderers and rapists in Gaza - until they agree to Israel’s conditions for ending the war, primarily the release of all hostages and their disarmament,” the minister posted on social media.If they do not agree, Gaza, the capital of Hamas, will become Rafah and Beit Hanoun,” he added, referring to two cities in Gaza largely razed during previous Israeli operations. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Russia upends Trump peace efforts with ‘foreign intervention’ veto demand

Moscow appears to back away from accepting postwar western security guarantees for UkraineRussia-Ukraine war – live updatesMoscow threw Donald Trump’s Ukraine peace initiative into disarray on Thursday, insisting it must have a veto over any postwar support for the country as its forces carried out a large-scale overnight missile barrage.In a series of hardline remarks, Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to “foreign intervention”, which he called absolutely unacceptable for Russia. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Moscow demands veto over support for Ukraine under any peace deal and questions Zelenskyy’s legitimacy – Ukraine war live

Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, says European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to ‘foreign intervention’We have just heard from the European Commission, confirming that the EU and the US have now agreed on the much-awaited “joint statement” advancing the political commitments on trade agreed by Ursula von der Leyen and Donald Trump in Scotland last month.The commission’s press release says the statement “lays out in detail the new US tariff regime towards the EU, with a clear maximum, all-inclusive, tariff rate of 15% for the vast majority of EU exports, including strategic sectors such as cars, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber.” Continue reading...

Economics

1 week ago Moscow must have effective veto over any measures to support Ukraine after potential peace deal, says minister – Ukraine war live

Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, says European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to ‘foreign intervention’We have just heard from the European Commission, confirming that the EU and the US have now agreed on the much-awaited “joint statement” advancing the political commitments on trade agreed by Ursula von der Leyen and Donald Trump in Scotland last month.The commission’s press release says the statement “lays out in detail the new US tariff regime towards the EU, with a clear maximum, all-inclusive, tariff rate of 15% for the vast majority of EU exports, including strategic sectors such as cars, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber.” Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Zelenskyy says he wants to see an agreement on security guarantees before meeting Vladimir Putin – Ukraine war live

Amid US offering minimal security a group of allies led by Britain and France are putting together a military coalitionWe have just heard from the European Commission, confirming that the EU and the US have now agreed on the much-awaited “joint statement” advancing the political commitments on trade agreed by Ursula von der Leyen and Donald Trump in Scotland last month.The commission’s press release says the statement “lays out in detail the new US tariff regime towards the EU, with a clear maximum, all-inclusive, tariff rate of 15% for the vast majority of EU exports, including strategic sectors such as cars, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber.” Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Trump steps back from Russia and Ukraine peace talks for now, sources say

US president told top advisers trilateral meeting would take place after leaders of the two countries have met firstDonald Trump intends to leave Russia and Ukraine to organize a meeting between their leaders without directly playing a role for now, according to administration officials familiar with the situation, taking a step back from the negotiations to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.The next stage in Trump’s eyes to end the war in Ukraine remains a bilateral meeting between Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian president, the officials said. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago US will only offer minimal security guarantees for Ukraine, says defence adviser – Ukraine war live

Elbridge Colby, US undersecretary of defence for policy, tells European allies that the bulk of responsibility will fall on Europe, say reportsIf you followed the blog yesterday, you know we looked at an incident with an allegedly Russian drone that crossed into Poland and exploded in a cornfield, some 100 km from Polish-Belarusian border.A regional prosecutor issued an update today, saying that “there is a very high probability that the object probably came from Belarus.” Continue reading...

Events