Closing summary
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has said Ukraine will retaliate after Russian missile strikes killed at least 29 people across the country. Ukraine would initiate a meeting of the United Nations’ security council after the strike, he said.
An unknown number of people have been trapped under rubble after Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital and the main treatment centre in the country for children with cancer, was hit during the attack. The hospital was evacuated after its power, oxygen and water supplies were lost. Another hospital – the Isida maternity hospital in Kyiv’s Dniprovskyi district – was hit by falling debris. The death toll has been regularly increased by officials throughout the day as bodies were found by emergency service workers. The overall death toll is therefore likely to rise further, given the scale of the strikes and the damage inflicted.
Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said the attack on the Ukrainian capital was one of the heaviest since Russia’s full-scale invasion was launched in February 2022. The Italian foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, meanwhile, called for international condemnation of Russia. “I am struck by the images of the bombings in Kyiv which also hit a children’s hospital. War crimes that must be condemned by the entire international community,” Tajani wrote on X.
The Ukrainian air force said it had downed 30 out of 38 Russia-launched missiles during the deadly attack, which was heavily condemned by the UN. Russian forces used cruise, ballistic, aerial ballistic and guided missiles in a combined attack on Ukrainian cities, the Ukrainian air force said.
The Russian defence ministry said that its forces had carried out strikes on defence industry targets and aviation bases in Ukraine. Moscow said its strikes were retaliation for attacks on Russia.
The attack came as Zelenskiy visited Warsaw before heading to the Nato summit in Washington tomorrow, where he is expected to appeal for more military support from the country’s allies. In Warsaw, the Ukrainian president and his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, signed an agreement on security cooperation. Ukraine and Poland agreed to further develop political, military, and economic cooperation, and “cooperate closely in the reconstruction of Ukraine as a sovereign and democratic state”.
Speaking to reporters, Tusk said that Poland was open to the idea of shooting down Russian missiles that were heading for Nato territory while they were still over Ukrainian soil.
India’s prime minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow on Monday for a two-day visit, his first since Russia sent troops into Ukraine. Modi was set to have dinner with Russian president Vladimir Putin, to be followed by Kremlin talks on Tuesday.
Thank you for following today’s latest news. This blog is closing now but you can read all our Ukraine coverage here.
Updated
Ukrainian presidential adviser, Mykhailo Podolyak, has said that calls for an immediate ceasefire in the war in Ukraine would only prompt Moscow to make further attacks.
Podolyak wrote in a post on X:
Literally, in parallel with the deliberate attack on children in the Ukrainian capital, the leaders of Hungary and China once again demanded “an immediate ceasefire”. This demand is not directed at Russia. It is directed only at the West and Ukraine.
And its purpose is to create a false feeling: the aggressor has the right to kill, because he speaks of “peace”, and the victim should not defend himself and therefore should immediately stop resistance.
Three unconditional conclusions in connection with the deliberate missile strike (X-101 class missiles) on Ukraine's largest children's hospital "#Okhmatdyt"...
— Михайло Подоляк (@Podolyak_M) July 8, 2024
1. This is a fully deliberate action, specifically designed and approved by the entity Putin. On the eve of the @NATO…
His comments came on the day the Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán made a surprise trip to Beijing to see his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping (see opening summary at 09.00 for more details).
“The international community should create conditions for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiations between the two sides and provide assistance,” Xi told Orban earlier, according to Chinese state media.
“It is in the interests of all parties to seek a political solution through an early ceasefire,” he added.
China, which has close ties to Russia, has been promoting a six-point peace plan it issued with Brazil in May, proposing an international peace conference “at a proper time” and calling for equal participation by both Ukraine and Russia.
During his visit to Kyiv last week, Orbán said he had asked Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy to consider a quick ceasefire that could accelerate peace talks.
Both Zelenskiy and Vladimir Putin rejected Orbán’s call for a ceasefire, with the Ukrainian leader saying his country “cannot just trust Putin in principle”.
Updated
Kyiv children's hospital evacuated after power, oxygen and water supplies lost after Russian attack
The Okhmatdyt hospital is being evacuated after its power, oxygen and water supplies were lost following Russia’s deadly missile strikes on the Ukrainian capital this morning, BBC News reports.
Children being treated there are being moved to other hospitals, Ukraine’s health minister, Viktor Lyashko, told reporters.
“The most important thing today is not to panic but help save as many lives as possible,” he told Ukrainian TV at the site of the hospital.
“It’s an awful act of terror, and I get tearful seeing how many people have come to help us clean up,” Lyashko told reporters at the scene, adding that three surgeries were being performed at the time of the attack.
Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said at least 16 people, seven of them children, were injured.
Updated
Maternity hospital hit by Russian strikes on Kyiv, officials say
At least four people were killed and three others injured after the Isida maternity hospital in Kyiv’s Dniprovskyi district was hit by falling debris, the state emergency service said. The number of killed has risen to seven, the prosecutor general’s office said at about 3pm local time.
Another hospital – the capital’s Okhmatdyt hospital, the main treatment centre in the country for children with cancer – suffered a direct missile hit.
Updated
Poland open to idea of shooting down Russian missiles headed for Nato territory while still over Ukrainian soil, Donald Tusk says
As we reported earlier, Volodymyr Zelenskiy has visited his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, in Warsaw ahead of the Nato summit in Washington tomorrow.
Speaking to reporters, Tusk said that Poland was open to the idea of shooting down Russian missiles that were heading for Nato territory while they were still over Ukrainian soil.
“We need clear cooperation within Nato here, because such actions require such joint Nato responsibility … we are open to it, logic indicates it that this would absolutely be a more effective action,” he said.
His comments came as Zelenskiy vowed that Ukraine will retaliate after Russian missile strikes killed at least 29 people across his country and damaged a children’s hospital in Kyiv.
The Ukrainian president called on Kyiv’s allies to give a firm response to Monday’s attack in a press conference that started with a minute’s silence for the victims.
Zelenskiy said:
I would also like to hear from our partners (about) a greater resilience and a strong response to the blow that Russia has once again dealt to our people, to our land, to our children.
We will retaliate against these people, we will deliver a powerful response from our side to Russia, for sure. The question to our partners is: can they respond?
Zelenskiy said Kyiv wanted to be able to use weapons supplied by its partners to hit the sites in Russia that attacks were being launched from.
“I think, we would really like to receive such decision from our partners,” he said. “Or they would like to see the strikes again.”
Zelenskiy said Ukraine was waiting for concrete steps from its western partners to strengthen its air defences and protect its energy sector.
Earlier today, Tusk and Zelenskiy signed a security agreement, as other European countries, including France, Germany and the UK, have done with Kyiv. Ukraine and Poland agreed to further develop political, military, and economic cooperation, and “cooperate closely in the reconstruction of Ukraine as a sovereign and democratic state”.
The Ukrainian president has said he wanted to double Ukraine’s air defence capacity over the summer. Kyiv has indicated it hopes for progress on air defence supplies at the Nato summit. A senior US state department official has said Kyiv is expected to get “good news” at the summit.
Updated
India’s prime minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow on Monday for a two-day visit, his first since Russia sent troops into Ukraine – an action that has complicated the relationship between the longtime partners and pushed Russia closer to India’s rival, China.
Modi was set to have dinner with Russian president Vladimir Putin, to be followed by Kremlin talks on Tuesday. Modi last traveled to Russia in 2019, when he attended a forum in the far eastern port of Vladivostok and met Putin. The leaders also saw each other in September 2022 in Uzbekistan, at a summit of the Shanghai cooperation organization bloc.
UN condemns Russian missile strikes on Ukraine, including on Kyiv
The UN condemned Monday’s wave of deadly Russian strikes across Ukraine, including on Kyiv, saying “dozens of people have been killed and injured”.
“The week in Ukraine has started with another wave of deadly strikes by the Russian armed forces,” Denise Brown, humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement. “It is unconscionable that children are killed and injured in this war.”
“Under international humanitarian law, hospitals have special protection. Civilians must be protected,” she added.
Updated
The International Rescue Committee has condemned the attack today in Kyiv. Dr Marko Isajlovic, IRC health coordinator in Ukraine, said: “No child should grow up under the threat of missile strikes. No child should risk dying amidst the rubble of hospitals meant to be safe havens for healing and recovery. Health facilities are protected under international law and must remain out of harm’s way in times of conflict.
“Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the WHO has recorded nearly 1,700 attacks on healthcare facilities in Ukraine. Our medical teams witness the daily toll of fighting on people who are unable to seek much needed care in hospitals reduced to rubble, reach the nearest pharmacy due to ongoing fighting, or simply afford much-needed medicines.”
Russia is the greatest security threat facing Sweden and its allies in the next several years, Stockholm said in a strategy outline published on Monday.
Sweden has beefed up its national security policy, amid concerns that led its army’s supreme commander in January to warn Swedes that they had to “mentally prepare for war”. “An armed attack against Sweden or its allies cannot be ruled out,” the new national security strategy read.
Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine led Sweden to join Nato, ending more than two centuries of neutrality.
The seriousness of the Russian threat will depend on what happens next in the Ukraine war, defence minister Pal Jonson told a press briefing. Russia’s threshold for using military force is “low”, he said, adding that Moscow is “ready to take major political and military risks”.
Updated
Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that Ukraine was waiting for concrete steps from its Western partners to strengthen its air defences and protect its energy sector during a Nato summit this week, Reuters reports.
Zelenskiy is expected to fly to the summit in Washington later in the day after concluding a visit to Poland.
Italy accuses Russia of war crime over strike on children's hospital
Italy has accused Russia of committing a war crime during the missile attacks that hit the Ukrainian capital and damaged a children’s hospital.
The Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani called for international condemnation of Russia on Monday.
“I am struck by the images of the bombings in Kyiv which also hit a children’s hospital. War crimes that must be condemned by the entire international community,” Tajani wrote on X, adding: “The [Italian] Government will continue to defend the sovereignty of Ukraine and its people.”
Zelenskiy vows to retaliate after deadly wave of Russian missile strikes
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has vowed to retaliation after the huge wave of Russian missile strikes on Ukraine killed at least 29 people and damaged a children’s hospital in Kyiv.
Ukraine would initiate a meeting of the United Nations’ security council after the strike, he said.
Updated
The Ukrainian air force said it had downed 30 out of 38 Russia-launched missiles during Monday’s deadly attack.
Russian forces used cruise, ballistic, aerial ballistic and guided missiles in a combined attack on Ukrainian cities, the Ukrainian air force said.
Russian strikes kill at least 29 people across Ukraine, officials say
Officials have now said the Russian missile strikes across Ukraine today killed at least 29 civilians (the previous figure was 24 people).
Ten people were killed and 35 injured in the attacks on Kyiv, authorities said. Okhmatdyt children’s hospital – Ukraine’s biggest children’s medical facility – was seriously damaged in the attack. It is not clear yet whether anyone inside was killed.
Horrifying images from Okhmatdyt Hospital, Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital, which provides treatment to children with cancer & other illnesses, and was struck during Russia’s massive missile attack this morning.
— Ambassador Bridget A. Brink (@USAmbKyiv) July 8, 2024
Our thoughts are with the children and their families. pic.twitter.com/uNlF7Zv1ry
About two hours later, debris from another missile attack hit a different hospital in Kyiv, killing four more people and injuring three others, the emergency services said.
Eleven people were killed and over 40 others injured in Ukraine’s southern city of Kryvyi Rih, the emergency services said. Three people had been killed in the eastern town of Pokrovsk where missiles hit an industrial facility, the regional governor said. One person was also killed in the city of Dnipro, officials said.
Updated
India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, has arrived in Moscow’s Vnukovo airport for a two-day state visit, according to the Tass state news agency.
We reported earlier (see post at 10.51) that Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, will hold informal face-to-face talks with Modi on Monday evening.
Modi, who last visited Moscow in 2015, will visit Russia today and tomorrow. Himself and Putin will discuss “prospects for further development of traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, as well as relevant issues on the international and regional agenda,” the Kremlin said in a previous statement.
Summary of the day so far...
Russia fired dozens of missiles at cities across Ukraine in a massive barrage that killed at least 24 people and seriously damaged Kyiv’s Okhmatdyt children’s hospital, Ukraine’s biggest children’s medical facility, according to officials. The daylight attacks included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, the Ukrainian air force said. Russia reportedly targeted Pokrovsk, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Kyiv and Kramatorsk in the strikes.
The attack came as Ukrainian presdident Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited Warsaw before heading to the Nato summit in Washington, where he is expected to appeal for more military support from the country’s allies. In Warsaw, the Ukrainian president and his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, plan to sign an agreement on security cooperation.
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, will conduct face-to-face talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in Moscow on Monday, the Kremlin said.
Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, will participate in the Nato summit in Washington this week, his government office confirmed. The Hungarian leader said on Monday that he would go to Washington after discussing a Chinese peace plan for Ukraine in Beijing.
Chinese military personnel are to begin joint “anti-terrorist training” with their counterparts in Belarus on Monday, close to the border with Poland. The “Eagle Assault” exercises by the two Russian allies amid the war in Ukraine will be held over 11 days in the border city of Brest, Belarus, and will involve tasks such as hostage rescue and anti-terrorism operations, China’s ministry of national defence said.
Updated
The Russian defence ministry said that its forces had carried out strikes on defence industry targets and aviation bases in Ukraine, where officials said a barrage of missiles had killed over 20 people.
Moscow said its strikes were retaliation for attacks on Russia, without providing evidence to support its claim.
“This morning, in response to attempts by the Kyiv regime to damage Russian energy and economic facilities, the armed forces of the Russian Federation carried out a group strike with long-range precision weapons against Ukrainian military industry facilities and AFU (Armed Forces of Ukraine) airbases”, the Russian defence ministry said.
“The objectives of the strike have been achieved. The assigned objects are hit.”
Updated
One person was killed and three more injured after Ukrainian shells hit the village of Nikolskoye in Russia’s Belgorod border region, the governor Vyacheslav Gladkov has said. The injured people have been taken to a local hospital, he added in a post on Telegram.
Belgorod, a city and a region more than 600km from Moscow, is just over half an hour’s drive from the border with Ukraine, making it a vital stop for Russian supply lines and extremely vulnerable to attack.
Updated
Russia has appointed Vice Adm Sergei Lipilin as the commander of its Baltic Fleet, the Tass state news agency reported on Monday, citing a source in naval circles. Lipilin previously served as first deputy commander of the fleet.
Russian strikes kill at least 24 people across Ukraine, officials say
Reuters is now reporting that officials are saying at least 24 people were killed in missile strikes across Ukraine on Monday morning.
Russia reportedly also targeted other areas including Pokrovsk, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, and Kramatorsk.
Updated
Here are some pictures of the aftermath of the Russian missile strikes that hit Kyiv this morning. Officials said at least seven people were killed and a children’s hospital seriously damaged in the attack.
Updated
As European leaders and top defence officials from 31 Nato countries descend on Washington next week, all eyes will be focused firmly on Joe Biden, whose faltering performance at last month’s debate has added to concerns about the country that some Europeans already described as their “unpredictable ally”.
The US president has hoped that his leadership at the summit will rescue his campaign against Donald Trump amid concerns about his age and mental acuity. In a primetime interview on US television this week, he said: “And who’s gonna be able to hold Nato together like me?… We’re gonna have, I guess a good way to judge me, is you’re gonna have now the Nato conference here in the United States next week. Come listen. See what they say.”
But in private conversations, some European officials and diplomats have expressed concerns about his “shaky” public appearances and worries about the high likelihood of a second Trump term. Several foreign officials questioned whether Biden would remain in the race through next week.
“You can’t just put the genie back in the bottle,” said one European diplomat of the questions concerning Biden’s age. “It is one of the big issues [around the summit].”
You can read the full story by the Guardian’s global affairs correspondent, Andrew Roth, here:
Ukraine’s biggest children’s medical facility damaged by Russian attack on Kyiv, Zelenskiy confirms
There were reports earlier that Okhmatdyt children’s hospital was the children’s hospital seriously damaged by the Russian attacks on Kyiv this morning. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has now confirmed these reports, naming the hospital in a post on X.
He said:
Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are people under the rubble, and the exact number of casualties is still unknown.
Right now, everyone is helping to clear the rubble – doctors and ordinary people.
Ohmatdyt children’s hospital – Ukraine’s biggest children’s medical facility – is the leading treatment centre in the country for children’s cancer, according to the Financial Times.
Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDREN’S hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024
Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are… pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri
Updated
Zelenskiy to meet Polish prime minister in Warsaw to sign security agreement
Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrived in Warsaw on Monday and was set to meet Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk.
The two leaders plan to sign an agreement on security cooperation and discuss their expectations ahead of a Nato summit in Washington, which begins tomorrow.
They will also talk about Poland’s participation in the restoration of Ukraine, trade development and humanitarian cooperation, the president’s office said.
The EU and two of its member countries, Lithuania and Estonia, signed security agreements with Zelenskiy at a summit in Brussels last month.
Tusk has been using his platform to try to add a sense of urgency to Europe’s debates about defence and aid to Ukraine, amid fears about the future of American assistance (under a Donald Trump presidency) and concerns about defence industrial capacity.
Tusk, who was prime minister between 2007 and 2014 and returned to office in December, has called for urgent assistance for Kyiv, saying the next two years of the war will be critical.
Updated
Ukraine’s largest private energy producer DTEK said three electricity substations and electricity networks in the capital Kyiv were damaged in the latest Russian missile strike.
The Ukrainian power system has been severely damaged in Russian bombardments in the last four months. Ukraine began implementing rolling blackouts on 15 May, disconnecting entire districts of the capital from the power grid to save energy.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy outlined plans last month to try to protect Ukraine’s energy system, which included the development of alternative renewable energy sources.
Zelenskiy said the government would “continue to work on creating new energy generation and new decentralised energy capacities”. Also planned was “the construction of new balanced and manoeuvrable capacities for energy”.
“This process is quite challenging in wartime conditions, but we must implement it just as we have already implemented many difficulty projects,” he said.
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, will conduct face-to-face talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in Moscow on Monday, the Kremlin said.
A top Indian official said last week that fixing India’s trade imbalance with Russia and securing the discharge of Indian citizens who were misled into fighting in the Ukraine war would be among Modi’s top priorities in Moscow, according to Reuters.
Modi, who was re-elected for a third term in June, last visited Moscow in 2015. He has met Putin several times since at international summits and the leaders have spoken often by phone. Russia remains one of India’s most important trading partners, particularly on weapons and defence. You can read more about the countries’ relationship and what we can expect from the meeting between the two leaders here.
Updated
At least 20 people across Ukraine killed in Russian attacks, officials say
Kyiv city authorities have said seven people were killed and at least 25 were injured in the strike on the Ukrainian capital.
In Kryviy Rih, the native city of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, 10 people were killed and 31 were injured, mayor Oleksandr Vilkul said.
At least three people were killed in a Russian strike on the Donetsk oblast city of Pokrovsk this morning, governor Vadym Filashkin said.
The strikes took place on the eve of the three-day Nato summit in Washington, where many member countries are expected to pledge to continue providing arms and ammunition into Ukraine at current levels for at least another year.
Russian attack on Kyiv one of the worst in two years of war, says mayor, as death toll increases to seven
The Russian attack on Kyiv on Monday was one of the worst during the two-year full-scale invasion by Moscow, Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
“This is one of the worst attacks. You can see: it’s a children’s hospital,” he told Reuters. At least seven people were killed in the city during the attack, authorities say (up from a previous death toll of five).
Hypersonic missiles used in Kyiv daylight attack, Ukraine’s air force says
The daylight attack on Kyiv included the use of Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, Ukraine’s air force said.
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, has described the Kinzhal, designed to be launched from a MiG fighter jet, as “an ideal weapon”. It can fly at up to 10 times the speed of sound and – like a slower cruise missile – can manoeuvre in mid-flight, making it harder for air-defence systems to track and intercept. You can read more about the technical capabilities of the hypersonic missile in this explainer here.
The Kyiv city administration on Monday reported falling debris, presumably from intercepted missiles, in the Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, Holosiivskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts of Kyiv, starting fires.
Updated
The head of Ukraine’s presidential office has said the attack on Kyiv this morning occurred at a time when many people were in the city’s streets.
Here are some of the latest images being sent over the newswires in the wake of the strikes:
Updated
Five people killed by Russian missile attack in Kyiv, officials say, with children's hospital damaged in strike
We reported earlier that Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, was rocked by explosions this morning, along with several others areas in Ukraine. We are now receiving more information from officials on the impact of the Russian attacks.
Local authorities, citing preliminary information, said a Russian missile attack on Kyiv has killed five people and injured nine others.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said Russia fired more than 40 missiles at Ukrainian cities on Monday, hitting a children’s hospital in Kyiv and damaging residential buildings and infrastructure across the country. The children’s hospital that was hit was the Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine’s largest children’s medical centre, according to Ukraine’s Suspline news. There has been no official statement saying whether or not there has been any casualties there.
Russian terrorists have once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. Different cities – Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk. More than 40 missiles of various types. Apartment buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital have been damaged.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024
All… pic.twitter.com/8mN73BKLuY
In a post on X, Zelenskiy said:
All services are engaged to rescue as many people as possible. And the entire world must use all its determination to finally put an end to the Russian strikes.
Killing is what Putin brings. Only together can we bring real peace and security.
Kyiv was last targeted by drones and missiles in mid June. Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said fragments of projectiles downed by air defence systems had fallen in two central districts of the capital. Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, and Kramatorsk also came under attack this morning, according to reports.
Updated
Viktor Orbán to participate in Nato summit in Washington
Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, will participate in the Nato summit in Washington this week, his government office has confirmed.
The Hungarian leader said on Monday that he would go to Washington after discussing a Chinese peace plan for Ukraine in Beijing.
Hungary has been at odds with other western countries over Orbán’s continued cultivation of close ties to Russia and refusal to send arms to Ukraine.
The Nato summit will be eagerly watched by diplomats and the press. We are expecting military announcements on support for Kyiv and to find out who Donald Trump’s running mate will be in the US presidential election. All eyes will be focused firmly on Joe Biden, the US president, though, after his disastrous debate performance confirmed fears many had about his cognitive abilities and led to calls for him to drop out of the presidential race.
Updated
Germany’s defence minister, Boris Pistorius, said he received “significantly less” than he requested as part of the budget for his ministry for 2025.
Pistorius had sought to increase annual defence spending by €6.7bn ($7.25bn) in 2025. Neither he nor the government have commented on how much he will receive.
“This is annoying for me because it means I can’t initiate certain things as quickly as ‘Zeitenwende’ and the threat situation require,” Pistorius said.
Days after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a 100-billion-euro special fund to bring the military back up to speed.
“I have to adapt to it and make the best of it,” Pistorius said in reference to the defence budget for 2025.
Ukrainian air defence engaged in repelling rare daytime Russian missile attack on Kyiv, officials say
Ukrainian air defences were engaged on Monday in repelling a rare daytime Russian missile attack on Kyiv, local authorities said.
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko reported explosions in the Ukrainian capital and urged residents to stay in shelters.
Up to 10 explosions could be heard across the city, according to Kyiv Independent reporters on the ground, with particularly loud explosions heard in the centre of the city, near the area of the Taras Shevchenko Park.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the war in Ukraine. The time has just gone past 10:40am in Kyiv.
Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, who is Europe’s most pro-Russian leader, met Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, days after holding talks on a potential Ukrainian peace deal with Vladimir Putin.
The Chinese leader told visiting Orbán that world powers should help Russia and Ukraine re-start direct peace talks, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
“The international community should create conditions and provide assistance for the two sides to resume direct dialogue and negotiations,” Xi told Orban, adding: “Only when all major powers exert positive energy rather than negative energy can the dawn of a ceasefire in this conflict appear as soon as possible.”
China, which has close ties to Russia, has been promoting a six-point peace plan it issued with Brazil in May, while Orbán has kicked off a so-called “peace mission” after his country assumed the EU’s rotating presidency at the beginning of this month.
Orbán’s visit comes after he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv and also went to the Kremlin, a trip that drew a strong rebuke from his allies.
In other developments:
Russia launched a missile attack against Ukraine this morning, the second such strike in the past few hours, the Kyiv Independent reports. Telegram channels reported explosions in Kropyvnytskyi in the Kirovohrad region and Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk region. Air defence was also reported as being active in Kyiv’s suburbs, while the Ukrainian air force reported downing three out of the four cruise missiles fired over Zhytomyr and Cherkasy oblasts earlier in the day.
Nato will need between 35 and 50 extra brigades to fully realise its new plans to defend against an attack from Russia, a military source told Reuters.
Chinese military personnel are to begin joint “anti-terrorist training” with their counterparts in Belarus on Monday, close to the border with Poland. The “Eagle Assault” exercises by the two Russian allies amid the war in Ukraine will be held over 11 days in the border city of Brest, Belarus, and will involve tasks such as hostage rescue and anti-terrorism operations, China’s ministry of national defence said. It comes days after Belarus officially joined the Shanghai cooperation organization led by China and Russia, deepening their coordination on military, economic and political matters.
Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) blocked an attempt by Ukraine to organise the hijacking of a Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bomber and fly it to Ukraine, the FSB said on Monday. “Ukrainian intelligence intended to recruit a Russian military pilot for a monetary reward and the provision of Italian citizenship, to persuade him to fly and land a missile carrier in Ukraine,” the FSB said. These claims have not yet been independently verified.
The Netherlands will begin sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine “without delay”, after export licences were granted, foreign minister Caspar Veldkamp said during a visit to Kyiv at the weekend.
The UK’s newly appointed defence secretary, John Healey, announced a fresh British military aid package for Ukraine on Sunday as he visited the southern port city of Odesa and met with his counterpart Rustem Umerov. The move is designed to reassure Ukraine and demonstrate to Moscow that UK military backing remains unchanged after last week’s change of government and ahead of this week’s Nato summit, where additional military help for Kyiv will be discussed. US House Speaker Mike Johnson will meet with Zelenskiy on Wednesday during the summit.
Updated
