Ukraine has hit Moscow and the surrounding region with 400 drones overnight, Russian officials said on Monday.
At least two people are reportedly wounded and several buildings were set ablaze in the strikes.
“Overnight, air defence forces and electronic warfare systems repelled a drone attack on Moscow region. The main consequences were recorded in Podolsk, Domodedovo, and the Odintsovo district,” Andrei Vorobyov, the governor of the Moscow region, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
The attack took place between 8:30pm (5.30pm GMT) and 5am (2am GMT).
It follows Ukrainian attacks on three oil depots and a fuel facility in Russia's southern Stavropol region this morning, confirmed by President Volodymyr Zelensky this morning. He said three Russian “shadow fleet” tankers were also hit in the Black Sea.
It comes after a major Russian aerial assault on Kyiv and other cities on Sunday, which Ukrainian authorities said killed at least six people and injured 16 others.
The attack on Ukraine’s capital is believed to be the biggest ballistic missile attack of the war.
Key Points
- Oil tankers hit at key terminal off Russia's coast
- Russia pounds Kyiv with major ballistic missile attack
- Russia fired more ballistic missiles against Ukraine in July than it produces monthly, says ISW
- Russia claims control of another village in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region
- Ukraine blames Russia for strike on Turkish cargo ship that killed five
Russian attack on corn ship off Ukraine's Odesa kills 10
15:40 , Maira Butt
A Russian missile strike on a ship carrying corn near Ukraine's southern port of Odesa killed 10 people, Ukrainian officials said on Monday, in the deadliest attack in a weeks-long flare-up of violence in the Black Sea.
Russia hit the Golden Leo – a Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship manned by a crew from India and Syria – with three cruise missiles, causing a fire on Sunday, Ukraine's navy wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
A Reuters witness in Odesa saw smoke billowing from a vessel off the coast on Sunday, which Reuters was able to confirm was the Golden Leo.
A separate Russian attack on Odesa, Ukraine's largest seaport, killed three people and wounded three others on Monday, Serhiy Lysak, head of the city's military administration, said. He said infrastructure facilities came under attack but gave no further details.
New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
15:10 , Maira Butt
Fresh footage has been released of the moment a Ukrainian property tycoon and two others were injured in a bomb attack in Monaco.
Tycoon Vadym Iermolaiev was left fighting for life after the explosion at the start of June, with a 13 year-old boy and a woman also injured in what authorities believe was an attempted assassination.
Ukraine’s prosecutor general Ruslan Kravchenko released footage of the incident as he reported an investigation was underway to obtain new evidence in the case of “attempted murder”.
The video showed a hooded figure appearing to drop a backpack full of explosives on the steps of Mr Iermolaiev’s Monaco home. As they walked away, the property tycoon could be seen walking towards the property with two others when a purple flash erupted as the explosion took place.
New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
Russia fired more ballistic missiles against Ukraine in July than it produces monthly, says ISW
14:40 , Maira Butt
Russian forces have launched more ballistic missiles against Ukraine thus far in July than Russia reportedly produces each month, according to a US-based think tank monitoring the war.
“Ukrainian defence source Militarnyi reported on 19 July that Russia used up to two-thirds of its planned annual production of Zirkon missiles in July 2026 alone and that Russia launched more ballistic missiles in July than Russia’s reported total monthly production volume,” the Institute for the Study of War said.
Citing the Ukrainian Air Force reports for July, ISW said the attacks indicate that Russia has launched 107 ballistic missiles and 20 Zirkon missiles against Ukraine in July thus far.
“Militarny cited unspecified Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR) reports indicating that Russia produces about 60 Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 40 missiles for the S-400 complex monthly. Russia appears to be dipping into its stockpiles to continue increasing the number of ballistic missiles it launches against Ukraine, as these missiles have a higher success rate than drones and cruise missiles,” it said.
“Russian forces have simultaneously decreased the number of drones they launch in each overnight package, launching 2,955 thus far in July 2026 compared to 5,749 in June 2026,” the ISW said.
In pictures: Putin meets with Moscow-installed leader of the Russian-controlled parts of the Zaporizhzhia region
14:10 , Maira Butt
Full story: Russia launches major missile attack on Ukraine, exposing gaps in air defences
13:40 , Maira Butt
Russia battered Ukraine with one of its biggest ballistic missile barrages of the war on Sunday, killing at least six people and wounding dozens – and again highlighting Kyiv’s shortage of US-made Patriot air defence systems.
Moscow has stepped up its use of ballistic missiles as it seeks to choke off Ukrainian strikes on oil facilities deep inside Russia that have caused critical fuel shortages affecting both the military and the civilian population.
Donald Trump has said he is prepared to grant Ukraine licenses to produce Patriots, the most effective means of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles, potentially bolstering Kyiv’s defenses. However, the details and timeline remain unclear, and full production could take years.
Russia launches major missile attack on Ukraine, exposing gaps in air defences
UK's Burnham says Trump and Zelensky will be among his first calls as leader
13:10 , Maira Butt
Britain’s new prime minister Andy Burnham said on Monday that his first calls as leader would include US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, adding that Britain's support for Ukraine would remain unchanged under his leadership.
“President Zelensky will be left in no doubt whatsoever that Britain's support is steadfast, it is resolute. It will be there for him, and I will be there for him personally too,” Burnham told reporters, adding that he would “100 per cent” support Ukraine as his predecessor had done.
Watch: Zelensky shares footage saying three Russian oil depots hit in Stavropol region
12:40 , Maira Butt
Kremlin says it would welcome Rubio-Lavrov contacts
12:10 , Maira Butt
The Kremlin said on Monday that it welcomes contact between US secretary of state Marco Rubio and Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov in Manila this week as members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathered.
Rubio is expected to be in Manila from 19 to 23 July said at the weekend that he would be ready to meet Lavrov on the sidelines of ASEAN but that he was unsure if a meeting had been finalised.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow supported the meeting.
“Contacts through the ministries of foreign affairs and diplomatic channels are of course largely of a technical nature, but if there were to be contact at the level of foreign ministers, we would certainly welcome it," he told reporters.
He added that there had been no contacts between the Kremlin and the White House in recent days.
The Independent View: Is there a way out of Vladimir Putin’s forever war?
11:40 , Maira Butt
How will it ever end? This has been one of the questions hanging over the war in Ukraine since Vladimir Putin launched his all-out invasion, aimed at taking Kyiv and subjugating the entire nation, in February 2022.
Sir Bill Browder has a plausible answer. In an exclusive interview with The Independent’s Sam Kiley on the World of Trouble podcast, President Putin’s great enemy said: “I don’t believe you are ever going to have Putin signing a peace treaty. I don’t think the war is ever going to end officially, but I can imagine it is going to grind down to a low level, potentially even totally quiet front, in the same way as North and South Korea did.”
Sir Bill, an anti-corruption campaigner who has fought to tighten Western sanctions against Putin’s regime for two decades, said he understands the Russian ruler’s psychology. “I know him from my own struggle pretty well, and I know that he never does what would be the rational thing to do. His entire modus operandi is to escalate, no matter what,” he said.
Is there a way out of Vladimir Putin’s forever war?
In pictures: Aftermath of Russian missile attacks on Kyiv
11:10 , Maira Butt
In one of Kyiv's most frequently bombed neighbourhoods, residents choose to stay
10:40 , Maira Butt
Residents of Kyiv’s historic Lukianivka neighborhood share a dark joke: Russian strikes hit the area so frequently, they ought to be issued military service documents as though they are living on the front line of the war.
Real estate agent Dmytro Zhekov acknowledges the danger up front when he tries to draw prospective renters to one of the Ukrainian capital's most frequently bombed areas. In his sales pitch on social media, he highlights the neighborhood’s many virtues: affordable rents, easy access to the city center, a well-connected metro line and historic landmarks.
“From the beginning I tell them, ‘This is a place in the danger zone. It gets hit regularly. If you are all right with that, then we can see it,’” he said.
In one of Kyiv's most frequently bombed neighborhoods, residents choose to stay
Russian strikes kill 28 people in Ukraine's Odesa region in July, governor says
10:10 , Maira Butt
Russian strikes have killed 28 people in Ukraine's southern Odesa region in July, the regional governor said on Monday.
"If you take since the beginning of July, the Odesa region was under constant daily shelling. There were days when 13-15 air raid alerts had been announced in the region," Oleh Kiper told Ukrainian television.
Russia says it hit Odesa port fuel reservoirs overnight, Ifax says
09:40 , Maira Butt
Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that its forces hit fuel reservoirs at Ukraine's Odesa port overnight, Interfax reported.
Ukraine hits Russian logistics facilities, oil depot in Moscow region, Zelensky says
09:34 , Maira Butt
Ukraine has struck Russian logistics facilities and an oil depot in the Moscow region more than 400 km (250 miles) from Ukrainian border, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday.
"We are responding, justly, to every Russian strike against our cities and communities," Zelensky said in a post on X.
Death toll from Russian strike on vessel near Ukraine's Odesa rises to 10
09:10 , Maira Butt
The death toll from a Russian strike on a vessel near Ukraine's southern port city of Odesa has risen to 10, Ukraine's seaports authority said on Monday.
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship loaded with corn carrying a crew from India and Syria was struck late on Sunday, with Ukrainian officials reporting that eight crew members were rescued from the vessel.
In pictures: Moscow hit by major Ukrainian drone attack
08:40 , Maira Butt
Russia says Ukraine launched 400 drones at Moscow region, reports two wounded
08:10 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine targeted Moscow and the surrounding region with 400 drones overnight, wounding two people and setting buildings ablaze, Russian officials said this morning.
"Overnight, air defence forces and electronic warfare systems repelled a drone attack on Moscow region. The main consequences were recorded in Podolsk, Domodedovo, and the Odintsovo district," Andrei Vorobyov, the governor of the Moscow region, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
Vorobyov said two people were wounded and several civilian infrastructure facilities were set ablaze and damaged.
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said more than 400 "enemy drones" were launched at the Moscow region between 8.30pm (1730 GMT) and 5am (0200 GMT).
Most were neutralised by air defence systems at a long range, including 85 destroyed while approaching the Russian capital.
Wildberries, Russia's largest online retailer, said on Monday its logistics centre in the Podolsk district had been evacuated as a precaution but later resumed normal operations.
The Russian defence ministry said air defence systems had shot down 381 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov overnight.
Russia fired more ballistic missiles against Ukraine in July than it produces monthly, says ISW
08:00 , Arpan Rai
Russian forces have launched more ballistic missiles against Ukraine thus far in July than Russia reportedly produces each month, according to a US-based think tank monitoring the war.
“Ukrainian defence source Militarnyi reported on 19 July that Russia used up to two-thirds of its planned annual production of Zirkon missiles in July 2026 alone and that Russia launched more ballistic missiles in July than Russia’s reported total monthly production volume,” the Institute for the Study of War said.
Citing the Ukrainian Air Force reports for July, ISW said the attacks indicate that Russia has launched 107 ballistic missiles and 20 Zirkon missiles against Ukraine in July thus far.
“Militarny cited unspecified Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR) reports indicating that Russia produces about 60 Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 40 missiles for the S-400 complex monthly. Russia appears to be dipping into its stockpiles to continue increasing the number of ballistic missiles it launches against Ukraine, as these missiles have a higher success rate than drones and cruise missiles,” it said.
“Russian forces have simultaneously decreased the number of drones they launch in each overnight package, launching 2,955 thus far in July 2026 compared to 5,749 in June 2026,” the ISW said.
Ukraine blames Russia for strike on Turkish cargo ship that killed 10
07:45 , Arpan Rai
Ukrainian officials said a strike by Russian forces targeted an international cargo vessel in the Black Sea off the coast of Ukraine's southern city of Odesa, killing at least 10 crew members.
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship had left port loaded with corn and was carrying a crew of 17 sailors from India and Syria, in addition to one Ukrainian, said prime minister Sergii Koretskyi.
Eight crew members were rescued from the vessel — which was still burning late on Sunday — and five remain missing, he added.
“A civilian ship. An international crew. A route serving global food security. Putin saw another target,” Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X.
“This attack leaves no room for illusions. Putin's Russia does not care whom it kills,” he said.
A Reuters witness in Odesa saw smoke billowing from a large vessel off the coast.
Moscow has not publicly commented on Sunday's strike.
Russia has stepped up attacks in recent weeks on deepwater ports in southern Ukraine that handle much of the country's grain and other critical cargo in the fifth year of war.
Death toll from Russian strike on vessel near Odesa rises to 10
07:24 , Arpan Rai
The death toll from a Russian strike on a vessel near Ukraine's southern port city of Odesa has risen to 10, Ukraine's seaports authority said this morning.
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship loaded with corn carrying a crew from India and Syria was struck late on Sunday, with Ukrainian officials reporting that eight crew members were rescued from the vessel.
New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
07:05 , Arpan Rai
Fresh footage has been released of the moment a Ukrainian property tycoon and two others were injured in a bomb attack in Monaco.
Tycoon Vadym Iermolaiev was left fighting for life after the explosion at the start of June, with a 13 year-old boy and a woman also injured in what authorities believe was an attempted assassination.
Ukraine’s prosecutor general Ruslan Kravchenko released footage of the incident as he reported an investigation was underway to obtain new evidence in the case of “attempted murder”.
The video showed a hooded figure appearing to drop a backpack full of explosives on the steps of Mr Iermolaiev’s Monaco home. As they walked away, the property tycoon could be seen walking towards the property with two others when a purple flash erupted as the explosion took place.
New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
Drone attack on Moscow hits oil depot and logistics centre
06:48 , Arpan Rai
Hundreds of Ukrainian drones have attacked Russia overnight, officials said as the strikes hit an oil depot and logistics centre, local media reports and Telegram media channels reported.
An attack in the city of Podolsk, nearly 40kms south of the Kremlin, was reportedly under attack. Photos and videos of the attack showed thick black smoke billowing from a strike on an oil depot.
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobhyanin said that more than 400 Ukrainian drones were launched towards the Russian capital. Of these, he said 85 drones were downed while approaching Moscow.
A fire was also reported at a residential building in the city of Domodedovo and a warehouse was destroyed at the Yuzhnye Vorota logistics park, reported The Kyiv Independent.
Watch: Zelensky shares footage saying three Russian oil depots hit in Stavropol region
06:19 , Arpan Rai
Zelensky confirms Russia's energy sector under attack
06:18 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Sunday that Ukrainian units struck more energy infrastructure in Russian territory.
He said units of Ukraine’s Security Service agency struck three oil depots in the Stavropol region, while a separate unit of the army hit another fuel-related facility in the same region.
Three Russian tankers were also struck in the Black Sea, he said.
Stavropol governor Vladimir Vladimirov earlier referenced Ukrainian drone attacks igniting fires at “industrial facilities” in two locations within the region.
He did not specify what the facilities were, but said nobody was hurt.
Russian news outlet Astra on Sunday reported that three oil depots may be burning in Stavropol, based on its analysis of photos and videos sent in by locals after the attack.
Russian air defence systems shot down 140 Ukrainian drones over eight Russian regions, annexed Crimea, and the Black and Azov seas overnight into Sunday, Russia's defence ministry reported. It did not say how many were launched or reached their targets.
In Russia's Kursk region near the Ukrainian border, Ukrainian drones struck four apartment buildings, setting off a fire and injuring one person, according to local governor Alexander Khinshtein.
Kyiv residents say Russian attacks taking a 'psychological' toll as ballistic missile strikes increase
06:12 , Arpan Rai
Viktoria Shejko, 32, was taking shelter in the corridor of her apartment block with her seven children and husband when they heard the loud explosions.
“When the alarm started, we checked that there were ballistics, then went into the corridor. Then it started exploding one missile after another,” she said.
The strain of constant bombardment is “very difficult psychologically,” she said.
“It used to be once a week or even more rarely, but now if not every day, then every other day.”
Rescuers pulled four people from a burning home in the Sviatoshynskyi district, while in the Shevchenkivskyi district, they rushed to save residents from a three-story building on fire.
One person was found dead. Firefighters also responded to blazes in the Solomyanskyi, Desnianskyi and Dnipro districts.
Russia's defence ministry claimed the attack on Kyiv targeted sites linked to the Ukrainian military — including plants producing Flamingo drones and parts for Neptune guided missiles, as well as a postal terminal used for storing dual-use goods and assembling drones, robotic systems and electronic warfare equipment.
Putin meets with North Korean foreign minister in latest high-level diplomacy
05:43 , Arpan Rai
Russian president Vladimir Putin met with North Korea’s foreign minister and thanked Pyongyang for supporting his war against Ukraine, in the latest high-level diplomacy between the countries, Russian state media reported.
The visit by North Korean foreign minister Choe Son Hui comes without an obvious occasion, such as a multilateral diplomatic event or state anniversary, and has raised speculation that she may be coordinating a possible visit to Russia by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
North Korean state media said Choe departed for Russia on Saturday at the invitation of Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov but has yet to comment on the purpose of her visit.
Yoon Min Ho, spokesperson for South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles affairs related to North Korea, said Monday that Seoul was closely monitoring the meetings but declined to assess whether Moscow and Pyongyang were discussing another summit between their leaders.
Russia’s Tass news agency said Putin during his meeting with Choe at the Kremlin on Sunday praised the countries’ bilateral relations and reiterated his “gratitude to the North Korean leadership and people” for supporting his military operations against Ukraine.
Choe told Putin that Kim remains committed to the “comprehensive development” of relations with Russia, Tass said.
What will be Andy Burnham's foreign policy on Ukraine and Nato
05:36 , Arpan Rai
The incoming prime minister Andy Burnham has little foreign policy experience, but has promised to continue the government’s Nato commitment and support for the UK’s nuclear deterrent.
He said Britain will remain a strong booster of Ukraine and a firm United States ally.
Relations with the US could depend on how he interacts with a capricious president Donald Trump, who initially gave Keir Starmer glowing reviews only to sour on him for not supporting his war with Iran.
Burnham has publicly criticised Trump in the past but has said he would deal with him respectfully, as he does with others, but would also be willing to disagree.
“I like to think I’ve got some personality myself and I’ll just, you know, I’ll deal with him very upfront in the same way,” he told Lineker.
“Where you disagree, do it, but do it in a way that is kind of meeting him where he’s at.”
Trump has pushed Nato members to significantly boost military spending, and Burnham will be under pressure to exceed the defense spending goals set out by Sir Keir.
Oil tankers hit at key terminal off Russia's coast
05:08 , Arpan Rai
A strike on two oil tankers at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal off Russia’s Black Sea coast halted oil loadings at the site, the CPC said on Sunday.
The attack on the Asia and Nissos tankers in the port of Novorossiysk sparked a fire aboard the ASIA, which was extinguished.
The company did not say who was responsible for the attack.
It added there were no casualties or oil spills, and the tankers — sailing under the flags of Liberia and the Marshall Islands respectively — remained afloat.
Both Russia and Ukraine have sharply ramped up strikes on ships in the Black and Azov seas over the past week.
Ukraine says it targets Russia's so-called shadow fleet, which ships oil in violation of international sanctions over the Kremlin's invasion of its neighbour.
Kyiv has for months been targeting Russia's oil industry, which it says both directly fuels Moscow's war effort and funds it through export revenues, triggering acute fuel shortages in a country that is one of the world's top oil producers.
The CPC is a 940-mile oil pipeline connecting Kazakhstan’s Caspian Sea oil deposits with Novorossiysk, where the oil is loaded and shipped by tanker to world markets.
The pipeline accounts for about 80 per cent of oil-rich Kazakhstan's crude exports, with the Russian government and Russian state oil firms holding a combined 31 per cent stake in the enterprise.
Russia fired more ballistic missiles against Ukraine in July than it produces monthly, says ISW
05:03 , Arpan Rai
Russian forces have launched more ballistic missiles against Ukraine thus far in July than Russia reportedly produces each month, according to a US-based think tank monitoring the war.
“Ukrainian defence source Militarnyi reported on 19 July that Russia used up to two-thirds of its planned annual production of Zirkon missiles in July 2026 alone and that Russia launched more ballistic missiles in July than Russia’s reported total monthly production volume,” the Institute for the Study of War said.
Citing the Ukrainian Air Force reports for July, ISW said the attacks indicate that Russia has launched 107 ballistic missiles and 20 Zirkon missiles against Ukraine in July thus far.
“Militarny cited unspecified Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR) reports indicating that Russia produces about 60 Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 40 missiles for the S-400 complex monthly. Russia appears to be dipping into its stockpiles to continue increasing the number of ballistic missiles it launches against Ukraine, as these missiles have a higher success rate than drones and cruise missiles,” it said.
“Russian forces have simultaneously decreased the number of drones they launch in each overnight package, launching 2,955 thus far in July 2026 compared to 5,749 in June 2026,” the ISW said.
Russia claims control of another village in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region
04:40 , Arpan Rai
Russian forces have captured the settlement of Vilne in the Dnipropetrovsk region of Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said on Sunday.
Officials in Kyiv have not issued a response to Russia’s claims but analysts monitoring the war have said the statement from defence ministry is false as Russian forces have not made any confirmed advances.
“Russian forces continued limited offensive operations in the Oleksandrivka direction on 18 and 19 July but did not make confirmed advances,” the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said.
“ISW assesses that the Russian MoD’s claim is part of Russia’s ongoing cognitive warfare effort to signal battlefield success contrary to all available evidence,” the think tank said.
Russia pounds Kyiv with major ballistic missile attack
04:11 , Arpan Rai
Russia battered Ukraine's capital Kyiv in the early hours of Sunday with one of its biggest ballistic missile barrages of the war, killing at least one person and wounding 16 others, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
A series of powerful explosions thundered across the darkened city in an attack that involved 41 missiles of various types, the air force said, ravaging buildings across several districts and sparking fires.
Residential buildings, warehouses, a supermarket and a dormitory were among the structures damaged, said Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko, adding that three people were in a serious condition.
Separately on Sunday, four people were killed and 19 wounded in a strike on a postal depot outside the northeastern city of Kharkiv near the Russian border, the regional governor said.
At one location in western Kyiv, emergency workers picked through smouldering debris and doused bombed-out apartments.
Ukraine blames Russia for strike on Turkish cargo ship that killed five
04:01 , Arpan Rai
Ukrainian officials said a strike by Russian forces targeted an international cargo vessel in the Black Sea off the coast of Ukraine's southern city of Odesa, killing at least five crew members.
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship had left port loaded with corn and was carrying a crew of 17 sailors from India and Syria, in addition to one Ukrainian, said prime minister Sergii Koretskyi.
Eight crew members were rescued from the vessel — which was still burning late on Sunday — and five remain missing, he added.
“A civilian ship. An international crew. A route serving global food security. Putin saw another target,” Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X.
“This attack leaves no room for illusions. Putin's Russia does not care whom it kills,” he said.
A Reuters witness in Odesa saw smoke billowing from a large vessel off the coast.
Moscow has not publicly commented on Sunday's strike.
Russia has stepped up attacks in recent weeks on deepwater ports in southern Ukraine that handle much of the country's grain and other critical cargo in the fifth year of war.
Watch: Smoke billows from Moscow warehouse after deadly Ukrainian attacks
04:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
Comment: The West is preparing for the wrong post-war Russia
03:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
The West has long assumed pressure would force Russia to moderate or collapse. Both assumptions misunderstand how the Kremlin responds to weakness, says senior policy adviser Dan Sleat.
The West is preparing for the wrong post-war Russia
Ukraine buries its unknown soldiers as families wait for identification
02:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
In a military cemetery in Kyiv, a brother and sister walk between the crosses, carrying a bunch of carnations. Each cross in that section bears the same words: “unknown defender of Ukraine,” with an ID number below and a note that identification is ongoing.
One grave stands out: beneath the inscription, a photo was later attached, showing Ihor Yalynych, a soldier last seen alive in Kharkiv region in 2022. After four years of searching, Stanislav and Oleksandra Yalynych found their father.
Identification of the dead is a reckoning that will stretch on for years, among the longest-lasting wounds of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Some graves may remain nameless forever, with the families left to wait.
For most of the war, there was nowhere to bury the unidentified dead. The bodies lay in refrigerated storage while the national military cemetery was still being built. Even before the cemetery was completed in January, the first group of the unknown soldiers were laid to rest in August. More than 300 now lie beneath numbered crosses, with more graves being dug.
You can read more below:
Ukraine buries its unknown soldiers as families wait for identification
A US license could let Ukraine produce Patriot missiles, but it won’t be simple or quick
01:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
US President Donald Trump’s pledge to give Ukraine a license to produce Patriot air-defence systems could mark a major breakthrough for Kyiv, but experts and Ukrainian officials warn that turning the idea into real weapons would likely take years.
Speaking last week alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, Trump said the United States would allow Ukraine to make the US-designed systems that Kyiv has long sought to shield its cities and infrastructure from Russian missiles and drones.
“We’ll give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to do it,” Trump said. “I think they can produce them pretty quickly.”
But the statement left open a crucial question: What exactly would Ukraine be allowed to produce?
You can read more below:
A US license could let Ukraine produce Patriot missiles, but it won’t be simple or quick
I have visited Russia every year since the Ukraine war began. The mood has changed
Monday 20 July 2026 00:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
The mood regarding the war in Ukraine has changed in recent months. Ukrainian drones have struck Russian oil infrastructure, causing fuel shortages across Russia. And the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, is exuberant about finishing the war from a “position of strength”.
The hope is that an economic crisis in Russia leads to social unrest and political instability, possibly resulting in the collapse of the ruling regime. This would not be an unprecedented event in Russian history. The Soviet Union rapidly unravelled amid economic and political crisis in 1991.
But how likely is this scenario for Russia today? Alexander Titov writes:
I have visited Russia every year since the Ukraine war began. The mood has changed
Watch: Outrage in Ukraine as Zelensky sacks defense minister after six months
Sunday 19 July 2026 23:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
How Storm Shadow missiles could be replaced by new UK strike weapons
Sunday 19 July 2026 22:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane
Britain has successfully tested new long-range strike weapons, with the government aiming to deliver them to Ukraine within months to bolster its defence capabilities.
The initiative, known as "Project Brakestop," seeks to produce munitions more quickly and affordably than current systems like Storm Shadow missiles, with specifications including a 500km range, 225kg warhead, and speeds over 600km per hour.
Initial trials took place at a range in the Hebrides, involving three remaining suppliers – MBDA UK, MGI Engineering, and Rotron Aerospace – after a competitive development process that saw 27 industry bids.
You can read more below:
How Storm Shadow missiles could be replaced by new UK strike weapons
