Ukraine attacks Moscow in overnight attacks as 159 drones downed

Russia’s defence ministry said its air defences shot down 159 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions.

The majority were over Russia’s western regions but at least six were shot down over the Moscow region, which has a population of over 20 million, the ministry said.

Zelensky says he and Merz discussed Ukraine’s post-war recovery

Volodymyr Zelensky has said he and German chancellor discussed matters surrounding Ukraine’s recovery after the war in a phone call yesterday.

The Ukrainian president said: “We must already be thinking about this and have a clear plan that can help bring genuine peace closer now and provide support later. We will work together to make it all happen. I am grateful for the support.”

Starmer speaks to Zelensky after announcing sanctions

Sir Keir Starmer has spoken to Volodymyr Zelensky after the UK announced 100 new sanctions on Russia in a bid to ramp up pressure on Vladimir Putin.

A Downing Street spokesperson said: “The prime minister spoke to president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, this evening.

“The leaders began by reflecting on their meeting in Tirana, Albania, on Friday before discussing the UK’s latest package of sanctions on Russian military, energy and financial sectors announced today.

“It was vital to keep the pressure on Russia while they continued their illegal invasion of Ukraine, the leaders agreed.

“Looking ahead to further peace talks, the Prime Minister reiterated the UK’s support for Ukraine and said he was steadfast in his commitment to helping Ukraine secure a just and lasting peace.

Russia outlaws Amnesty International in latest crackdown on opposition

Russia has outlawed Amnesty International, designating it an “undesirable organisation” and criminalising involvement with the human rights group in the country.

This move, announced on Monday by the Russian Prosecutor General’s office, further intensifies the Kremlin’s crackdown on dissent, which has escalated dramatically since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The ban effectively shuts down Amnesty’s operations within Russia and threatens anyone cooperating with or supporting the organisation with prosecution.

Trump will ‘do a runner’ from peace efforts, ex-defence secretary says

Donald Trump will “do a runner” from brokering peace in Ukraine soon, a former British defence secretary has said.

Former Tory MP Ben Wallace told Times Radio: “I’m not very hopeful, I’m afraid. Throughout this Donald Trump has consistently let Putin off the hook”, despite repeatedly threatening tougher sanctions.

“The reality is Donald Trump has no interest. It’s one of the deals that he will move on from – most of his career in business has been about ‘make a deal and do a runner before it actually unravels’. I think that’s what we’re going to see,” he added.

Laying the blame for the millions of people killed, injured and displaced in the war solely at Mr Putin’s feet, he said: “Donald Trump seems to think spending a lots of time on the telephone to him and being constantly humiliated by him – when he just refuses to do anything that Trump requests – is somehow the way to proceed and let’s move on to a trade deal.”

Mr Wallace, who was defence secretary for the first 18 months of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, added: “No doubt there’ll be a golf resort somewhere near St Petersburg, I suspect, soon.”

Trump refusing sanctions on Putin over business opportunities – report

US president Donald Trump is refusing to impose sanctions on Russia over concerns of future business and trade opportunities being impacted, a White House official has said.

Imposing sanctions could impede Mr Trump’s goal of “maximising economic opportunities for Americans,” a White House official familiar with the call between Mr Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin told the New York Times.

Shortly after his call with Mr Putin, the US president took to Truth Social and said a peace deal would be a “tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED”.

Vladimir Putin was quick on the draw with an announcement that said nothing after his two-hour phone call with Donald Trump, as the Russian president grabbed the narrative before the Oval Office had figured out what the story even was.

The call, the White House hoped, would show how much influence the US president had in the Kremlin. But they were sorely disappointed. Instead it showed that it is, again, Putin who pulls the strings.

“We have agreed with the president of the United States that Russia will propose and is ready to work with the Ukrainian side on a memorandum on a possible future peace accord, defining a number of positions, such as, for example, the principles of settlement, the timing of a possible peace agreement,” Putin told reporters near the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Pope Leo XIV has confirmed his willingness for the Vatican to host the next round of Ukraine peace talks, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni said.

“Finding in the Holy Father confirmation of the readiness to host the next talks between the parties in the Vatican, the prime minister expressed deep gratitude (to) Pope Leo XIV for his unceasing commitment to peace,” a statement from Ms Meloni’s office said.

Ms Meloni’s office said she welcomed remarks from US president Donald Trump that Pope Leo had expressed an interest in hosting talks between Kyiv and Moscow, though the Vatican did not immediately confirm any such offer.

Zelensky hails ‘important’ phone call with German chancellor Merz

Volodymyr Zelensky has said he and Friedrich Merz are “coordinating all our contacts and steps as closely as possible”, following an “important conversation” with the German chancellor today.

The Ukrainian president said: “I thanked him for his strong and constructive position on supporting Ukraine. We discussed our conversation yesterday with President Trump, as well as today’s talks with European leaders.

“We are coordinating all our contacts and steps as closely as possible. It is crucial to maintain unity among all partners and to seek solutions that can truly bring this war to an end with a just peace.”

Zelensky’s top aide warns ‘status quo has not changed’ despite Trump-Putin call

Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff has warned that, “unfortunately, following the Trump–Putin phone call, the status quo has not changed”.

Writing on social media, Mikhailo Podolyak warned that Russia “still seeks war, destruction, and killing – believing them to be the only means of preserving its current state,” accusing Moscow of being “unwilling and categorically refusing” to accept a ceasefire.

The chief presidential aide added: “There is also this obsessive search for the so-called ‘root causes of the war’, even though the only real cause is the simple fact of Russia’s unprovoked aggression.”

“Ukraine continues to offer the only realistic path out of the war – through an immediate and unconditional ceasefire – comprehensive, long-term, and binding,” said Mr Podolyak.