Russia Watch

Zelensky appoints new prime minister in major government shakeup – World Socialist Web Site

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

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Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky undertook the largest shakeup of top government officials since the NATO-backed proxy war between Ukraine and Russia began in February 2022. Zelensky has officially appointed a new prime minister along with reshuffling several other top cabinet positions. The primary aim of the government shakeup is to solidify Kiev’s ties with the US administration of Donald Trump. US imperialism is still Ukraine’s most important military backer.

Yulia Svyrydenko, 39, was confirmed as the country’s new prime minister on Thursday and will replace former Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, who has served as prime minister since 2020. Shmyhal will remain part of the Zelensky government as the newly appointed defense minister.

Svyrydenko previously served as first deputy prime minister and minister of economic development and trade. She played the leading role in negotiating the “critical minerals deal” this past spring between Ukraine and the Trump administration that saw Ukraine hand over vast sections of its economy to US imperialism in exchange for continued military aid in the war against Russia.

“She was the key and the only person leading these negotiations. She managed to prevent them from unraveling,” said Tymofiy Mylovanov, a former economy minister who previously worked with Svyrydenko.

Ukraine’s security service arrests anti-corruption agents over alleged Kremlin ties – MSN–

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

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Ukraine’s SBU state security service launched a series of raids on the country’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) as part of an investigation into allegations that officials within the agency have been cooperating with Russia.

The SBU said on Monday that it had arrested two officials working for NABU, one a suspected Russian spy and the other over alleged business ties to Russia.

Sen Johnson: Media ‘either duped or complicit’ in Russia election interference ‘narrative’– thehill.com

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

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Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) accused the media of being “either duped or complicit” on the interference of the 2016 election by Russians.

“I want the press to be honest. I want Pulitzer Prizes to be returned. They were either duped or complicit in pushing that false narrative that put America in political turmoil for years,” Johnson told NewsNation’s Blake Burman on “The Hill.”

“It’s continuing to go on, all based on a Hillary Clinton dirty trick, the Steele Dossier that those guys knew was a dirty trick, and yet they used that to gin up the Mueller investigation, impeachments, everything else,” he added. “Listen, this is, again election interference orders of magnitude worse than anything Russia or China ever, ever could hope to achieve,” he added.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard put out a report last week alleging that Obama administration officials manipulated intelligence linked to Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Gabbard argued in a statement that former officials took part in a “treasonous conspiracy” and said her office was turning over evidence to the Justice Department for possible criminal referrals.

Slovak state gas firm eyes full Russian supply – Bloomberg — RT World News– www.rt.com

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

Ukraine Russia war latest: Ukrainian military loses first French Mirage fighter jet in crash ahead of peace talks– www.independent.co.uk

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

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Russian soldiers needing medical care returned by Ukraine

Two Russian soldiers in need of medical care were handed over by Ukrainian authorities yesterday to be returned home, the Russian defence ministry said.

A ministry statement on Telegram said the two servicemen were handed over and taken to Belarus, one of Moscow’s closest allies, on Russia’s western border. They were receiving treatment in Belarus and would soon return to Russia, it said.

The statement said the action was undertaken on the basis of agreements reached at the second of two direct meetings aimed at ending the conflict last month between Russian and Ukrainian representatives.

The two meetings in Istanbul resulted in agreements to return prisoners of war and remains of fallen soldiers, but made little progress towards an end to the more than three-year-old conflict.

Ukrainians Turn on Zelensky as He Prepares to Cancel Anti-Corruptions Investigator Group

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

Protests in Ukraine as Zelensky signs bill targeting anti-corruption bodies– www.bbc.com
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President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a bill that critics say weakens the independence of Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies, sparking protests in several cities and drawing international criticism.

Critics say the new law undermines the authority of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (Nabu) and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (Sapo) – placing them under the control of the prosecutor general.

In an address on Wednesday, Zelensky said both agencies would still “work” but needed to be cleared of “Russian influence”.

After the bill passed, hundreds of people gathered in Kyiv for the biggest anti-government protest since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Demonstrations were also seen in the cities of Lviv, Dnipro and Odesa.

“We chose Europe, not autocracy,” said a poster held by one demonstrator. “My father did not die for this,” said another.

Ukraine’s chief prosecutor, Zelensky loyalist Ruslan Kravchenko, will now be able to reassign corruption probes to potentially more pliant investigators, and even to close them.

U.K. Sanctions 135 Oil Tankers in Russia’s Shadow Fleet– www.themoscowtimes.com

pgnewser July 22, 2025 0

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Britain on Monday slapped sanctions on 135 oil tankers in Russia’s shadow fleet in a bid to disrupt the flow of money helping Moscow fund the war in Ukraine.

A shipping services company and an oil trading firm were also sanctioned as part of the crackdown on a fleet “responsible for illicitly carrying $24 billion worth of cargo since the start of 2024,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.

Security analysts say the fleet of aging vessels is used by Russia to circumvent international sanctions that ban it from selling oil.

Hundreds of vessels have now been sanctioned by the European Union and the U.K. since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

“New sanctions will further dismantle Putin’s shadow fleet and drain Russia’s war chest of its critical oil revenues,” Foreign Minister David Lammy said Monday.

The action came just days after “the U.K. and EU lowered the crude oil price cap further disrupting the flow of oil money into Putin’s war chest,” the ministry statement added.

EU says Ukraine’s blocks on anti-graft bodies ‘a serious step back’– www.france24.com

pgnewser July 22, 2025 0

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The EU on Tuesday said Ukrainian lawmakers were responsible for “a serious step back” as they voted to remove the independence of two anti-corruption agencies. Opponents say the new rules neuter the agencies ability to investigate those close to the upper echelons of politics by placing them under the command of a Prosecutor General, directly appointed by the president.

Zelenskyy renews offer to meet with Putin as latest peace talks loom – National– globalnews.ca

pgnewser July 22, 2025 0

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday renewed his offer to meet with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, but hopes of progress were low as delegations prepared to hold another round of talks.

Russian forces, meanwhile, pounded four Ukrainian cities in nighttime attacks that officials said killed a child.

Putin has spurned Zelenskyy’s previous offers of a face-to-face meeting to end Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II. But the Ukrainian leader insists that lower-level delegations like the ones expected for talks in Istanbul on Wednesday don’t have the political heft to stop the fighting. The sides remain far apart on how to end the war begun by Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.

“Ukraine never wanted this war, and it is Russia that must end the war that it itself started,” Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post.

John Brennan Refuses To Be Intimidated By Trump Threats– www.politicususa.com

pgnewser July 22, 2025 0

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As the mainstream media crumbles, PoliticusUSA can stand tall thanks to your support. Please consider supporting us by becoming a subscriber.

The best way to fight back against an imperial president who is determined to rewrite history through bullying threats and intimidation is not to yield.

Former CIA Director John Brennan is one of four former intelligence officials who have been referred to the DOJ for prosecution because they wrote reports and signed letters about Russia interfering in the 2016 election to help Donald Trump.

On MSNBC’s Deadline: White House, Brennan defended the intelligence:

 Anybody who looks at the intelligence assessment and the work that was done will see that it was very carefully worded, meticulously done, and it stands up to scrutiny and to the test of time. As you pointed out, there have been numerous reviews about it, and it didn’t say any of the things that tools Gabbard alleges it said or didn’t say.

And I, I really do encourage people to read it because it was very clear in terms of what it said that the Russians were using at President Putin’s direction influenced operations to try to denigrate Hillary Clinton, try to increase the prospects for Donald Trump’s selection, and also just to undermine the integrity of our election system.

And again, those were the primary judgements. Again, they are ones that certainly I and others who were involved continue to stand behind.

James Comey And John Brennan Will Be Convicted By History– thefederalist.com

pgnewser July 22, 2025 0

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The Justice Department recently acknowledged that it is conducting a criminal investigation of both former CIA Director John Brennan and former FBI Director James Comey. The current CIA director, John Ratcliffe, made a criminal referral to the DOJ concerning Brennan. Many believe that referral involves perjury on Brennan’s part when testifying before Congress or during Special Counsel John Durham’s inquiry.

The precise criminal offenses concerning Comey are not clear at this point. But there was certainly plenty of malfeasance and misfeasance by both these agency heads starting with the inception of the Russia collusion fiasco.

Comey described, in his book, the sole origin of the FBI’s investigation of the Trump campaign as a report “from an allied ambassador” of a conversation in London between a Trump adviser and “a Russian agent.” That was his characterization of George Papadopoulos’ meeting with Joseph Mifsud, who told the Trump aide the Russians had “dirt” on Hillary Clinton. Comey has piously huffed that it would have been “dereliction” not to proceed with an investigation. But to proceed with an intrusive investigation on so little was abuse.

A secondhand rumor should never be enough to justify opening an investigation of any American, much less a presidential candidate. This off-hand conversation initiated an investigation that dogged the presidency. Like directors before him, Comey should have said, “We need more proba

KALLAS COMPLAINS: Top EU Diplomat Gripes That US Is Not Paying for New Weapons for Ukraine, Thinks 50-Day Ultimatum for Russia ‘Is Too Long’ | The Gateway Pundit– www.thegatewaypundit.com

pgnewser July 17, 2025 0

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EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas wants the US to help pay for the weapons for Ukraine.

The new NATO initiative to arm Ukraine rubs Kallas wrong.

Not everyone is thrilled by the new plan devised by US president Donald J. Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte to send weapons to Ukraine.

The novel initiative will see NATO countries (Europeans and Canada) to cede equipment to Ukraine, and buy back from the US to replenish their arsenals.

This plan sees Trump shifting the financial burden of the war to the warmongering EU powers that want to keep it going.

‘We have spent about $350 billion on the Russia-Ukraine war. And we would like it to end.’

Donald J. Trump

Trump ‘Abused’ the National Guard for a ‘Political Show’– www.breitbart.com

pgnewser July 17, 2025 0

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Tuesday on MSNBC’s “The Last Word,” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said President Donald Trump “abused” the National Guard for a “political show” when he deployed them to Los Angeles.

Host Lawrence O’Donnell said,  “I want to get your reaction to the news from Los Angeles tonight. The L.A. Times reporting that 4000 National Guard soldiers who’d been deployed in Los Angeles by Donald Trump are being released from that duty finally. Something you’ve been saying was something that duty they never should have had, but certainly they could have been released from an awful long time ago.”

Schiff said, “They should have been released, frankly, they should never have been called up. This was a political show, a political parade from the very beginning by Donald Trump over the wishes of the governor and of the mayor to militarize an already tense situation in Los Angeles, just made matters worse.

He added, “Trump feeds on that chaos. So this was by his design. To see the Guard so misused in that way, the trust that Californians have for the Guard abused in that way was just awful. Plus those Guard members that he took off their ordinary duties it meant at present, when we’re already dealing with fires breaking out in California, they were understaffed because we rely on our Guard in case of fire and other emergency. So I think they had to cut them loose sooner or later. This was way too late, but I’m glad that this is finally happening. I hope it means the release of all of those who were deployed, not just the Guard, but also the Marines, an even worse abuse.”

Trump says Ukraine should not target Moscow | Russia-Ukraine war News– www.aljazeera.com

pgnewser July 17, 2025 0

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US president’s remarks follow report saying he encouraged Kyiv to step up strikes inside Russian territory.

United States President Donald Trump has said Ukraine should not target Moscow after he reportedly asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy if Kyiv could strike the Russian capital if he provided long-range weaponry.

Trump made the comments after The Financial Times on Tuesday reported that the US president had encouraged Zelenskyy to step up strikes deep inside Russian territory during their phone call on July 4.

The report, which cited two unnamed people familiar with the discussion, said Trump had also asked his Ukrainian counterpart whether he could hit Moscow and St Petersburg if supplied with weapons with enough range.

In response to a question on Tuesday about whether Zelenskyy should target Moscow, Trump told reporters at the White House that he should not.

Trump also told reporters that “we’re not looking” at providing Kyiv with longer-range missiles.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared to confirm the discussion in a statement provided to multiple media outlets, but said it had been taken out of context.

NATO Pays ‘100%’ for Ukraine › American Greatness– amgreatness.com

pgnewser July 17, 2025 0

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Though endlessly critical of his predecessor, President Trump has adopted a Ukraine strategy similar to that of former President Joe Biden: Arm the Ukrainians to the teeth and threaten Russian President Vladimir Putin with even more sanctions if he does not agree to a peace deal.

Some of Trump’s closest domestic allies are already warning that the “expanded American role in the Ukraine War” will be “quite shocking” to the America First voters who returned him to the Oval Office.

But the same president who vowed to end the war in 24 hours has lost patience with Putin after six months. “He’s fooled a lot of people,” Trump said of the Russian leader. “He fooled Clinton, Bush, Obama, Biden. He didn’t fool me.” Seated in the Oval Office next to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, the president offered a glimpse into the negotiation process and his seemingly shifting mood on the war.

“I felt we had a deal about four times,” Trump admitted. “But it just kept going on and on.”

So Trump will sell weapons to NATO to supply Ukraine, and if Russia does not yield in 50 days, Trump promises another 100% tariff on all Russian goods.

Russia economy meltdown as property market collapses | World | News– www.express.co.uk

pgnewser July 17, 2025

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Russia’s economy is facing fresh turmoil as its once-buoyant property market plunges into crisis, with sales of new apartments collapsing by nearly 39% over the past year, according to new government data. From July 2024 to June 2025, just 458,727 apartments were sold across the country, representing a staggering 38.7% drop in the number of transactions compared to the previous 12 months.

The total area of property sold fell by 37.2%, down to 21.9 million square metres, according to a report by the state-owned housing firm Dom.RF. The figures are echoed by real estate platform Cian, which recorded a 39% decline in property deals year-on-year, down to 477,000 units.

The dramatic decline has been linked to the abolition of Russia’s preferential mortgage program on July 1, 2024.

BRICS group condemns increase of tariffs in summit overshadowed by Middle East tensions– www.euronews.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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The BRICS bloc of developing nations at their summit in Brazil on Sunday condemned the increase of tariffs and attacks on Iran, but refrained from naming US President Donald Trump.

The group’s declaration, which also took aim at Israeli military actions in the Middle East, spared its founding member Russia from criticism and mentioned war-torn Ukraine only once.

The bloc issued a declaration in which they raised “serious concerns” about the rise of tariffs which it said were “inconsistent with WTO (World Trade Organisation) rules.” In an indirect swipe at the US, they said those restrictions ”threaten to reduce global trade, disrupt global supply chains and introduce uncertainty.”

Lula also criticised NATO’s decision to hike defence spending up to 5% of member states’ GDP. He said it was “always easier to invest in war than peace.”

The declaration also criticised the attacks on Iran without mentioning the US or Israel, the two nations who conducted them.

BRICS leaders expressed “grave concern” for the humanitarian situation in Gaza, called for the release of all hostages, a return to the negotiating table and reaffirmed their commitment to the two-state solution.

The group’s 31-page declaration mentions Ukraine just once, while condemning “in the strongest terms” recent Ukrainian attacks on Russia.

Trump trade war, Middle East tensions overshadow BRICS summit – National– globalnews.ca

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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Brazil is playing host to a summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies Sunday and Monday during which pressing topics like Israel’s attack on Iran, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and trade tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump are expected to be handled with caution.

Analysts and diplomats have said the lack of cohesion in an enlarged BRICS, which doubled in size last year, may affect its ability to become another pole in world affairs. They also see the summit’s moderate agenda as an attempt by member countries to stay off Trump’s radar.

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has some of his priorities, such as debates on artificial intelligence and climate change, front and centre for the talks with key leaders not in attendance.

Lula said in his speech on Sunday that “we are witnessing the unparalled collapse of multilateralism” and that the meeting is taking place “in the most adverse global scenario” of the four times Brazil has hosted it. He called for the group to promote peace and mediate conflicts.

Russia’s former transport minister Roman Starovoit found dead ‘with gunshot wound’ | World News– news.sky.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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Russia’s former transport minister Roman Starovoit has been found dead with a gunshot wound in his car just hours after it was revealed he had been sacked from his role.

Mr Starovoit, the ex-governor of the Kursk region, is reported to have taken his own life.

The report of his death comes after he was dismissed from his transport role by President Vladimir Putin.

In a statement on Monday, the Investigative Committee of Russia said: “The body of the former minister of transport of the Russian Federation, Roman Vladimirovich Starovoit, was discovered in his personal vehicle with a gunshot wound today in the Odintsovo city district.”

The circumstances surrounding Mr Starovoit’s death are being investigated, with the statement adding: “The main version is suicide.”

Earlier on Monday, it was revealed Mr Putin had fired Mr Starovoit after just over a year in the job.

Mr Starovoit was appointed transport minister in May 2024 after spending almost five years as governor of the Kursk region bordering Ukraine.

A few months after he left his role as governor, Ukrainian troops crossed over the border into Kursk as Kyiv launched the biggest foreign incursion into Russian territory since the Second World War.

Brazil hosts BRICS summit, eager to avoid provoking Trump’s ire– abcnews.go.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazil will play host to a summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies Sunday and Monday during which pressing topics like Israel’s attack on Iran, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and trade tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump are expected to be handled with caution.

Analysts and diplomats said the lack of cohesion in an enlarged BRICS, which doubled in size last year, may affect its ability to become another pole in world affairs. They also see the summit’s moderate agenda as an attempt by member countries to stay off Trump’s radar.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will have some of his priorities, such as debates on artificial intelligence and climate change, front and center for the talks with key leaders not in attendance.

China’s President Xi Jinping won’t attend a BRICS summit for the first time since he became his country’s leader in 2012. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will make an appearance via videoconference, continues to mostly avoid traveling abroad due to an international arrest warrant issued after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The restraint expected in Rio de Janeiro marks a departure from last year’s summit hosted by Russia in Kazan, when the Kremlin sought to develop alternatives to U.S.-dominated payment systems which would allow it to dodge Western sanctions imposed after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Ukraine says it struck a Russian air base as Russia sent hundreds of drones into Ukraine– japantoday.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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Ukraine said it struck a Russian air base on Saturday, while Russia continued to pound Ukraine with hundreds of drones overnight as part of a stepped-up bombing campaign that has dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the more than 3-year-old war.

Ukraine’s military General Staff said that Ukrainian forces had struck the Borisoglebsk air base in Russia’s Voronezh region, describing it as the home base of Russia’s Su-34, Su-35S and Su-30SM fighter jets.

Writing on Facebook, the General Staff said it hit a depot containing glide bombs, a training aircraft and “possibly other aircraft.”

Russian officials did not immediately comment on the attack.

Trump threatens additional tariffs on nations ‘aligning’ with ‘anti-American’ BRICS– thehill.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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President Trump threatened to impose an additional 10 percent tariff on countries “aligning” themselves with the BRICS bloc of developing nations.

“Any Country aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS, will be charged an ADDITIONAL 10% Tariff. There will be no exceptions to this policy. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Sunday evening.

The threat comes after members of the BRICS group issued a declaration on Sunday condemning the U.S. increase in tariffs, as well as the strikes on Iran — all without mentioning Trump by name.

The group’s statement raised “serious concerns” tariffs, saying they are “inconsistent with WTO (World Trade Organization) rules” and threaten to “reduce global trade, disrupt global supply chains, and introduce uncertainty.”

Russia fires over 100 drones at Ukraine as Kremlin dismisses transport chief after travel chaos– abcnews.go.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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KYIV, Ukraine — Russia fired more than 100 drones at civilian areas of Ukraine overnight, authorities said Monday, as the Kremlin dismissed the country’s transport chief after a weekend of travel chaos when Russian airports grounded hundreds of flights due to the threat of Ukrainian drone attacks.

At least 10 civilians were killed and 38 injured, including three children, in Russian attacks over the previous 24 hours, Ukrainian officials said.

Russia recently has intensified its aerial strikes on civilian areas after more than three years of war. Over the past week, Russia launched some 1,270 drones, 39 missiles and almost 1,000 powerful glide bombs at Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday.

Russia’s bigger army is also trying hard to break through at some points along the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620 miles) front line, where Ukrainian forces are severely stretched.

UN Condemns Russia’s Largest Drone Assault on Ukraine– www.themoscowtimes.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned Saturday Russia’s biggest drone and missile attack yet in the three-year war in Ukraine.

“The Secretary-General strongly condemns the latest series of large-scale drone and missile attacks by the Russian Federation,” Guterres said in a statement referring to the assault Friday and also calling for a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire.

Hours-long Russian bombardments sent Ukrainians scurrying for shelters across the country.

AFP journalists in Kyiv heard drones buzzing over the capital and explosions ringing out throughout the night as Ukrainian air defense systems fended off the attack.

Ukraine says four killed and more than 30 injured in another round of Russian strikes – Europe live | Europe– www.theguardian.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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At least four people were killed and more than 30 injured in another round of Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight, just days after a series of phone calls between US president Donald Trump, Russian president Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A view shows the site of apartment buildings hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Odesa, Ukraine. Photograph: State Emergency Service Of Ukraine/Reuters

The latest attack will once again pose questions on what’s next for Ukraine as the US ceasefire proposal, pursued by Trump, appears to be failing to make any further progress.

Zelenskyy’s top aide Andriy Yermak said in an update on Telegram that “one of the important principles of defence is the destruction of the enemy’s ability to produce weapons,” as he called for “Russia’s military-industrial complex … to be weakened in various ways: from sanctions to direct strikes.”

The western world must realise that Russia’s scaling up of weapons production only brings us closer to the day when it will be used not only against Ukraine.

Ukrainian drones disrupt Russian air travel, transport minister fired– www.euronews.com

pgnewser July 9, 2025 0

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Russian President Vladimir Putin fired his transport minister on Monday following massive disruptions of Russian civilian airspace caused by Ukrainian drone raids.

The Kremlin provided no specific details or reasons for the dismissal of Roman Starovoit, who had served as the governor of Russia’s Kursk region before being reappointed transport minister in May 2024.

However, his firing comes after almost 300 flights were grounded at major airports over the past weekend due to the latest Ukrainian drone raid.

On Saturday and Sunday, 485 fights ended up getting cancelled, according to the Russian federal aviation agency, Rosaviatsiya.

In total, from early morning on Saturday until Monday morning, so