logo
Ukraine warns of possible new Russian offensive in northeast

Ukraine warns of possible new Russian offensive in northeast

Observer2 days ago
KYIV: Ukraine's top military commander Oleksandr Syrskyi warned on Saturday of a possible new Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region, a part of northeastern Ukraine which has seen heavy fighting since Russia attacked in 2022. Moscow has been slowly grinding its way through Ukrainian lines along several parts of the frontline this summer, throwing forth continuous waves of infantry as it seeks to press home its advantage in men and munitions.
Russian forces have already pushed into northern Ukraine's Sumy region over the past months, carving out a small foothold there. "I dedicated two days to working with units in Kharkiv region," Syrskyi wrote in a post on the Telegram app. He said he spent the time talking to commanders, studying the situation in the area and the needs of troops there. "The Russians are looking to press with numbers, but we have to be ready, use appropriate tactical and technological solutions not to allow the (Russians) to move forward," Syrskyi said.
Ukraine's special forces struck Russia's Borisoglebsk military airfield in the Voronezh region on Saturday, hitting a glide bomb store and a trainer aircraft, the Ukrainian military said in a statement on social media. The military said that other aircraft were also likely hit, without giving details. "This airfield is the home base of enemy Su-34, Su-35S and Su-30SM aircraft," the statement said. The governor of Voronezh, Alexander Gusev, wrote on Telegram that more than 25 drones were destroyed over the region overnight. He said a power line was temporarily damaged, but made no mention of a military airfield.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said Ukraine would need Patriot missiles for its defences, after speaking with President Volodymyr Zelensky, and voiced frustration over Russian President Vladimir Putin's failure to end the fighting. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he had a good call with Zelensky, repeating that he was "very unhappy" about his call with Putin a day earlier, given what he called the Russian leader's refusal to work on a ceasefire.
Asked whether the United States would agree to supply more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, as requested by Zelensky, Trump said: "They're going to need them for defence... They're going to need something because they're being hit pretty hard." Trump touted the efficacy of the Patriot missiles, calling the weapon "pretty amazing." Asked about the prospects for a ceasefire, Trump said, "It's a very tough situation... I was very unhappy with my call with President Putin. He wants to go all the way, just keep killing people - it's no good." — Reuters
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Donald Trump slams Elon Musk's ‘America Party' plan
Donald Trump slams Elon Musk's ‘America Party' plan

Muscat Daily

timean hour ago

  • Muscat Daily

Donald Trump slams Elon Musk's ‘America Party' plan

Washington, D.C., US – President Donald Trump on Sunday blasted multibillionaire CEO Elon Musk's launch of a new US political party called the America Party. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, and until recently a close adviser to Trump, announced the creation of the America Party in a series of posts late on Saturday. 'When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom,' he posted on X, the social media platform he owns. On Sunday, Trump said it was 'ridiculous' to start a third party. 'The Democrats have lost their way, but it's always been a two-party system,' Trump said, adding, 'and I think starting a third party just adds to confusion. It really seems to have been developed, but three parties have never worked'. Musk first floated the idea of forming a new political party after a public and bitter falling-out with Trump. Musk spent hundreds of millions of dollars to support Trump's re-election and led the so-called Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE in the Trump administration, which aimed to cut government spending, before their disagreements spilled into the open. He revived the idea of a new political party this week as US lawmakers approved Trump's sweeping tax and spending bill. Musk was among the legislation's most vocal critics and has pledged to establish a new party to oppose Republicans who supported the bill. On Friday, he posted a poll asking whether users 'want independence from the two-party (some would say uniparty) system', drawing over 1.2mn responses, with more than 60% in favour of a new party. Third-party challenges A truly competitive third party could disrupt over a century of Democratic and Republican dominance at all levels of government. But Musk would not be the first person trying to establish a party to challenge their dominance. Former President Theodore Roosevelt came the closest in 1912, after splitting from the Republican party. He ran as Progressive Party candidate and won 27% of the popular vote and 88 electoral votes. More recently, Ross Perot, another billionaire, won 19% of the popular vote but no electoral votes in the 1992 presidential campaign as an independent and later formed the Reform Party. Musk's billions meet ballot reality Musk has already indicated that he is not aiming for an all-out win. Instead, his America Party would focus on flipping a couple of House and Senate seats by applying, 'extremely concentrated force at a precise location on the battlefield'. He believes that by targeting key races, the America Party could hold decisive votes on contentious legislation. A massive campaign war chest could give Musk an edge. Parties spend billions of dollars to get their candidates elected. According to donations watchdog OpenSecrets, nearly US$16bn was spent across the 2024 presidential and congressional races. Musk himself was the biggest donor in the 2023-24 election cycle. He gave more than US$291mn to Republicans across all races. However, money is not the only factor that matters. In April, Musk provided million-dollar checks to some voters in Wisconsin ahead of an election for the state's Supreme Court. Voters chose Democratic-backed Susan Crawford, who defeated conservative Brad Schimel for a State Supreme Court seat, despite US$25mn in spending from Musk. DW

Donald Trump slams Elon Musk's 'America Party' plan
Donald Trump slams Elon Musk's 'America Party' plan

Times of Oman

time5 hours ago

  • Times of Oman

Donald Trump slams Elon Musk's 'America Party' plan

Washington DC: US President Donald Trump on Sunday blasted multibillionaire CEO Elon Musk's launch of a new US political party called the America Party. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, and until recently a close adviser to Trump, announced the creation of the America Party in a series of posts late on Saturday. "When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom," he posted on X, the social media platform he owns. On Sunday, Trump said it was "ridiculous" to start a third party. "The Democrats have lost their way, but it's always been a two-party system," Trump said, adding, "and I think starting a third party just adds to confusion. It really seems to have been developed, but three parties have never worked." Musk a vocal opponent of Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' Musk first floated the idea of forming a new political party after a public and bitter falling-out with Trump. Musk spent hundreds of millions of dollars to support Trump's re-election and led the so-called Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE in the Trump administration, which aimed to cut government spending, before their disagreements spilled into the open. He revived the idea of a new political party this week as US lawmakers approved Trump's sweeping tax and spending bill. Musk was among the legislation's most vocal critics and has pledged to establish a new party to oppose Republicans who supported the bill. On Friday, he posted a poll asking whether users "want independence from the two-party (some would say uniparty) system," drawing over 1.2 million responses, with more than 60% in favour of a new party. Musk faces a difficult legacy of third-party challenges A truly competitive third party could disrupt over a century of Democratic and Republican dominance at all levels of government. But Musk would not be the first person trying to establish a party to challenge their dominance. Former President Theodore Roosevelt came the closest in 1912, after splitting from the Republican party. He ran as Progressive Party candidate and won 27% of the popular vote and 88 electoral votes. More recently, Ross Perot, another billionaire, won 19% of the popular vote but no electoral votes in the 1992 presidential campaign as an independent and later formed the Reform Party. Musk's billions meet ballot reality Musk has already indicated that he is not aiming for an all-out win. Instead, his America Party would focus on flipping a couple of House and Senate seats by applying, "extremely concentrated force at a precise location on the battlefield." He believes that by targeting key races, the America Party could hold decisive votes on contentious legislation. A massive campaign war chest could give Musk an edge. Parties spend billions of dollars to get their candidates elected. According to donations watchdog OpenSecrets, nearly $16 billion (about €13.58 billion) was spent across the 2024 presidential and congressional races. Musk himself was the biggest donor in the 2023-24 election cycle. He gave more than $291 million to Republicans across all races. However, money is not the only factor that matters. In April, Musk provided million-dollar checks to some voters in Wisconsin ahead of an election for the state's Supreme Court.

Hamas: Ready to start ceasefire talks
Hamas: Ready to start ceasefire talks

Observer

time9 hours ago

  • Observer

Hamas: Ready to start ceasefire talks

GAZA CITY: Israel was considering its response on Saturday after Hamas said it was ready to start talks "immediately" on a US-sponsored proposal for a Gaza ceasefire. The security cabinet was expected to meet after the end of the Jewish sabbath at sundown to discuss Israel's next steps, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to head to Washington for talks on Monday with US President Donald Trump. Trump has been making a renewed push to end nearly 21 months of war in Gaza, where the civil defence agency said 35 people were killed in Israeli military operations on Saturday. "No decision has been made yet on that issue", an Israeli government official said when asked about Hamas's positive response to the latest ceasefire proposal. Hamas made its announcement late on Friday after holding consultations with other Palestinian factions. "The movement is ready to engage immediately and seriously in a cycle of negotiations on the mechanism to put in place" the US-backed truce proposal, the group said in a statement. Two Palestinian sources close to the discussions said that the proposal included a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and several bodies in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel. However, they said, the group was also demanding certain conditions for Israel's withdrawal, guarantees against a resumption of fighting during negotiations and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system. Hamas ally said it supported ceasefire talks, but demanded guarantees that Israel "will not resume its aggression" once hostages held in Gaza are freed. Trump, when asked about Hamas's response aboard Air Force One, said: "That's good. They haven't briefed me on it. We have to get it over with. We have to do something about Gaza". The war in Gaza began with Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked a massive Israeli offensive in the territory that aimed to destroy Hamas and bring home all the hostages seized by Palestinian militants. Two previous ceasefires mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States secured temporary halts in fighting and the return of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the October 2023 attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Efforts to broker a new truce have repeatedly failed, with the primary point of contention being Israel's rejection of Hamas's demand for guarantees that any new ceasefire will be lasting. Nearly 21 months of war have created dire humanitarian conditions for more than two million people in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has recently expanded its military operations. A US- and Israel-backed group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, took the lead in food distribution in the territory in late May, when Israel partially lifted a more than two-month blockade on aid deliveries. The group said two of its US staff were wounded in an "attack" on one of its aid centres in southern Gaza on Saturday. SEE ALSO P6

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store