Latest news with #Iran-made
UPI
6 days ago
- Politics
- UPI
Russia fires 136 drones at Ukraine ahead of Trump-NATO head meeting
A Ukrainian firefighter works to extinguish a fire following mass Russian strikes in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine on Saturday, July 12, 2025. Over Sunday night, Russia fired 136 drones at Ukraine. Photo by Ukrainian State Emergency Service/UPI | License Photo July 14 (UPI) -- Russia fired 136 drones at Ukraine, Kyiv's air force said Monday, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's meeting with NATO head Mark Rutte, where the two are expected to announce a new weapons deal for their besieged European ally. The overnight attack began at 6:39 p.m. Sunday, and consisted of four surface-to-air missiles launched from Russia's Kursk region and the drones from several areas of Russia. The drones were reportedly Iran-made and -supplied Shahed unmanned aerial vehicle systems. Sixty-one of the drones were shot down and another 47 were either lost from radar or suppressed by electronic warfare, Ukraine's air force said, adding that 28 hit targets in 10 locations. "The air attack was repelled by aviation, anti-aircraft missile forces, electronic warfare units and drone systems, and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Defense Forces," it said in a statement on Telegram. The attack came as Trump is set to meet with Rutte, the NATO secretary general, on Monday. Rutte is in Washington, D.C., for a two-day trip ending Tuesday. Trump told a press gaggle at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Sunday that he will send Ukraine Patriot air defense system munitions, with the bill to be covered by the European Union. He also mentioned his upcoming meeting with Rutte, stating they will be sending "various pieces of very sophisticated" military equipment to Ukraine "and they're going to pay us 100% for them." Trump's announcement comes as he has grown publicly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump campaigned on ending the war in 24 hours, but since returning to the White House in January has failed to bring about a cease-fire. He has pursued a cease-fire plan, but has been unable to get a commitment from the Russian leader. Earlier this month, Trump and Putin spoke over the phone, after which the American president told reporters that he "didn't make any progress" toward securing a cease-fire. To reporters on Sunday, he said, "Putin really surprised a lot of people. He talks nice and then he bombs everyone in the evening. There's a bit of a problem there. I don't like it."
Vox
23-06-2025
- Politics
- Vox
3 ways Americans could pay for Trump's war with Iran
is a senior correspondent at Vox. He covers a wide range of political and policy issues with a special focus on questions that internally divide the American left and right. Before coming to Vox in 2024, he wrote a column on politics and economics for New York Magazine. An Iranian cleric stands next to a scale model of an Iran-made surface-to-surface missile, which is displayed during an anti-Israeli protest at Palestine Square in downtown Tehran, Iran, on April 9, 2025. Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images President Donald Trump has framed his strikes on Iran as a costless triumph. The president is not asking Americans to accept sacrifices in service of destroying the Iranian nuclear program — only to applaud his already successful destruction of it. 'Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,' Trump declared Saturday night. 'Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.' From this precarious position, the Iranian leadership might conclude that it can ill afford an escalating conflict with the world's greatest military power. Perhaps, it will follow the same basic playbook it did following Trump's assasination of its military leader Qasem Soleimani in 2020: Back then, Iran responded with face-saving strikes on US military bases in Iraq — but ones that it heavily telegraphed, enabling American soldiers to take cover and retain their lives, which in turn allowed Trump to call things even and end the conflict. Iran's strike on a US base in Qatar on Monday could be interpreted as fitting this mold: The US said that it had advanced warning of the strike and that there were no American casualties. What's more, it is even possible that the Iranian regime could conclude that its nuclear program is more trouble than it's worth and sheepishly return to the bargaining table, now ready to accept more stringent restrictions on its freedom to enrich uranium or build ballistic missiles. But such rosy outcomes are far from certain. And if things do not transpire as Trump hopes, his war could impose significant costs on the American people — in terms of money, blood, and nuclear security. How Trump's war on Iran could impact the economy For Americans, the most widely felt consequences of Trump's war with Iran would likely be economic. Oil prices have climbed by more than 12 percent since the end of May, when Israel began threatening to strike Iran's nuclear facilities. An escalating US-Iran conflict could further elevate Americans' energy costs. The nightmare scenario here concerns the Strait of Hormuz, the world's only waterway connecting the Persian Gulf with the open ocean. Each day, about 20 million barrels of oil — or about 20 percent of the world's total supply — moves through the strait. Iran could plausibly choke off all shipping through the waterway if it wished to do so. And on Sunday, the Iranian Parliament reportedly approved such a course of action, although it remains up to the nation's Supreme National Security Council to enact a blockade. Were Iran to take that extraordinary measure, the price of oil could shoot up past $130 a barrel, according to industry analysts (as of this writing, a barrel is trading at $72). That would dramatically increase the costs of energy and transportation for US consumers. And since energy is an input into the production of more or less every good and service, a sustained blockade could push up prices more broadly. Faced with higher inflation, the Federal Reserve would likely scrap plans for cutting interest rates. In this scenario, Americans would see lower real wages and higher borrowing costs than they would have enjoyed in a world where Trump did not bomb Iran. It's worth saying that a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is unlikely. Were Iran to pursue such a policy, it would effectively be sabotaging its own economy, which is heavily dependent on exporting oil via the waterway. Nevertheless, the threat of disrupting shipping through the strait is the regime's greatest point of leverage over other world powers. Iran could also disrupt global commerce in more modest ways. Tehran is allied with Yemen's Houthi militia, which is already threatening to recommence its attacks on US ships in the Red Sea. Any disruption to Red Sea trade could increase global shipping costs, which would eventually bleed into US consumer prices. Alternatively, Iran could strike oil and gas infrastructure in Middle Eastern countries allied with the United States. In a 2019 drone attack allegedly backed by Tehran, the Houthis bombed two major oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, temporarily cutting the country's oil production in half and spiking crude prices. At a moment when the president's tariffs are already nudging up the cost of imports, any war-related disruptions to global trade could prove painful for American households. Trump's attack has put American soldiers in harm's way As Monday's attack on US troops in Qatar demonstrated, Americans stationed in the Middle East face a far graver threat than more expensive gasoline. More than 40,000 US soldiers are serving on bases and warships in the region, well within reach of Iranian missiles. Trump's bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities represented a far broader and more destructive attack than his strike against Soleimani five years ago. It's reasonable to fear that Tehran's response will be proportionally more severe, and that Monday's strikes at Qatar represent only the beginning of its retaliation. At least, this is what the regime is telling Americans to expect. 'Any country in the region or elsewhere that is used by American forces to strike Iran will be considered a legitimate target for our armed forces,' Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Saturday. 'America has attacked the heart of the Islamic world and must await irreparable consequences.' Some of these 'consequences' could transpire on American soil. Although Iran's immediate targets will likely lie close to home. Years after the Soleimani strike, Iran allegedly orchestrated failed assassination attempts against former national security adviser John Bolton, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Donald Trump. According to US officials who spoke with NBC News, Iran warned Trump at this year's G7 Summit that it could respond to an American strike on its nuclear facilities by perpetrating terrorist attacks within the United States. The regime claimed to have sleeper cells in America ready and waiting to commit such violence. Trump may have made an Iranian nuclear weapon more likely Trump's war with Iran may risk making all Americans poorer while getting some of us killed. But in his administration's ostensible view, these potential harms pale in comparison to the threat posed by Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon — a threat that Saturday's strikes greatly mitigated. It is not obvious how much Americans actually have at stake in preventing Iran from developing atomic weapons. No serious analyst believes that the Iranian regime is suicidal. Tehran is not going to order a nuclear first strike against the United States or any other country. Rather, it almost certainly sees nuclear weapons primarily as a deterrent against both foreign intervention and domestic challenges to its authoritarian regime. Nevertheless, all else equal, Americans have an interest in preventing nuclear proliferation. Were Iran to acquire an atomic weapon, Saudi Arabia would be liable to pursue its own. And a nuclear arms race in the Middle East would increase the tail risk of a future atomic catastrophe. And yet, it is possible that Trump's strikes on Iran have actually made that nation's acquisition of a nuclear weapon more likely. Before Saturday's bombings, Iran was engaged in negotiations over its nuclear program without the United States. And Tehran had previously reached an agreement to limit its enrichment of uranium in 2015, a nuclear deal that Trump tore up during his first term in office. Now, all diplomacy over Iran's nuclear program appears dead. And Tehran may see a nuclear weapon as more indispensable for its security than ever before. After all, the regime's conventional military defenses have proven grossly inadequate to deter or defeat Israeli and American incursions. Already, Iranian officials are signalling that the nation will withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a move that would mean an end to the nation's cooperation with United Nations inspections of its uranium enrichment. At present, the UN's nuclear watchdog says it is uncertain about where Iran is storing the highly enriched uranium it has already produced. Tehran claims that, before Trump's strikes, it had moved its uranium stockpiles out of the three sites that he targeted. American and Israeli bombing has surely undermined Iran's capacity to produce weapons-grade uranium. Tehran has lost some of its top nuclear scientists and suffered massive damage to its enrichment facilities. But Iran retains both the technical know-how and raw materials necessary for building an atomic bomb. And the world may have now lost visibility into its nuclear activities.
Korea Herald
22-06-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Ukraine received at least 20 bodies of Russian soldiers in recent exchanges, Zelenskyy says
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's president said that Russia repatriated at least 20 of its own dead soldiers in recent exchanges with Ukraine, describing it as a result of Moscow's disorganization in carrying out large swaps of wounded POWs and remains of troops. Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that an Israeli citizen was among the dead Ukraine had received in recent exchanges. He spoke to journalists on Friday but his comments were embargoed until Saturday. Officials did not disclose the identities of the bodies. "They threw the corpses of their citizens at us. This is their attitude toward war, toward their soldiers. And this is already documented. Sometimes these bodies even have Russian passports," he said. He said the Russian side insisted the dead were all Ukrainians. Journalists were shown a Russian passport and ID belonging to one of the 20 dead Russians. According to the document, the man came from the Moscow region. The exchanges of the dead and wounded soldiers are the only tangible result of direct peace talks in Istanbul. In June, Ukraine and Russia agreed to exchange the bodies of fallen soldiers in a 6,000-for-6,000 format during the second round of negotiations. Ukraine was concerned that the number was too high and that the sides did not have enough time for forensic examinations and checking the identities of the dead. Zelenskyy said he suspected Russia's plan was to play along with peace talks to appease the US and stave off more sanctions but without ending the war that Russian President Vladimir Putin believes he is winning. He said that because of this, Ukraine would be "in a really difficult situation" of deciding whether to continue the talks in Istanbul. Zelenskyy said Ukraine was against Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, because of its military partnership with Russia, but stopped short of expressing explicit support for Israel's strikes. He repeated that the new war in the Middle East will affect Ukraine indirectly. "Iran gave the Russians everything to kill us. They gave them martyrs, they gave them missiles, and they gave them licenses. The fact that their production capacities have now become weaker is (a) positive for us. But at certain points it may already be too late," he said, also citing Russia's military cooperation with North Korea. Russia has modified Iran-made Shahed drones and has used them, often hundreds at a time, in barrages targeting Ukraine. Zelenskyy said 39 Russian companies were involved in the production of Oreshnik, an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. He said 21 of them are not under sanctions. "And therefore it is absolutely incomprehensible why sanctions should not be imposed urgently," he said. Russia attacked Ukraine with the missile in November, marking a serious escalation in the war and Russia's capabilities. Zelenskyy dispelled reports that Patriots air defense systems were destroyed in recent Russian drone and missile barrages. He also said Ukraine has started using domestically produced interceptors to shoot down Shahed drones and is seeking financing from Germany to ramp up the weapon's production. He added he sent signals to Western partners asking them to give up 0.25 percent of their GDP to support Ukraine's local defense industry. Zelenskyy said it's likely he would attend a NATO summit later this week, but that he would make a final decision on Monday. Though Zelenskyy did not meet Trump who had left early the Group of Seven summit in Canada last week, Ukraine's Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and the head of the president's office, Andriy Yermak, gave US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent a list of weapons Ukraine is hoping to purchase. "We will wait feedback," Zelenskyy said, adding the package of weapons included Patriot systems. The weapons package would be among the topics Zelenskyy plans to discuss with Trump in their next meeting, he added, as well as the issue of sanctions. "Frankly, it seems to me that we need to talk about a new breath in the diplomatic track," he said. "We need greater certainty and greater pressure from the world on Putin."
The Hindu
21-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Ukraine received at least 20 bodies of Russian soldiers in recent exchanges: Zelenskyy
Ukraine's President said that Russia repatriated at least 20 of its own dead soldiers in recent exchanges with Ukraine, describing it as a result of Moscow's disorganisation in carrying out large swaps of wounded POWs and remains of troops. Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that an Israeli citizen was among the dead Ukraine had received in recent exchanges. He spoke to journalists on Friday but his comments were embargoed until Saturday (June 21, 2025). Officials did not disclose the identities of the bodies. 'They threw the corpses of their citizens at us. This is their attitude toward war, toward their soldiers. And this is already documented. Sometimes these bodies even have Russian passports,' he said. He said the Russian side insisted the dead were all Ukrainians. Journalists were shown a Russian passport and ID belonging to one of the 20 dead Russians. According to the document, the man came from the Moscow region. The exchanges of the dead and wounded soldiers are the only tangible result of direct peace talks in Istanbul. In June, Ukraine and Russia agreed to exchange the bodies of fallen soldiers in a 6,000-for-6,000 format during the second round of negotiations. Ukraine was concerned that the number was too high and that the sides did not have enough time for forensic examinations and checking the identities of the dead. Mr. Zelenskyy said he suspected Russia's plan was to play along with peace talks to appease the U.S. and stave off more sanctions but without ending the war that Russian President Vladimir Putin believes he is winning. He said that because of this, Ukraine would be 'in a really difficult situation' of deciding whether to continue the talks in Istanbul. Mr. Zelenskyy said Ukraine was against Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, because of its military partnership with Russia, but stopped short of expressing explicit support for Israel's strikes. He repeated that the new war in the Middle East will affect Ukraine indirectly. 'Iran gave the Russians everything to kill us. They gave them martyrs, they gave them missiles, and they gave them licenses. The fact that their production capacities have now become weaker is (a) positive for us. But at certain points it may already be too late,' he said, also citing Russia's military cooperation with North Korea. Russia has modified Iran-made Shahed drones and has used them, often hundreds at a time, in barrages targeting Ukraine. Mr. Zelenskyy said 39 Russian companies were involved in the production of Oreshnik, an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. He said 21 of them are not under sanctions. 'And therefore it is absolutely incomprehensible why sanctions should not be imposed urgently,' he said. Russia attacked Ukraine with the missile in November, marking a serious escalation in the war and Russia's capabilities. Mr. Zelenskyy dispelled reports that Patriots air defence systems were destroyed in recent Russian drone and missile barrages. He also said Ukraine has started using domestically produced interceptors to shoot down Shahed drones and is seeking financing from Germany to ramp up the weapon's production. He added he sent signals to Western partners asking them to give up 0.25% of their GDP to support Ukraine's local defence industry. Mr. Zelenskyy said it's likely he would attend a NATO summit later this week, but that he would make a final decision on Monday. Though Zelenskyy did not meet Trump who had left early the Group of Seven summit in Canada last week, Ukraine's Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and the head of the president's office, Andriy Yermak, gave U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent a list of weapons Ukraine is hoping to purchase. 'We will wait feedback,' Mr. Zelenskyy said, adding the package of weapons included Patriot systems. The weapons package would be among the topics Mr. Zelenskyy plans to discuss with Trump in their next meeting, he added, as well as the issue of sanctions. 'Frankly, it seems to me that we need to talk about a new breath in the diplomatic track,' he said. 'We need greater certainty and greater pressure from the world on Putin.'
21-06-2025
- Politics
Ukraine received at least 20 bodies of Russian soldiers in recent exchanges, Zelenskyy says
KYIV, Ukraine -- Ukraine's president said that Russia repatriated at least 20 of its own dead soldiers in recent exchanges with Ukraine, describing it as a result of Moscow's disorganization in carrying out large swaps of wounded POWs and remains of troops. Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that an Israeli citizen was among the dead Ukraine had received in recent exchanges. He spoke to journalists on Friday but his comments were embargoed until Saturday. Officials did not disclose the identities of the bodies. 'They threw the corpses of their citizens at us. This is their attitude toward war, toward their soldiers. And this is already documented. Sometimes these bodies even have Russian passports,' he said. He said the Russian side insisted the dead were all Ukrainians. Journalists were shown a Russian passport and ID belonging to one of the 20 dead Russians. According to the document, the man came from the Moscow region. The exchanges of the dead and wounded soldiers are the only tangible result of direct peace talks in Istanbul. In June, Ukraine and Russia agreed to exchange the bodies of fallen soldiers in a 6,000-for-6,000 format during the second round of negotiations. Ukraine was concerned that the number was too high and that the sides did not have enough time for forensic examinations and checking the identities of the dead. Zelenskyy said he suspected Russia's plan was to play along with peace talks to appease the U.S. and stave off more sanctions but without ending the war that Russian President Vladimir Putin believes he is winning. He said that because of this, Ukraine would be 'in a really difficult situation' of deciding whether to continue the talks in Istanbul. Zelenskyy said Ukraine was against Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, because of its military partnership with Russia, but stopped short of expressing explicit support for Israel's strikes. He repeated that the new war in the Middle East will affect Ukraine indirectly. 'Iran gave the Russians everything to kill us. They gave them martyrs, they gave them missiles, and they gave them licenses. The fact that their production capacities have now become weaker is (a) positive for us. But at certain points it may already be too late,' he said, also citing Russia's military cooperation with North Korea. Russia has modified Iran-made Shahed drones and has used them, often hundreds at a time, in barrages targeting Ukraine. Zelenskyy said 39 Russian companies were involved in the production of Oreshnik, an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. He said 21 of them are not under sanctions. 'And therefore it is absolutely incomprehensible why sanctions should not be imposed urgently,' he said. Russia attacked Ukraine with the missile in November, marking a serious escalation in the war and Russia's capabilities. Zelenskyy dispelled reports that Patriots air defense systems were destroyed in recent Russian drone and missile barrages. He also said Ukraine has started using domestically produced interceptors to shoot down Shahed drones and is seeking financing from Germany to ramp up the weapon's production. He added he sent signals to Western partners asking them to give up 0.25% of their GDP to support Ukraine's local defense industry. Zelenskyy said it's likely he would attend a NATO summit later this week, but that he would make a final decision on Monday. Though Zelenskyy did not meet Trump who had left early the Group of Seven summit in Canada last week, Ukraine's Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and the head of the president's office, Andriy Yermak, gave U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent a list of weapons Ukraine is hoping to purchase. 'We will wait feedback,' Zelenskyy said, adding the package of weapons included Patriot systems. The weapons package would be among the topics Zelenskyy plans to discuss with Trump in their next meeting, he added, as well as the issue of sanctions. 'Frankly, it seems to me that we need to talk about a new breath in the diplomatic track,' he said. 'We need greater certainty and greater pressure from the world on Putin.'
