Latest news with #aerialattack
CNA
3 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
Kremlin warns of long road ahead for Ukraine peace talks as Kyiv hit by massive strikes
KYIV: Russia on Monday (July 21) said a peace agreement with Ukraine remained distant, with the two sides holding 'diametrically opposed' positions, even as Moscow launched one of its largest aerial attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had proposed new talks over the weekend, 'a lot of diplomatic work lies ahead.' 'We now need to exchange views and hold negotiations on these two drafts, which are currently diametrically opposed,' Peskov said. 'A date is being discussed, but nothing is final yet.' Ukraine and Russia last held direct talks more than a month ago in Istanbul, following pressure from US President Donald Trump to negotiate after his return to the White House in January. Those meetings yielded only prisoner exchanges, with momentum toward a ceasefire stalling since. DRONE STRIKES AND DEMANDS As diplomatic efforts floundered, Russia fired a wave of 450 drones and missiles across Ukraine overnight, including at least six strikes on the capital. Ukraine's air force said the barrage included hypersonic missiles and was among the largest to date. Two people were killed, and dozens of buildings were damaged in Kyiv, including a supermarket, residential blocks, and a nursery. A metro station used as a civilian shelter was also hit, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said during a surprise visit to the capital. 'The shelters themselves are no longer entirely safe,' Barrot said while inspecting the damage. Zelensky called the attack 'an assault on humanity,' and said the strikes demonstrated that Moscow was not serious about ending the war. TERMS REMAIN STICKING POINT Russia's last public negotiating position included demands that Ukrainian forces withdraw from four regions claimed by Moscow in 2022 and that Kyiv reject all Western military support. Ukraine has rejected those conditions, calling them an ultimatum. Zelensky instead urged an immediate ceasefire and reaffirmed Ukraine's right to pursue NATO and EU membership. 'Negotiations may take place from Tuesday to Thursday, most likely in Istanbul,' a senior Ukrainian official told AFP, though Russia said no final agreement on dates had been reached. Trump, who has grown frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin, gave Moscow a 50-day deadline last week to reach a deal or face sweeping US sanctions. Barrot met Zelensky on Monday to discuss Ukraine's air defence needs, weapons production and EU sanctions on Russia. The visit, amid ongoing attacks, was intended as a show of support for Kyiv's resistance. Russia's invasion, now in its third year, has killed tens of thousands, displaced millions, and left large parts of eastern Ukraine in ruins.
Al Bawaba
3 days ago
- Politics
- Al Bawaba
Houthis strike Israeli sites in retaliation for Hodeida attack, vow escalation
ALBAWABA- The Houthi-led Yemeni Armed Forces announced on Sunday, July 21, the launch of a new aerial attack targeting multiple sites in Israel, in retaliation for recent Israeli strikes on Yemen's Hodeida port and in solidarity with the people of Gaza. Also Read Israel struck Hodeida port in Yemen According to a statement by Houthi military spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree, the operation targeted five Israeli locations, including Ben Gurion Airport, Ramon Airport, and the port of Umm al-Rashrash, using five drones. Saree claimed the strikes achieved their objectives 'successfully, by the grace of God.' بيان القوات المسلحة اليمنية بشأن تنفيذ عملية عسكرية نوعية استهدفت خمسة أهداف للعدو الصهيوني في فلسطين المحتلة منها مطارا اللد ورامون وميناء أم الرشراش، وذلك بخمس طائرات مسيرة وقد حققت العملية أهدافها بنجاح بفضل الله. بتاريخ21_7_2025م — العميد يحيى سريع (@army21yemen) July 21, 2025 The spokesperson described the operation as both a response to what he called 'Israeli aggression on Yemen' and a contribution to the wider resistance in support of Palestinians in Gaza. Saree further warned that attacks would intensify if Israeli military actions against Yemen continue or if the blockade on Gaza is not lifted. He stressed that these strikes are part of a broader deterrence strategy. The escalation comes just hours after the Israeli military announced it had conducted airstrikes on the Red Sea port city of Hodeida. According to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, the strikes were aimed at dismantling 'terror infrastructure' used by the Houthi forces and to prevent any attempt to rebuild previously destroyed military assets. The Israeli military stated it had hit military infrastructure and naval vessels used by the Houthis, reinforcing what it described as a firm policy to curb regional threats emanating from Yemen. This latest exchange marks a significant intensification of the cross-regional conflict, linking the ongoing war in Gaza to retaliatory operations by actors across the Middle East, including the Houthis in Yemen, who have increasingly positioned themselves as part of a broader axis resisting western-backed Israeli military actions.
BBC News
09-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Ukraine suffers heaviest attack after Trump criticises Putin
President Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukraine has been hit by the biggest ever aerial attack from Russia - 728 drones and 13 cruise or ballistic missiles hit cities around the country in multiple condemned the "telling attack", adding: "It comes precisely at a time when so many efforts have been made to achieve peace, to establish a ceasefire, and yet only Russia continues to rebuff them all."The overnight strike came after President Donald Trump said the US would send more weapons to Kyiv - a reversal of last week's suspension which US media said Trump had not known Tuesday, the US leader expressed growing frustration at Russian President Vladimir Putin's "bullshit". "He's very nice to us all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless," Trump spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow was "pretty calm about this. Trump's way of talking is generally quite harsh, the phrases he uses."The two leaders have been in regular contact but this has so far failed to translate into tangible steps towards a ceasefire in Ukraine - something Trump once said he would be able to achieve in a day. Last week, following a phone call with the Russian president, Trump said he was "very unhappy"."He wants to go all the way, just keep killing people, it's no good," Trump said of criticism came even as the Trump administration announced a suspension of military aid to Ukraine, reportedly authorised by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Elbridge Colby, the under-secretary of defence for by reporters on Tuesday who had taken the decision, Trump - sitting right next to Hegseth - replied: "I don't know. Why don't you tell me?"The reversal of the decision may now mean that 10 Patriot missiles may be sent to Ukraine, according to US outlet Axios. Kyiv relies on the interceptors to try to counter Russia's missile and drone attacks, which continue to grow in intensity and the east of the country and Kyiv come under fire on a regular basis, no corner of Ukraine has been spared by Russian city of Lutsk - which lies 90km (56 miles) from the Polish border and is a transit hub for military and humanitarian aid - suffered the brunt of Tuesday's overnight attack. Explosions were also reported in the western cities of Lviv and rounds of ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine took place earlier this year but no other meetings have so far been scheduled - and neither Moscow nor Kyiv appear optimistic that diplomacy will solve the conflict, which was sparked by Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Meanwhile, Russia's summer offensive in eastern Ukraine grinds on. "We are moving forward," said Peskov on Wednesday. "Each new day the Ukrainians have to accept the new realities."
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia launches the biggest aerial attack since the start of the war, Ukraine says
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched its biggest aerial attack against Ukraine overnight, a Ukrainian official said Sunday, part of an escalating bombing campaign that has further dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the 3-year-old war. Russia fired a total of 537 aerial weapons at Ukraine, including 477 drones and decoys and 60 missiles, Ukraine's air force said. Of these, 249 were shot down and 226 were lost, likely having been electronically jammed. The onslaught was 'the most massive airstrike' on the country since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, taking into account both drones and various types of missiles, Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine's air force, told The Associated Press. The attack targeted several regions, including western Ukraine, far from the front line. Poland and allied countries scrambled aircraft to ensure the safety of Polish airspace, the country's air force said. Three people were killed in each of the drone strikes in the Kherson, Kharkiv and the Dnipropetrovsk regions, according to the three governors. Another person was killed by an airstrike in Kostyantynivka, local officials said. In addition to aerial attacks, a man died when Russian troops shelled the city of Kherson, and the body of a 70-year-old woman was found under the rubble of a nine-story building hit by Russian shelling in the Zaporizhzhia region. In the far-western Lviv region, a large fire broke out at an industrial facility in the city of Drohobych following a drone attack that also cut electricity to parts of the city. Ukraine's air force said one of its F-16 warplanes supplied by its Western partners crashed after sustaining damage while shooting down air targets. The pilot died. Russia has recently been improving its drone technology as well as its tactics, striking Ukraine with increasing success. Russian troops reportedly advance in Donetsk Russia's Defense Ministry said it had shot down three Ukrainian drones overnight. Two people were wounded in another Ukrainian drone attack on the city of Bryansk in western Russia, regional Gov. Alexander Bogomaz said Sunday morning, adding that seven more Ukrainian drones had been shot down over the region. Meanwhile, Russia claimed Sunday that it had taken control of the village of Novoukrainka in the partially Russian-occupied Donetsk region. Russian forces have been slowly grinding forward at some points on the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, though their incremental gains have been costly in terms of troop casualties and damaged armor. In other developments, Russia's foreign intelligence chief, Sergei Naryshkin, said he had spoken on the phone with his U.S. counterpart, CIA Director John Ratcliffe. 'I had a phone call with my American counterpart and we reserved for each other the possibility to call at any time and discuss issues of interest to us,' Naryshkin said in remarks to state TV reporter Pavel Zarubin, who posted them on his Telegram channel on Sunday. Sunday's attacks follow Russian President Vladimir Putin's comments two days ago that Moscow is ready for a fresh round of direct peace talks in Istanbul. Two recent rounds of talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul were brief and yielded no progress on reaching a settlement. Zelenskyy withdraws Ukraine from an anti-land mine pact Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree to withdraw Ukraine from the Ottawa Convention banning antipersonnel land mines, a Ukrainian lawmaker said Sunday. The move follows similar recent steps by the Baltic States and Poland. The 1997 treaty prohibits the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of antipersonnel land mines in an effort to protect civilians from explosives that can maim or kill long after fighting ends. 'This is a step that the reality of war has long demanded,' said Roman Kostenko, secretary of the Ukrainian parliamentary committee on national security, defense and intelligence. He noted that Russia is not a party to the convention "and is massively using mines against our military and civilians.' ___ Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at
The Independent
30-06-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Moscow launches largest missile and drone attack on Ukraine since start of war
Russia has launched its biggest aerial attack on Ukraine of the war so far as president Volodymyr Zelensky has once again called for more pressure on Putin. Some 477 drones were launched with 60 missiles of various types across Ukraine, where air raid alerts sounded all night long, the president said, as he accused Russia of 'targeting everything that sustains life.' A child was injured as a residential building in Smila, central Ukraine, was struck and Zelensky mourned an F-16 pilot, Maksym Ustymenko, who died after destroying seven aerial targets. An investigation has been launched into the circumstances of his death. ' Moscow will not stop as long as it has the capability to launch massive strikes. Just this week alone, there have been more than 114 missiles, over 1,270 drones, and nearly 1,100 glide bombs,' Zelensky said in his statement. 'Putin long ago decided he would keep waging war, despite the world's calls for peace. This war must be brought to an end — pressure on the aggressor is needed, and so is protection. Protection from ballistic and other missiles, from drones, and from terror.'
