A snapshot of recent news from sources around the world on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Political Developments
President Trump unexpectedly declared that Ukraine, with NATO support, could force Russia to retreat. However, this statement appears to be driven by his frustration with the conflict and his failed attempts at brokering a peace deal, leading to a desire to distance himself from the situation.
In response to President Trump’s sudden declaration that Ukraine could win the war and that Russia was a “paper tiger,” the Kremlin firmly pushed back. Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov asserted that Russia has “no alternative” but to continue its offensive to achieve its goals and ensure the country’s interests.
United States and Canadian fighter jets were scrambled to intercept four Russian military planes flying off the coast of Alaska, a frequent occurrence that has raised concerns about Russian incursions into NATO airspace. These events follow several similar incidents, including Russian jets flying near Latvian airspace and three Russian fighter jets entering Estonian airspace.
The Kremlin refused to comment on a Bloomberg report that European diplomats had warned Russia that NATO would shoot down any Russian aircraft violating its airspace. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov called the report “irresponsible” and denied that Russian military planes had violated anyone’s airspace, despite multiple recent incidents reported by NATO members. Nevertheless, seven E.U. countries held dialogue this week with Ukraine and the European Commission about setting up counter-drone defenses.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Axios in an interview published this week that he does not intend to continue leading Ukraine after a ceasefire has been reached, pledging that Ukraine will resume holding elections once the war has been resolved.
Military Assistance to Ukraine
Kyiv and Washington plan to hold talks soon on the creation of a joint venture for arms production, Ukrainian officials told Reuters this week. The development follows a positive meeting between Zelensky and Trump at the U.N. General Assembly.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said this week that Europe will continue to foot the bill for the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), an initiative rolled out this year under the Trump administration through which European countries are buying American arms to supply Kyiv.
But with tight funding, Europe is looking at available means to continue providing support. Recently, governments on the continent have warmed up to the idea of Russian securities frozen in the European financial system. Europe is already utilizing the dividends and interest income on those assets to pay for some arms for Ukraine, but the assets themselves have remained in limbo. This week, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz threw his support behind the growing calls for confiscating the securities, which are worth somewhere around EUR200 billion.
Battlefield Updates
Ukraine’s Armed Forces commander, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, provided an update on the military situation this week, stating that the line of contact with Russian forces has grown over the past year. The frontlines against Russia now stretch more than 1,250 kilometers in total, he said, adding that Russia has been employing a ‘thousand cuts’ strategy, launching small-scale infantry raids on a constant basis to disrupt Ukrainian positions and supply lines.
A massive Russian aerial attack on Ukraine killed at least three people and injured more than 30, with one missile directly hitting a residential building. In a separate incident, Russia reported that a Ukrainian drone attack on its Samara region killed four people, with Ukraine’s military confirming they struck a major oil refinery there.
In another attack hitting Russian energy infrastructure, Ukrainian drones struck a refinery in Russia’s Krasnodar region.
This week, Ukraine showed off a new underwater drone, dubbed TOLOKA, that can be used for strike missions. The UUV has been under development for several years and comes in three variants that differ by size.
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