1 month ago
7
Russia has launched hundreds of drones at Ukraine in the biggest overnight drone bombardment of the war so far, Kyiv has said.
Ukraine’s air force reported 479 drones and 20 missiles of various types were fired at different parts of Ukraine, focusing on central and western parts of the country.
Ukrainian air defences claimed to have destroyed 277 drones and 19 missiles mid-flight, adding that only 10 drones or missiles hit their target. President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on X that “Russia only truly understands one language — the language of force.”
Ahead of the G7 Summit in Canada and the NATO Summit on the Netherlands, he said Ukraine was doing everything to ensure the summits were “not hollow.” He continued that force “is precisely the language that must become the working one across all formats of international engagement in the coming months.”
Polish and allied aircraft were activated earlier on Monday to ensure the safety of airspace after Russia launched air strikes targeting western Ukraine near the border with Poland, the Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces said.
"The steps taken are aimed at ensuring security in the regions bordering the areas at risk," the Command said on X.
Ranked: Russia's biggest attacks of the war so far
According to Ukraine’s daily air force updates, these are some of the biggest attacks of the war so far:
- 499 drones and missiles reported 9 June
- 479 drones and missiles reported 1 June
- 452 drones and missiles reported 6 June
- 367 drones and missiles reported 25 May
- 364 drones and missiles reported 26 May
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 12:20
WATCH: Zelensky says Russia is ‘ignoring all peace proposals’
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 12:00
Ukraine's drone attack halts work at electronic plant in Chuvashia, Russia says
A Ukrainian drone strike, among the deepest into Russia in more than three years of the war, forced a temporary suspension of production at an electronics company in the Volga river region of Chuvashia, the head of the region said on Monday.
The strike, some 1,300 km (800 miles) from the border with Ukraine, caused no casualties, Chuvashia Governor Oleg Nikolayev said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.
But "the responsible decision was made to temporarily suspend production to ensure the safety of employees" of the VNIIR enterprise where the drones fell, Nikolayev said.
It was not immediately clear whether the drones caused any damage. Nikolayev said that another drone fell onto some fields in the area of the capital of the region, Cheboksary.
Ukraine's military said in a Telegram statement on Monday that "at least two drones" hit the VNIIR facility that specialises in manufacturing navigation equipment used in attack drones, guided aerial bombs and high-precision weapons.
The Ukrainian military said the drone attack sparked a large -scale fire at the VNIIR plant.
Reports about the attack could not be independently verified.
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 11:40
Mapped: Regions targeted in Russia's overnight assault on Ukraine
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 11:30
Russia is already at war with Britain and we can no longer rely on Trump, defence adviser warns
Britain is already at war with Russia, one of the authors of the government’s strategic defence review has warned, while arguing that the UK can no longer rely on the US as a dependable ally.
Dr Fiona Hill, who served as the White House’s chief Russia adviser during Donald Trump‘s first term, said the UK is in “pretty big trouble”, warning that the country is stuck between “the rock” of Russia aggression and the “hard place” of an increasingly unreliable US under Mr Trump.
Political Correspondent Millie Cooke reports:
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 11:20
In pictures: Russia repatriates 1,200 bodies of Ukrainian servicemen in lorries on Ukraine-Belarus border
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 11:00
Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk invites Trump to ‘live in my house’ to experience Russian war
Oleksandr Usyk has issued an invitation to Donald Trump, urging the US president to spend a week at his home in Ukraine to gain an insight into the ongoing conflict.
Trump had previously asserted he could resolve the war "in 24 hours" upon assuming office. However, more than three years after Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion, a resolution remains elusive.
Usyk, a former undisputed world champion in both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions, conveyed a grim depiction of life in Ukraine, emphasising the necessity for Trump to develop a more profound understanding of the situation.
“I advise American president Donald Trump to go to Ukraine and live in my house for one week, only one week,” Usyk, the WBC, WBA and WBO heavyweight champion, told the BBC.
Albert Toth reports:
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 10:40
Putin approves big revamp of Russia's navy, Kremlin aide says
Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a new naval strategy which aims to fully restore Russia's position as one of the world's leading maritime powers, Kremlin aide Nikolai Patrushev said in an interview published on Monday.
Russia has the world's third most powerful navy after China and the United States, according to most public rankings, though the navy has suffered a series of high-profile losses in the Ukraine war.
Patrushev said the new naval strategy - entitled "The Strategy for the Development of the Russian Navy up to 2050" - had been approved by Putin in late May.
"Russia's position as one of the world's greatest maritime powers is gradually recovering," Patrushev told the Argumenti i Fakti newspaper in an interview.
"It is impossible to carry out such work without a long-term vision of the scenarios for the development of the situation in the oceans, the evolution of challenges and threats, and, of course, without defining the goals and objectives facing the Russian Navy," Patrushev said.
Patrushev gave no further details about the strategy, though Russia is believed to have ramped up spending on defence and security to Cold War levels as a percentage of gross domestic product.
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 10:20
Ukraine's military says it struck two planes at Russia's Savasleyka airfield overnight
The Ukrainian military said on Monday that it had struck two planes at Russia's Savasleyka airfield overnight.
"According to preliminary information, two enemy aircraft (presumably MiG-31 and Su-30/34 aircraft) were struck," the military said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 10:00
Ukraine to do 'everything possible to secure prisoners of war' - Zelensky
Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine will do “everything possible to secure the release of our POWs and the return of our fallen warriors.”
He said that Russia had yet to provide a full list of exchange for over one thousand people.
“The full lists from Russia for the exchange of over one thousand people, as agreed in Istanbul, have still not been provided.
“In typical fashion, the Russian side is once again trying to turn even these matters into a dirty political and information game.
“For our part, we are doing everything we can to keep the exchange track moving forward.”
Bryony Gooch9 June 2025 09:30
