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THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Dutch and German intelligence agencies have gathered evidence of widespread Russian use of banned chemical weapons in Ukraine, including dropping a choking agent from drones to drive soldiers out of trenches so they can be shot, they said on Friday. Dutch Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans called for tougher sanctions against Moscow. "The main conclusion is that we can confirm Russia is intensifying its use of chemical weapons," he told Reuters. "This intensification is concerning because it is part of a trend we have been observing for several years now, where Russia's use of chemical weapons in...

The Russian Ministry of Defence stated on Saturday that its armed forces destroyed two air defense platforms and two radar stations of the Patriot system. "Operational-tactical aviation, attack unmanned aerial vehicles, missile forces and artillery of groups of troops of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation destroyed two launchers and two AN/MPQ-65 radar stations of the [United States] US-made Patriot anti-aircraft missile system," the ministry wrote on Telegram. It also shared that the Russian military's air defense systems managed to down a US-made HIMARS multiple launch rocket system, a Neptune long-range guided missile, three guided aerial bombs and 371...

Russia's richest people received record dividends in 2024, according to Forbes Russia. The top earner was Alexei Mordashov, who received 201.8 billion rubles in dividends from Severstal. Russia's richest people collected record-high dividends in 2024, even as the country's economy showed clear signs of slowing, according to Forbes Russia on Thursday. Total dividend payouts to the 50 wealthiest Russians reached a record 1.769 trillion rubles, or $22.3 billion, according to the publication. That's a sharp increase from each of the previous two years, when less than 1.4 trillion rubles were distributed. The top earner was steel magnate Alexei Mordashov and...

On July 3, Putin and Trump held a phone conversationWASHINGTON, July 5. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump acknowledged that Russia has been able to cope with the sanctions imposed on it and called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin a professional. "We talk about sanctions a lot," the US leader told reporters, recalling his July 3 telephone conversation with Putin. "He has been able to manage sanctions," Trump said, referring to his Russian counterpart. "But these are pretty binding sanctions," he added, referring to the possibility of new anti-Russian restrictions in connection with the conflict in Ukraine. "Now we talk about...

Mr. President, we know you understand that the primary obstacle to peace in Ukraine is Russia’s aggression. You said you were “disappointed” in the conversation with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, and that you “don’t think he’s looking to stop.” Putin again insisted he was unwilling to commit to a ceasefire until the “root causes” of the conflict were addressed. For Vlad, the “root cause” is the existence of Ukraine. He followed your call with the largest drone and missile strike of the war, killing at least one. So why, Mr. President, is your administration punishing Ukraine? The Pentagon has halted...

US President Donald Trump voiced strong criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin, expressing deep frustration over their latest conversation about the ongoing war in Ukraine. Calling the situation “no good", Donald Trump said he was “very unhappy" with the call, as he accused Vladimir Putin of wanting to “keep killing people." “It’s a very tough situation," Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding, “He wants to go all the way- just keep killing people. It’s no good." The US president also suggested that additional US sanctions on Moscow could be imminent, saying sanctions were a recurring topic in...

US President Donald Trump said Ukraine would need Patriot missiles for its defence, after speaking to President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 4, and voiced frustration over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s failure to end the fighting. Mr Trump told reporters on board Air Force One that he had a good call with Mr Zelensky, repeating that he was “very unhappy” about his call with Mr Putin a day earlier, given what he called the Russian leader’s refusal to work on a ceasefire. When asked whether the US would agree to supply more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, as requested by Mr Zelensky,...

Zelensky described the conversation with the US leader as "very important and useful"MOSCOW, July 4. /TASS/. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky discussed air defense and the situation on the front line with US President Donald Trump amid reports about a pause in Washington’s weapons supplies to Kiev. "We discussed air defense opportunities and agreed to work toward increasing the protection of the skies. And we agreed to hold a corresponding meeting between our teams," Zelensky wrote on his Telegram channel following a phone call with Trump. Zelensky described the conversation as "very important and useful" and said that Trump "is very well...

President Trump expressed dismay with Russian strongman Vladimir Putin early Friday, admitting that the Kremlin tyrant has no interest in stopping his bloody war on neighboring Ukraine anytime soon. “I’m very disappointed with the conversation I had [Thursday] with President Putin because I don’t think he’s there. I’m just saying, I don’t think he’s looking to stop, and that’s too bad,” Trump told reporters after returning to Washington following a pre-Independence Day event in Iowa. “It’s [former President Joe] Biden’s war, and I got stuck in the middle of it, just like I did with immigration and a lot of...

President Trump told Ukrainian President Zelensky in a call on Friday that the U.S. wants to help Ukraine with air defense, due to escalating Russian attacks, a Ukrainian official and a source with knowledge of the call said. Why it matters: Earlier this week the Pentagon paused a weapons shipment, including air defense interceptors and ammunication, to Ukraine's army. The decision caught Ukraine and many Trump administration officials surprise. Behind the scenes: The two sources said the call between Trump and Zelensky lasted around 40 minutes, with a major focus on Ukraine's air defense needs. One source said Trump was...

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump on the phone on Thursday about arms deliveries to Ukraine, a spokesperson for the German leaders told Reuters. Merz initiated the call with Trump, the spokesperson said on Friday. Spiegel magazine first reported on the call.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on Friday he spoke with his United States colleague Donald Trump on the phone, stating that he discussed potential joint defense programs with Washington, as well as recently Russian strikes on his country. "We spoke about opportunities in air defense and agreed that we will work together to strengthen protection of our skies. We have also agreed to a meeting between our teams," the Ukrainian leader wrote on X. He stated that Kiev is ready for "direct projects" with the US "especially when it comes to drones and related technologies." The two presidents also considered...

Russia pounded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and missiles on Friday in the largest aerial attack of the three-year war — just hours after President Trump admitted he was “disappointed” with his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A total of 539 drones and 11 missiles were fired at Kyiv over a seven-hour onslaught — injuring at least 23 people and damaging scores of buildings across the capital, Ukraine’s Air Force said.

Vladimir Putin has claimed in a phone call with Donald Trump that Russia played a role in the formation of the United States. Speaking a day before America celebrates Independence Day, the Russian leader reportedly congratulated Mr Trump about its national holiday, held on July 4. According to a report by Tass, a state-owned news agency, Yury Ushakov, the Russian presidential aide, said during the call “it was noted from our side that Russia played an important role in the formation of American statehood including during the War of Independence 250 years ago, and then during the Civil War, which...

Vladimir Putin has taken a thinly-veiled swipe at the USA as the nation gears up to celebrate its Independence Day on July 4. The Russian President couldn't resist pointing out that he considers Russia to have played a key role in helping the much younger country achieve statehood during a call with his American counterpart on Thursday. Putin said: "Russia played an important role in the formation of American statehood, including through the War of Independence 250 years ago, and then during the Civil War, which ended 160 years ago." Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov added: "Of course, he congratulated Trump...

The chief obstacle in preparing these pilots so far has been language training. The cockpit audio system of the F-16 that provides important warning messages to the pilot only “speaks” English. Any pilots not completely fluent in the language will be handicapped—and possibly also in danger—if they lack the required level of fluency.

In a landmark case highlighting a deepening purge within Russia's defense and security establishment, a court in Moscow sentenced former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov to 13 years in prison. The Moscow City Court on July 1 found Ivanov, the most visible figure in a massive probe into alleged military corruption that also targeted several other top officials close to former Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, guilty of large-scale embezzlement and money laundering. In addition to the prison sentence, Ivanov was fined 100 million rubles ($1.1 million), and stripped of his state honors, including the prestigious Order "For Merit to the...

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been seen mourning over his soldiers believed to have been killed in the Russia-Ukraine war, images aired by state media showed on Tuesday. Aired by Korean Central Television, the images showed Kim solemnly placing a North Korean flag over a coffin during a ceremony for the return of the remains of North Korean soldiers who were deployed and killed in the conflict. The images showed photos of Kim in the background footage during a joint cultural event co-hosted by North Korea and Russia in Pyongyang on Sunday, marking the first anniversary of the...

NORTH Korea is reportedly planning to send 30,000 more troops to fight alongside the Russians against Ukraine. It comes just a day after tyrant Kim Jong-un wept over the coffins of his soldiers whom he sent to die in Vladimir Putin's meatgrinder war. -snip- In April, Kim Jong-un confirmed for the first time that North Korean troops were sent to fight alongside the Russians against Ukraine. Pyongyang's state TV and Kim's propaganda machine KCNA reported that North Korean soldiers made an "important contribution" to help the Russians flush out Kyiv's troops from Kursk. It said Kim deployed "sub-units of our...

The Pentagon has halted shipments of some air defense missiles and other precision munitions to Ukraine due to worries that U.S. weapons stockpiles have fallen too low. The decision was driven by the Pentagon’s policy chief, Elbridge Colby, and was made after a review of Pentagon munitions stockpiles, leading to concerns that the total number of artillery rounds, air defense missiles and precision munitions was sinking, according to three people familiar with the issue.