Ukraine’s ‘Unprecedented’ Attack on Moscow as Russia Strikes Back

Sep 20, 2026 | Ukraine launched over 1,000 drones towards Russia and said it put a key oil refinery out of action in what Moscow's mayor called the biggest drone attack yet on the city and surrounding region. Officials said three people were killed.

Meanwhile, Russia kept up its attacks on Ukraine, with eight people killed and dozens more injured and Kyiv has come under further attack from drones.

It didn't stop the final day of Russia's elections going ahead, though the only anti-war party had been banned from standing.

North Korea Considers Deploying 50,000 More Troops Directly to Ukraine | Michael Evans

Sep 14, 2026 | “There's now reports that they may be considering sending 50,000 more North Korean troops, presumably to Ukraine rather than Kursk.”

The North Koreans’ previous deployment to “take a slice” of Kursk did not go well for them, but Kim Jong-un is still considering mobilising an unprecedented 50,000 troops to assist his ally Vladimir Putin, says The Times’s former defence editor Michael Evans.

Russia Hits Train in Ukraine after Boris Johnson, Top European Officials Leave Station | BBC News

Sep 14, 2026 | A Russian drone has hit a train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and top European security officials had passed through.

No casualties were reported after the strike at Yahodyn, which hit the train's engine. All the passengers had been evacuated, Ukrainian authorities said.

Johnson and other European national security advisers, including the UK's Jonathan Powell, had passed along the same line on a different train on their way back from a conference in Kyiv.

Russia said it had struck "railway infrastructure" in western Ukraine, but Ukraine's state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia said that "quite possibly, the target of this drone could have been the diplomatic train".

Will Musk Give Ukraine Eyes Over Russia? | DW News

Aug 27, 2026

Victory No Longer Possible for Putin, Dmitry Muratov Tells Steve Rosenberg | BBC News

August 13, 2026 | In an exclusive interview, BBC Russia Editor Steve Rosenberg sits down with Dmitry Muratov, the Nobel Prize-winning Russian journalist.

Muratov co-founded Novaya Gazeta, a newspaper that became the flagship media outlet for independent journalism in Russia. He and his colleagues have faced threats for their work and six of the paper’s journalists were murdered, including Anna Politkovskaya, who investigated human rights abuses in Chechnya.

Soon after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, under pressure from the authorities Novaya Gazeta halted operations and its licence was subsequently revoked.

In the Novaya Gazeta offices that were raided earlier this year by police, Muratov talks to Rosenberg about public perception of Russia’s war on Ukraine, increasing repression inside the country, and the man who has ruled Russia for more than a quarter of a century – Vladimir Putin.

Russie : un incendie frappe un centre logistique de Wildberries après une attaque de drones

LE FIGARO : Un incendie s’est déclaré ce vendredi dans un centre logistique de Wildberries en Russie après une attaque de drones qui n’a fait aucune victime. Depuis juillet, l’Ukraine a ciblé une vingtaine de sites de cette plateforme de commerce en ligne russe.

Un incendie s'est déclaré vendredi dans un centre logistique du géant russe de l'e-commerce Wildberries à Ekaterinbourg, dans l'Oural, après une nouvelle attaque contre des entrepôts de cette compagnie, dans le viseur des drones ukrainiens depuis mi-juillet. « Des pompiers sont déployés dans le centre logistique de la compagnie à Ekaterinbourg, dans la région de Sberdlovsk, où un incendie s'est déclaré à cause d'une attaque », a annoncé Wildberries dans un communiqué, en assurant que tout le personnel a été évacué à l'avance. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | vendredi 7 août 2026

Five Dead in Moscow Region as Ukraine Continues Warehouse Strikes | BBC News

August 4, 2026 | At least five people were killed and 10 more injured in a Ukrainian drone strike on a warehouse close to Moscow overnight on Monday, the region's governor has said.

The official did not specify what had been targeted but Ukraine has been carrying out strikes on facilities operated by Wildberries in recent weeks, often dubbed the "Russian Amazon".

Kyiv says the depots are used to supply the Russian military, which Moscow denies. Local officials also said Wildberries warehouses were targeted in the St Petersburg and Tver regions overnight.

Russia also launched strikes against parts of Ukraine, killing at least four and injuring several people.

Ruth Ben-Ghiat in Discussion with Anne Applebaum about Russia

August 1, 2026


THE NEW YORK TIMES:

Trump Backs Away From Deal to Let Ukraine Build Patriot Missiles: The president of Ukraine had warned that the country was running out of Patriot interceptors, the most reliable weapon it has to shoot down Russian ballistic missiles. »

L'Iran accuse l'Ukraine d'avoir attaqué un de ses navires en mer Caspienne

Cette capture d'écran du président ukrainien Volodymyr Zelensky est une image figée extraite de la vidéo qui accompagne cet article du Figaro.
LE FIGARO : Les services de renseignement ukrainiens ont pour leur part fait état d’attaques de drones contre « des cargos sous sanctions internationales qui étaient utilisés pour transporter des cargaisons militaires entre l’Iran et la Russie ».

Les services de renseignement ukrainiens ont pour leur part fait état d’attaques de drones contre « des cargos sous sanctions internationales qui étaient utilisés pour transporter des cargaisons militaires entre l’Iran et la Russie ».

« L'attaque menée par le régime ukrainien contre un navire marchand iranien en mer Caspienne, explicitement revendiquée par le chef de ce régime, témoigne de la persistance de l'attitude irrationnelle et hostile du régime ukrainien » contre l'Iran, a protesté le ministère, cité par Irna. La République islamique « n'est jamais intervenue dans le conflit entre la Russie et l'Ukraine », a-t-il affirmé. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | dimanche 26 juillet 2026

„Russlands Amazon“ in Flammen: Ukrainische Drohnen treiben Händler in Existenznot

BERLINER ZEITUNG: Mehr als zehn Prozent der Lagerkapazität von Wildberries sind betroffen. Eine Modedesignerin verlor 16.000 Kinderkleider, andere Unternehmer fürchten um ihre Zahlungsfähigkeit.

Dieser Foto stammt aus diesem Artikel. | Rauch über St. Petersburg nach einem ukrainischen Drohnenangriff auf Logistikzentren von Wildberries. Drei Menschen wurden nach Behördenangaben verletzt. | © Stringer/imago
Wildberries ist Russlands größter Onlinehändler. Für Zehntausende kleine Unternehmen ist die Plattform weit mehr als ein digitaler Marktplatz: Sie lagert ihre Waren, organisiert den Versand und bringt die Produkte zu Millionen Kunden. Das häufig als „Russlands Amazon“ bezeichnete Unternehmen ist damit ein zentraler Teil der russischen Konsumwirtschaft. Nun gehen seine Lager in Flammen auf.

Seit dem 18. Juli wurden acht Logistikzentren von Wildberries bei ukrainischen Drohnenangriffen getroffen. Zusammen stehen die Standorte für mehr als zehn Prozent der Logistikkapazität des Konzerns. Betroffene Händler berichten von existenzbedrohenden Verlusten. Einige können nach eigenen Angaben Kredite, Steuern und offene Rechnungen nicht mehr bezahlen. » | Alexander Schmalz | Freitag, 24. Juli 2026

Russia Cannot Win in Ukraine: Yale Historian Odd Arne Westad Explains Why | DW News

July 18, 2026 | Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine lasts longer than the First World War. Can these wars really be compared? How long could the war in Ukraine last, and how might it end? What risks does Vladimir Putin face if he expands the war to other regions of Europe?

Odd Arne Westad, a Norwegian historian, professor at Yale University and an expert on the history of the Cold War, as well as on the history of China and East Asia speaks to DW about history lessons for Russia, Europe and the world. His book, published in the spring of 2026, is called ‘The Coming Storm. Power, Conflicts and the Warnings of History”.

Russia Pounds Kyiv for Five Hours in One of Its Biggest Ballistic Missile Attacks

Screenshot taken from this Guardian article. | A firefighter at work after about 40 missiles hit the Ukraine capital of Kyiv in night-time strikes. Photograph: Reuters
THE GUARDIAN: At least one person killed after dozens of missiles arrive in less than an hour and three-storey building catches fire

Russia has carried out one of its biggest-ever ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, launching a five-hour raid that left at least one person dead and seven injured, with fires and damage across the city.

Ukrainian officials said the capital was hit with about 40 Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon missiles. Residents heard an air raid siren sound at 1.30am. There was the sound of air defences, followed minutes later by a series of booms and explosions.

Houses in Kyiv’s historic centre shook, and car alarms blared, as dozens of missiles arrived in less than an hour. There was a second air raid siren at 6.30am, with more impacts reported.

A three-storey building caught fire in the central Shevchenkivsky district. Rescuers dug out several people trapped inside and recovered a body. Four other areas were hit, with fires reported at office and residential buildings and a dormitory.

Residents sheltering inside Lukyanivska metro station posted footage after the ceiling in the ground-floor vestibule collapsed because of a massive blast wave. The station is temporarily closed. » | Luke Harding in Kyiv | Sunday, July 19, 2026

Putin Will Never Make Peace in Ukraine. Bill Browder Explains Why | World of Trouble

Jul 11, 2026 | Vladimir Putin’s growing unpopularity in Russia means he cannot afford to end the war with Ukraine as he will be lynched by his own people, the president’s greatest personal enemy in the West has warned.

Sir Bill Browder told the Independent’s World of Trouble podcast: “If he does a peace deal, he’ll lose power. If he loses power, then he’ll get strung up from a lamppost.”

The anti-corruption campaigner, who once ran the biggest investment fund in Russia, has fought against Putin for nearly two decades. His latest intervention comes days after NATO leaders met in Turkey and agreed to allow Kyiv to produce its own Patriot air defence missiles, vital in withstanding the onslaught from Moscow.

Putin has variously claimed that he ordered the invasion of Ukraine in 2014 to see off a potential threat of NATO membership for Kyiv, to save Russian speaking peoples in the east of the country, or as part of a patriotic duty to return Ukraine to Russia’s empire.

Bombe auf Oligarchen in Monaco: Verdächtige bei Kiew erschossen – Geheimdienstmann gesteht Mord

BERLINER ZEITUNG: Die Spur führt von Monaco über Deutschland bis in die Ukraine. Nach dem Tod der Hauptverdächtigen rücken ein Geheimdienstmitarbeiter, Geldflüsse und ein rätselhafter Keller ins Zentrum.

Dieses Bild stammt aus diesem Artikel. | Ein von den Behörden veröffentlichtes Überwachungsbild zeigt Anastasiia Berezovska, die wegen des Bombenanschlags in Monaco international gesucht wurde. | © Interpol/AFP
Die international gesuchte Hauptverdächtige im Fall des Bombenanschlags auf den ukrainischen Ex-Oligarchen Wadym Jermolajew in Monaco ist tot. Anastasiia Berezovska wurde am Montagabend in der Umgebung von Kiew erschossen aufgefunden, wie die ukrainische Nationalpolizei am Dienstag bestätigte. Zwei Männer wurden unter Mordverdacht festgenommen.

Einer der Verdächtigen ist nach Angaben der Polizei ein aktiver Mitarbeiter des ukrainischen Militärgeheimdienstes HUR. Er habe die Tötung der 39-Jährigen gestanden und den zweiten Festgenommenen, einen früheren Mitarbeiter einer Strafverfolgungsbehörde, als Komplizen bezeichnet. Der Geheimdienstmitarbeiter erklärte demnach, er habe „auf eigene Initiative“ gehandelt.

Seine Vorgesetzten habe er weder über seine Kontakte zu Berezovska noch über Zahlungen an sie informiert. Ob das Geständnis bereits überprüft werden konnte und welches Motiv der Mann für die Tötung nannte, teilte die Polizei zunächst nicht mit. » | Alexander Schmalz | Dienstag, 7. Juli 2026

À LIRE AUSSI :

Attaque à la bombe à Monaco : le corps de la principale suspecte retrouvé enterré près de Kiev, un officier des renseignements arrêté : Anastasia Berezovskaya, ressortissante ukrainienne de 39 ans, recherchée par Interpol et soupçonnée d’avoir placé une bombe devant l’appartement monégasque de l’oligarque Vadim Ermolaev, pourrait avoir été tuée par balle, révèle ce mardi la presse ukrainienne. »

ALSO READ:

Woman suspected of Monaco bombing found shot dead near Kyiv: Anastasiia Berezovska was being sought by police over attack that seriously injured a Ukraine-born businessman »

Kreml spricht von „echtem Krieg“ in der Ukraine: Peskow macht Westen verantwortlich

BERLINER ZEITUNG: Der Ukraine-Konflikt habe sich zu „echtem Krieg“ entwickelt, sagt Dmitri Peskow und ändert damit seine bisherige Wortwahl. Auch über ein Telefonat zwischen Putin und Trump gibt er Auskunft.

Dieser Screenshot stammt aus diesem Artikel. | Kreml-Sprecher Dmitri Peskow hat die Geschehnisse in der Ukraine als „echten Krieg“ bezeichnet. | © Evgenia Novozhenina/AP
Der Sprecher des russischen Präsidenten, Dmitri Peskow, hat die russische Invasion in der Ukraine erstmals ausdrücklich als „Krieg“ bezeichnet.

„Es herrscht Krieg, ein echter Krieg“, sagte Peskow in einem am Sonntag von der russischen Nachrichtenagentur Interfax verbreiteten Interview mit dem Journalisten Pawel Sarubin mit Blick auf die Ukraine. Für diese „Entwicklung“ machte er die westlichen Unterstützer Kiews verantwortlich. » | Sophie Barkey | Montag, 6. Juli 2026

Es ist unsinnig, den westlichen Unterstützern Kiews die Schuld an diesem Krieg zu geben – es ist sogar ein Affront. Russland hat diesen Krieg begonnen; folglich liegt die Verantwortung für die Eskalation allein bei Moskau. — © Mark Alexander

Deadly Russian Strikes Hit Kyiv on Eve of NATO Summit

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Ballistic missiles were fired into the capital of Ukraine, as Russia launched its second major attack in less than a week. At least seven people were killed, officials said.

Explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv early on Monday, the eve of a NATO summit, as Russia mounted its second major attack on the city in days.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who is expected to attend the NATO summit in Turkey, had warned that Russia was preparing “a new massive strike” against the capital.

Loud blasts shook the city hours later. The regional military administration said ballistic missiles were flying, and Mayor Vitali Klitschko urged residents to stay in shelters.

Tymur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv’s military administration, said that at least seven people had been killed. At least two dozen others were wounded. » | Cassandra Vinograd | Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine | Sunday, July 5, 2026

Russia Planning Attack on Poland to Test Nato Resolve, US Warns

THE TELEGRAPH: Critical infrastructure could be targeted by missiles and drones, with soldiers potentially crossing the border from Kaliningrad or Belarus

Screenshot from this Telegraph article. | Polish security sources are not ruling out the prospect of a conventional ground incursion by Russian and/or Belarusian soldiers | Credit: Kacper Pempel/Reuters
Russia is planning an armed “provocation” on Polish soil to test Nato’s resolve, the United States has warned.

Polish critical infrastructure could be targeted by missiles and drones or Russian soldiers could cross the border into Nato territory.

Washington has issued several warnings to Warsaw about the plot, sources close to Karol Nawrocki, the Polish president, told Onet, the Polish news outlet, which, along with The Telegraph, is owned by Axel Springer and is part of its Global Reporters Network.

The goal of the Russian provocation would be to escalate tensions and force Western allies to suspend aid to Ukraine. It could be launched in a matter of months. » | Witold Jurasz in Warsaw. James Rothwell, Berlin Correspondent. Joe Barnes, Diplomatic Editor | Friday, July 3, 2026

À LIRE AUSSI :

La Russie prépare une attaque sur la Pologne pour «provoquer» l’Otan, selon les États-Unis : Washington a prévenu Varsovie de la possibilité d’une incursion terrestre russe d’ici quelques mois, rapporte le site d’information Onet, citant des sources proches du président polonais. »

Russia Hammers Ukraine’s Capital in Deadly Attacks

THE NEW YORK TIMES: At least 18 people were killed in Kyiv, the local authorities said. Ukraine’s president had warned that Moscow was preparing a “massive strike” as Ukrainian forces have hit deeper into Russian territory.

The Russian military blasted Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, with waves of ballistic missiles and drones that lasted into Thursday morning, a deadly show of force after weeks of Ukrainian attacks within Russia that have heaped pressure on President Vladimir V. Putin.

At least 18 people were killed and more than 30 injured in the attacks, Ukrainian officials said, as firefighters raced to extinguish blazes in several districts of the capital. Several apartment buildings were partially destroyed and an unknown number of people were trapped in the rubble, according to the local authorities.

The Russian barrage was the latest in the deadliest spring for Ukraine since Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022, as Ukrainian strikes prompt Mr. Putin to respond militarily. Ukraine has been bringing the war home to Russia by using long-range drones and cruise missiles to attack fuel facilities and military installations deep inside Russia and in occupied Crimea.

These attacks have caused widespread fuel shortages and have eroded Mr. Putin’s ability to insulate large parts of his country, including Moscow, the capital, from the war.

Ukraine’s strategy on the battlefield rests on forcing the Russian military to pay a heavy price for every mile of land it seizes while raising the economic costs for the Kremlin. Moscow believes it can outlast Kyiv’s outnumbered forces on the front while inflicting such a heavy human and economic toll that it breaks the will of civilians, according to Western military analysts.

In a statement on Thursday, Russia’s defense ministry called the strikes on Kyiv a response to Ukraine’s recent attacks inside Russia.

Many Kyiv residents had been bracing for a large-scale Russian assault in part because about two weeks had passed since the last one, giving Moscow time to stockpile missiles and drones. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine had warned in recent days that Russia was preparing another “massive strike,” and he urged people to be “especially careful.” Live Updates » | Cassandra Vinograd | Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine | Thursday, July 2, 2026

À LIRE AUSSI :

« La pire attaque depuis le début de la guerre en Ukraine » : ce que l’on sait des frappes russes sur Kiev, qui ont fait au moins 17 morts : Le président ukrainien Volodymyr Zelensky avait indiqué mercredi après-midi depuis Dublin rentrer immédiatement à Kiev, disant craindre une attaque « de grande envergure » de la Russie. »

LESEN SIE AUCH:

Schwerster Angriff seit Kriegsbeginn: Russland überzieht Kiew mit Raketen und Drohnen: Russland hat in der Nacht mehrere ukrainische Städte mit Raketen, Marschflugkörpern und Drohnen angegriffen. In Kiew wurden Wohnhäuser zerstört, mindestens 18 Menschen kamen ums Leben. »

Crimea Back in Play? Russia Feels Pain of Ukraine Long-range Strikes • FRANCE 24 English

Jun 30, 2026 | A couple of weeks back, we asked if the tide was turning in Ukraine. The short answer: a little, but it's hard to cut through the fog of war. Now, we're beginning to wonder if Crimea could be back in play. Kyiv's new line of longer-range missiles and drones are wreaking havoc on fuel and power supplies. And while Russia continues to inch forward in other frontline flashpoints, the peninsula occupied in 2014 by Vladimir Putin's little green men has never looked so vulnerable.

A Ukrainian offensive still seems like a pipe dream. Instead, is the current pressure a way to force concessions out of a Kremlin forced to admit what's all over Russian social media: that petrol stations across Russia are running on empty because of those long-range strikes? Will Vladimir Putin compromise or double down?

And what do Crimeans themselves want? Most seemed happy to vote yes in a referendum to rejoin a Russia they only left in 1954. More broadly, what consequences for the entire Black Sea region, which since 2022 has alternated between periods of war, disruption and mutually agreed calm to allow both sides to ship goods? The Black Sea is of course shared with Turkey, which hosts next week's timely NATO summit.


Related articles in English and French here.

Ukraine Debates LGBTQ Rights as Thousands Serve in the Military | Ukraine This Week

Jun 28, 2026 | In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, Kateryna Denisova examines how Ukraine's attitudes toward LGBTQ people have changed — and why the country's laws have struggled to keep pace.

Public support for LGBTQ equality has grown dramatically since Russia's full-scale invasion, while thousands of LGBTQ Ukrainians now serve in the military. Yet many still lack basic legal protections, including the right to have their relationships legally recognized.

The episode explores how Ukraine's democratic transformation, its path toward European Union membership, and the realities of wartime have reshaped the debate over LGBTQ rights.