How Ukraine uses fishing nets to protect troops from Russian drones
It was just one of a number of anti-drone 'tunnels' that Ukraine is constructing to protect soldiers and civilians in frontline regions. The netting is a low-tech solution to the first-person-view [FPV] drones that have transformed the nature of the war in Ukraine and, perhaps, warfare itself.
Cheap FPV drones packed with explosives are manned remotely by pilots and provide real-time video feeds, allowing them to be directed with deadly accuracy against soldiers, as well as military vehicles and equipment. They are used by both Russian and Ukrainian forces and have created a vast 'kill zone' where nothing can move without attracting the attention of swarms of kamikaze drones.
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Daily Mail
14 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Inside Trump and Putin's relationship, their power moves, and how the Russian leader broke the 'alpha bro code'
Their crunch meeting is set for Friday, the venue will be Alaska, and when they get there Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will be watching each other like hawks for signs of weakness. Tensions are on a knife edge with Trump demanding Putin agree to an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, two U.S. nuclear submarines heading toward Russia, and ominous threats about doomsday weapons emanating from Moscow. As they encounter each other in person for the first time since 2019, the demeanor of both men will be key as they try to gain the upper hand. According to body language expert Judi James, who has studied their previous meetings, Trump's most effective weapon could turn out to be humor, which he may use to disarm and belittle Putin. 'Putin seems more than comfortable being on the receiving end of frosty greetings,' she told the Daily Mail. Trump and Putin met six times during the U.S. President's first term. Initially, Trump appeared successful in recruiting Putin into a kind of 'global alpha men's club,' James said. But, more recently, Putin has ditched their 'bromance,' leaving Trump disappointed and frustrated. 'Trump's meetings with Putin work at a visceral level rather than an intellectual one,' James said. 'His body language narrative has been the classic story of alpha v. alpha... flaunting personal strength and power to seduce Putin into a state of the mutual respect. 'Unfortunately for Trump though, Putin is whip-smart when it comes to body language. Putin broke the alpha bro code and it will be fascinating to see how Trump now deals with him on a purely man-to-man level.' Here is an analysis of some of their previous key encounters, and what their body language tells us about the inner workings of their relationship. 2017: G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany It was an awkward start when the two leaders held their first meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit. 'They appeared to put in considerable effort to look distant and out of sorts with each other,' said James. 'Trump sat on the edge of his seat, his head slumped, making the back of his jacket ripple up like a wave behind his neck.' But Trump went on to use two key 'power moves' on Putin. First, he began feigning apparent disinterest in his opposite number, blinking and slowly looking around the room, anywhere but at the Russian president. Second, Trump shot out his arm to perform a 'hand platter' shake, with his palm facing up. That forced Putin to lean across and put his hand on top of Trump's, with the US. President gripping it and determining the length of the handshake. Putin adopted a 'vaguely compliant air' during the formal photographs, looking down with a 'miserable expression.' Trump repeated the 'hand platter' shake to show who was in charge. 2018: Helsinki The two men held two hours of talks behind closed doors. At a joint press conference President Trump then contradicted his own intelligence agencies, suggesting there was 'no reason' why Russia would have interfered in the 2016 U.S. election. 'By now Trump and Putin seemed to have had a meeting of alpha minds, with their choreographed, mirrored poses suggested like-minded thinking,' James said. 'They both stood with their chests puffed like Marvel superheroes, it looked like the perfect alpha pairing.' However, there was then a 'dramatic mood change' from Putin. 'It was noticeable that Putin's poses of relaxed and open confidence had vanished," James said. Trump this time offered a normal handshake with his palm turned inward. But when they shook, there was a 'look of wary eye-to-eye confrontation' suggesting a 'complex truce.' James said: 'They glared like boxers before a fight and both performed a lip-clamp to suggest firmness and resolution. 'The grasp looked tight, with Trump's knuckles going white and, importantly, Putin's left hand remain curled round his chair arm, suggesting he had no intention of being rocked off balance by one of Trump's jerking, yanking power shakes.' When Putin gave Trump a soccer ball as a gift, the U.S president held it 'stiffly' before throwing it to Melania. 2019: Osaka When Trump and Putin last met in person in Osaka, Japan in 2019, their 'bromance' was still superficially on track. Putin walked into the room and Trump threw both arms out to 'signal he felt he was greeting an old friend,' said James. 'There was a lack of fundamental mirroring here though,' she added. 'Putin's back was ramrod straight while Trump looked less formal.' Once again, Trump's handshake was telling. He extended his hand for a tight clasp and then performed a 'shake and yank,' attempting to pull Putin towards him to establish control. However Putin did not budge. 'There was smiling on both sides though to register an established friendship,' said James. 'Putin showed he could joke with Trump in English, and Trump performed preening gestures to suggest he was enjoying trading jokes with a fellow alpha. 'Trump's body language tactics tend to be basic and earthy. He is a great power-player with his power pats and power shakes.' But such rituals that 'seem so important to Trump seem to mean very little to Putin long-term,' she said.
The Guardian
44 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: Europe stresses protection of Ukrainian interests ahead of Trump-Putin talks
European leaders stressed the need to keep pressure on Moscow and protect Ukrainian and European security interests after Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin arranged to meet in Alaska next week. A joint statement from French, Italian, German, Polish, British and Finnish leaders and the president of the European commission welcomed the move but noted that the 'path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine' and that negotiations could take place only in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities. It added: 'only an approach that combines active diplomacy, support to Ukraine and pressure on the Russian Federation to end their illegal war can succeed'. They also said a resolution 'must protect Ukraine's and Europe's vital security interests', including 'the need for robust and credible security guarantees that enable Ukraine to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity'. US vice-president JD Vance met British foreign secretary David Lammy and representatives of Ukraine and European allies on Saturday at Chevening House, a country mansion south-east of London, to discuss Trump's push for peace. A European official confirmed a counterproposal was put forward by European representatives at the Chevening meeting but declined to provide details. The Wall Street Journal said European officials had presented a counterproposal that included demands that a ceasefire must take place before any other steps are taken and that any territory exchange must be reciprocal, with firm security guarantees. 'You can't start a process by ceding territory in the middle of fighting,' it quoted one European negotiator as saying. The White House did not immediately respond when asked about the European counterproposals. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday rejected the idea that his country would give up land to end the war with Russia after Trump suggested a peace deal could include 'some swapping of territories.' Zelenskyy said Ukraine 'will not give Russia any awards for what it has done' and that 'Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.' Later, Zelenskyy called the Chevening meeting constructive: 'All our arguments were heard,' he said in his evening address to Ukrainians. 'The path to peace for Ukraine should be determined together and only together with Ukraine, this is key principle.' French leader Emmanuel Macron stressed the need for Ukraine to play a role in any negotiations: 'Ukraine's future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians, who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now,' he wrote on X after what he said were calls with Zelenskyy, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Starmer. 'Europeans will also necessarily be part of the solution, as their own security is at stake.' On Saturday two people died and 16 were wounded when a Russian drone hit a minibus in the suburbs of the Ukrainian city of Kherson, regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin said. Two others died after a Russian drone struck their car in the Zaporizhzhia region, according to regional governor Ivan Fedorov. Ukraine's air force said it intercepted 16 of the 47 Russian drones launched overnight, while 31 drones hit targets across 15 different locations. It also said it shot down one of the two missiles Russia deployed. Russia's defence ministry said its air defences shot down 97 Ukrainian drones over Russia and the Black Sea overnight and 21 more on Saturday morning.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
MAIL ON SUNDAY COMMENT: We wish Trump well in his valiant bid for a just and lasting peace
Borders can change. When Presidents Trump and Putin meet in Alaska on Friday, they will be on territory which was once part of the Russian Empire. Moscow sold it to Washington in 1867 for a bargain price, partly because they were afraid that either Britain or the USA would grab it anyway if they did not. But since the aggressive horrors of the Second World War, there has been a general agreement that we should leave borders – above all in Europe – where they are. Most especially, we should not reward the illegal seizure of ground by armed force. This is a good principle, though it has been bent, if not actually broken, since the founding of the UN in San Francisco 80 years ago. Now it is being tested very severely. Vladimir Putin's criminal invasion of Ukraine was, and remains, a bloody and destructive action which should live in infamy. Thanks to wartime secrecy on both sides, we do not know the true scale of the horror, only that it is great. War deaths and other casualties are state secrets, and we can only guess at their size by looking at satellite pictures of the vast graveyards on either side of the frontline. Civilians, too, have suffered appallingly. Multitudes have become destitute refugees. Ukraine's economic sinews have been mangled and maimed by cynical Russian bombing, clearly intended to drive a once-prosperous country back into the pre-industrial age. Donald Trump, very reasonably, wants to stop these miseries and he has made it plain to Putin that he will hit the Russian economy where it hurts if he carries on with his aggression. But the lonely despot in the Kremlin is demanding a heavy price in return, especially the surrender of large slices of territory and the end of Ukraine's Nato ambitions. Mr Trump has spoken rather bafflingly of 'some swapping of territories to the betterment of both'. But Ukraine does not hold any significant Russian territory, while Russia has seized large portions of Ukraine and continues to eat away at its land each week. Even now, no more than 38 per cent of Ukraine's population would even consider ceding some of that land for peace. This is a big softening since 2023, but many of the remaining 62 per cent will always remain resolutely opposed to any such thing, and Ukraine's President Zelensky is among them. He is rightly suspicious of any talks which exclude him from the table. It is rumoured that Putin has offered a ceasefire in return for Ukraine handing over the eastern territories of Donetsk and Luhansk. But this is plainly not the end of his demands. Any such armistice would trigger more talks on the rest of the land Russia has grabbed – talks which Zelensky would rightly fear. Ukraine cannot easily fight off new Russian gains without the support of the USA and Europe's Nato powers. But America and Europe alike are worried that they must choose between a shabby deal or a much more intensive and dangerous war with Russia. It is a nasty mess. Credit must go to Donald Trump for continuing to try to resolve it. We must all wish and hope for a just and lasting peace. But with the current balance of forces, it is very hard to see how such a compromise can be reached.
