Russia vows retaliation after Ukrainian drone strikes, but reaffirms commitment to peace talks
MOSCOW - Russia on Friday accused Ukraine of launching a massive wave of drone attacks against non-military targets in Moscow and other regions in the last three days and said it would respond, but said it was still committed to holding peace talks.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Ukraine had launched approximately 800 drones and Western-made missiles since May 20 at targets far from the frontline in an apparent attempt to disrupt direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, which have resumed with the assistance of the U.S.
The Defence Ministry has reported a spike in Ukrainian drone attacks aimed at Moscow in recent days, forcing the Russian capital's airports to suspend flights before resuming.
The Foreign Ministry said the Ukrainian attacks had also wounded eight people in a Russian-controlled part of eastern Ukraine and killed a young woman and injured four children in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine. A further eight people had been wounded in Russia's Lipetsk region and other civilians, including two children, had been hurt in a Ukrainian missile attack on Russia's Kursk region, it said.
Reuters could not verify those assertions.
The foreign ministry said Moscow would retaliate, but would only target military and defence industry facilities.
"But let us underscore this: our principled commitment to a constructive search for a peaceful settlement through dialogue remains unchanged," the foreign ministry said. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
38 minutes ago
- Straits Times
German defence minister visits Ukraine for talks on weapons support
FILE PHOTO: German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius attends a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, as a part of a NATO Defence Ministers' meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium June 4, 2025. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo BERLIN - German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has arrived in Kyiv to discuss military support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, the DPA news agency reported on Thursday. Pistorius plans to hold talks with Ukrainian government representatives about further weapons aid from Berlin, according to the report. "We are doing everything we can to support Ukraine so that it can defend itself and get into a position where Russia is prepared to enter into serious negotiations," Pistorius said ahead of his departure. The German defence ministry was not immediately available for comment. Germany is Ukraine's second-biggest military backer after the United States, whose commitment to Kyiv has been called into question, putting pressure on Europe to step up. Russia and Ukraine met for peace talks in Istanbul earlier this month in a renewed push to settle the conflict, which began with Russia's invasion in February 2022. However, fighting has raged on while the two sides disagree over a number of central issues, such as territorial concessions and the prospect of Ukraine's future NATO membership. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has already travelled to Kyiv and hosted President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Berlin since taking office in May, recently gave Ukraine the green light for "long range fire" with weapons supplied by Germany and others, angering Moscow. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Wars now displace over 122 million people as aid funding falls, UN says
GENEVA - The number of people displaced by war and persecution around the world climbed above 122 million this year due to a failure to resolve multi-year conflicts such as those in Sudan and Ukraine, the U.N. refugee agency said on Thursday, noting that funding to help the refugees has fallen to 2015 levels. There were over 2 million more people displaced globally by the end of April 2025 than there were the previous year despite the return of nearly the same number of Syrians after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's rule, according to the report by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi. The report attributed the rise to major conflicts in Sudan, Myanmar and Ukraine and a "continued failure to stop the fighting". "We are living in a time of intense volatility in international relations, with modern warfare creating a fragile, harrowing landscape marked by acute human suffering," Grandi said in a statement alongside the report. The surge in displacement numbers comes as funding to help them has fallen to 2015 levels when the total number of refugees around the world stood at about half current levels, UNHCR said. It described the cuts in aid as "brutal and ongoing" and said the situation was untenable, leaving refugees and others vulnerable. Humanitarians complain that a lack of political leadership in brokering peace deals is prolonging conflicts and stretching aid groups tasked with addressing their impacts. The agency, whose largest donor has historically been the U.S., has previously said that the cuts put millions of lives at risk and left women refugees at a greater risk of rape and children at risk of trafficking. UNHCR has not given details on which donors have reduced their funding. U.S. President Donald Trump has cut most foreign aid while Britain and European neighbours are spending less on aid and more on defence. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Vietnam lawmakers approve merging provinces, slashing nearly 80,000 jobs
Vietnamese lawmakers voted on June 12 to reduce the country's 63 provincial and city administrations to just 34, as the government looks to radically cut state expenditure. PHOTO: AFP HANOI - Vietnam's National Assembly approved plans to merge provinces and cities on June 12 , slashing nearly 80,000 state jobs, as part of major reforms to the communist country's administrative structure. Lawmakers voted to reduce the country's 63 provincial and city administrations to just 34, as the government looks to radically cut state expenditure. The move comes after the government cut the number of ministries and agencies from 30 to 22 in February, resulting in 23,000 job losses. Vietnam's top leader To Lam has said the drastic restructuring of the country's governance is needed if it is to achieve 'fast, stable and sustainable development'. In the June 12 vote, the assembly – a rubber-stamp body in a one-party system – approved the government's plans by 461 ballots to one, with three abstentions. Only 11 provinces and cities are left unchanged by the reform, with the rest all merged. Interior Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra said it amounted to the 'biggest ever revolution since the country was founded' in 1945, state media reported on June 11 . '79,339 officials will have to be streamlined, quitting their jobs or submitting for early retirement following the merge,' Mr Tra told the National Assembly. One provincial official told AFP he was 'shocked and sad' as he will have to leave his position after more than 30 years of public service. 'I may receive some billion dong in compensation, but I am not happy,' the 58-year-old communist party member said, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'I don't know what to do now though I think I am still completely fit for work.' 'Native province gone' The streamlined administrative bodies will be expected to 'shift from passive management to active service to the people', said Mr Lam, the Communist Party general secretary and most powerful figure in the country. 'I think the merge is good for all and I fully support it,' said northern Thai Binh province resident Nguyen Thang Loi, 52, whose province is being merged. 'Though I feel really sad as the name of my native province, which has lasted generations, will now be gone. It's so weird to say I come from Hung Yen.' According to the government, all cities and provinces will announce their new leadership on June 30 and start full operation at the beginning of July. In the next few days, the National Assembly will vote on an amended national constitution, under which the country's three-level administrative structure of province, district and commune will be reduced to two. The middle district level will be eliminated and the commune level expanded. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
