Russian armed forces advance deeper into Ukraine's Sumy region
Guy Faulconbridge
©Reuters
Russian forces yesterday advanced further into Ukraine's northern region of Sumy, threatening the regional capital, after taking more than 150 sq km of the area in less than two weeks, according to Russian officials and Ukrainian open-source mapping.
Despite the relaunch of peace talks, the war has been heating up and Russian forces, which already control just under a fifth of Ukraine, advanced in May at their fastest pace for at least six months, according to Ukraine's authoritative Deep State online map project.
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The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Putin plotting ‘final killer offensive' to attack Ukraine on 3 fronts to win war – even as his losses near ONE MILLION
VLADIMIR Putin is plotting a final killer offensive along three fronts to win the war, a new report claims. It comes as the 9 Ukrainian troops fire at Russia in Donetsk Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 9 Ukrainian soldiers take cover as they fire a canon towards Russian positions in Kharkiv Credit: AFP 9 Russia has been attacking the Donetsk city of Kramatorsk since the beginning of the war Credit: Getty The tyrant is still looking for a knockout blow despite initially saying he would win the war in a matter of days. Putin is hoping to change that this summer, with a widely expected fresh offensive to begin. Some 125,000 Russian soldiers are reportedly massing along the Sumy and Kharkiv frontiers, according to Ukraine's military intelligence. Over the past fortnight border villages have fallen to Russia as it is believed to be preparing the ground for the invasion. Read more on world news But some senior commanders in Ukraine believe that could be a feint and Russia is actually preparing to attack further south to push further into the Donbas, Russia is likely to attack through three areas near each other in the Donbas - Kramatorsk, Kostiantynivka, and Pokrovsk. Vlad already controls more than 95 per cent of Luhansk, but capturing Donetsk would cement his control over the Donbas region and achieve a war aim, albeit a scaled-down one. The Donbas is an important industrial and mining area - and some 200,000 to 300,000 people still live in four cities controlled by Ukraine. Most read in The US Sun Moscow's military planners will be weighing up whether they want to fight through the cities like they did in Bakhmut or encircle them by going around through farmland. Kramatorsk is the closest city to the front line and is under constant attack by Russia. Clearest vid yet of daring Op Spiderweb shows 35 Ukrainian bomb drones blowing up plane after multimillion dollar plane A recent drone strike managed to get inside an armoured vehicle carrying Ukrainian soldiers. Russia has an opportunity to conduct a pincer movement around Kostiantynivka with its soldiers controlling land to the east and west of the city. Instead of attacking the city directly, the could bypass it and attack Druzhkivka behind it - thereby cutting Kostiantynivka and any Ukrainian soldiers still there off. In nearby Pokrovsk, Russia already has a salient, a bulge, out from the front line after a previous advance. 9 Ukrainian soldiers fly a drone near Pokrovsk Credit: Getty 9 Members of Ukraine's White Angel police unit evacuate people from Pokrovsk Credit: Reuters 9 Ukraine reports also daily contact with Russian troops in the area. The Pokrovsk front line is also very near Dnipropetrovsk Oblast - a region of Ukraine the Kremlin hasn't yet officially claimed. A successful breakthrough there might mean Putin can actually expand his war goals. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is prepared for a summer offensive and has publicly said Russia is set to escalate the war. His officials believe peace talks are a ruse - with Putin only wanting to talk to demand the terms of surrender. The Ukrainians will not give in and any advance by Russia is going to come at a high cost. Vlad's army has been making incremental gains along the front line, with troops overwhelming Ukraine in meat grinder assaults. But for that Russia has suffered 434,000 dead and wounded in the last year, 270 for every square mile they have seized. 9 Residents ride bicycles at a street near buildings in Pokrovsk Credit: Reuters 9 Firefighters extinguish a fire in Kostiantynivka Credit: Getty 9 Ukrainian firefighters battle a blaze after a building was bombed by Russians Credit: Getty Ukraine has used drones and Western-supplied arms to grind the Russians down into a WW1-style trench war. But observers worry a massive new Russian offensive could break the deadlock. Moscow has spent the winter recruiting more troops, improving tactics, and enhancing their drones. An offensive likely won't use tanks, Polish military analyst Konrad Muzyka told the He said, instead, Russian troops were advancing using lighter motors. Muzyka said: 'Any large-scale deployment of armour is going to be destroyed relatively quickly. "We have seen the Russians shift to focused, small-unit attacks, often of just three to five men. Company-size assaults of 50 to 100 men hardly ever happen anymore.' Donald Trump has said he expects Putin's retaliation following the stunning Opertion Spiderweb "is not going to be pretty". The US President spoke to Vlad on Wednesday - with the Russian saying, according to Trump, The call followed Operation Spiderweb — a daring , in a coordinated assault likened to WWII's most audacious missions. Inside Operation Spiderweb By James Halpin, foreign news reporter Ukraine's shock sleeper drone blitz on Russia's bomber fleet has delivered a hammer blow to Vladimir Putin's nuclear arsenal. The SAS-style strike against Volodymyr Zelensky oversaw Operation Spiderweb - much like Winston Churchill did as Britain struck deep behind enemy lines. The Ukrainian said: "It's genuinely satisfying when something I authorized a year and six months ago comes to fruition and deprives Russians of over forty units of strategic aviation. "We will continue this work." Putin's doomsday bomber fleet is now crippled with 41, or a third, of his most prized aircraft lying in smouldering wrecks on tarmac. Ukraine said the sneak attack was worth $7bn (£5.2bn) in damage to Russia - caused by only 117 cheaply made drones. Like Israel's mass pager sabotage against Hezbollah, Kyiv has rewritten the rule book in how to strike the heart of their enemy. Ukraine's spies spent 18 months putting the plan into action and struck on the eve of
The Irish Sun
2 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
White House arranges ‘peace talks' call after Trump and Elon's feud went nuclear with Epstein barb & impeachment threat
DONALD Trump and Elon Musk's bitter public feud is set for another twist today with the pair reportedly sitting down for peace talks. The White House is believed to have been scrambling to arrange a phone call between the most powerful man in America and the world's richest person. Advertisement 10 The White House has reportedly managed to arrange a phone call between Donald Trump and Elon Musk later today to solve their bitter feud Credit: AP 10 Musk spent hours posting dozens of remarks towards Trump, his presidency and the 'Big Beautiful Bill' on Thursday Credit: Reuters 10 The Tesla boss made unfounded allegations about Trump's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein on Thursday Credit: X 10 Trump fired back with a trio of Truth Social posts Credit: Truth Social 10 Those in Washington have been trying to end the nuclear feud before it turns any worse after White House aides have now managed to schedule a call today with the billionaire CEO and Trump to try and broker peace, according to The two powerful men had been close allies for the best part of a year since They were almost inseparable for months after Trump's seismic victory at the polls in November. Advertisement read more in Musk and Trump But their impending break up came over the weekend when But ever since, their relationship has taken a steep and sour turn. The Tesla chief has been highly critical of the president's "Big Beautiful Bill" on several occasions online. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Exclusive He even labelled it a "massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill". Trump soon responded and sparked a very public fallout between the pair which came to blows on Thursday. Elon Musk's craziest moments, as Tesla CEO leaves White House after 130 days of drama: from chainsaw to double hats and billionaire has ALREADY turned on Trump The worst of the lot came from Musk who called for the president's impeachment and made unfounded allegations about Trump's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein . Musk claimed that Trump is Advertisement Despite the remark there is no evidence that Trump had any involvement in convicted sex offender Epstein's crimes. 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The Journal
4 hours ago
- The Journal
At least four dead and 20 wounded in overnight Russian drone strikes on Kyiv
AT LEAST FOUR people have been killed and 20 people have been wounded after Russia fired ballistic missiles and attack drones at the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv overnight. It comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed retaliation for an audacious Ukrainian drone attack on Russian airbases. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko shared the death toll on social media. AFP journalists heard explosions and air raid sirens echo out over the capital throughout the night. 'Kyiv came under another attack involving UAVs and ballistic missiles. Rescuers are responding to the aftermath at several locations across the city,' the State Emergency Service of Ukraine wrote on Telegram. AFP reporters saw a charred crater in the side of a high-rise residential block in Kyiv, with debris and broken glass strewn across the parking lot in front of the building. One image published by the head of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office showed a children's playground scattered with rubble and shards of glass. Deadly attacks have escalated in recent weeks even as the two sides hold talks aimed at finding an end to the three-year war, triggered by Russia's February 2022 invasion. People rest in a metro station, being used as a bomb shelter, during the drones attack. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo Tens of thousands have been killed, cities and villages destroyed across eastern Ukraine, and millions forced to flee their homes with Russia's forces controlling around one-fifth of Ukraine's territory. Advertisement Russia carried out a barrage of drone and missile strikes across Ukraine overnight on Friday, targeting not only the capital but western regions like Lviv and Volyn, which border EU and Nato member Poland. Retaliation Earlier this week, Putin told US President Donald Trump that he would retaliate to a Ukrainian drone attack that damaged nuclear-capable military planes at Russian air bases, including thousands of kilometres behind the front lines in Siberia. The brazen operation, 18 months in the planning, saw Kyiv smuggle more than 100 small drones into Russia, disguised in a false roof of wood cabins, park them near Russian air bases and then unleash them in a coordinated attack. The Kremlin said Thursday it would choose 'how and when' to respond. There was no comment from Russian officials on the overnight strikes today. Putin has repeatedly rejected a ceasefire and Russian negotiators have issued a host of sweeping demands on Ukraine if it wants to halt the fighting. Putin vowed he would retaliate after a Ukrainian drone attack damaged nuclear-capable military planes at Russian air bases. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo They include completely pulling troops out of four regions claimed by Russia, but which its army does not fully control, an end to Western military support, a ban on Ukraine joining Nato as well as any Western military contingents or hardware being based in the country. Rescuers killed Multiple fires broke out in various districts of the capital, with the attack also damaging train tracks in the surrounding Kyiv region, leading to lengthy delays, the national railway operator said. Three of those killed were first responders from the state emergency service, Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said. 'They worked under fire to help people. Another nine rescuers were wounded. Some of them are seriously injured, and doctors are fighting for their lives,' he wrote on social media. Related Reads Trump-Putin phone call will not lead to 'immediate peace in Ukraine', US President says Ukraine says it destroyed more than 40 military planes in drone attack in Russia Seven killed after two bridges destroyed by 'explosions' in Russian regions bordering Ukraine Several strikes also hit western Ukraine's city of Lutsk and Ternopil region. 'Today, the enemy carried out the most massive air attack on our region to date. There are multiple strikes,' Ternopil's regional military administration chief Vyacheslav Negoda said. At least 32 people were wounded in four different regions, including 15 in Lutsk, officials said. Russia said Ukrainian strikes overnight on Russia wounded three people in the western Tula region. The Russian defence ministry said it downed 174 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 10 headed for the Russian capital, according to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said. With reporting from © AFP 2025 Want to know more about what's happening in Ukraine and why? Check out our new FactCheck Knowledge Bank for essential reads and guides to finding good information online. Visit Knowledge Bank Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
