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Hungary, Ukraine reach crucial agreement on minority rights, PM Magyar says
Prime Minister Peter Magyar said on Wednesday that Hungary and Ukraine reached a key agreement on the rights of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine, which could open the way to approving the opening of the first chapter in Ukraine's EU accession talks.
Magyar also said in a Facebook post his government does not support accelerated European Union accession talks for Ukraine.
France, Germany and the UK draw up plan to engage Putin in Ukraine talks
A group of Ukraine’s key European allies are working on plans with Kyiv to engage Russia in negotiations to end the war, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Officials from Germany, France and the UK, Europe's three biggest economies, have been discussing the possibility of holding talks and have discussed the matter with their Ukrainian counterparts, the report added.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
Trump to attend upcoming NATO summit in Turkey, says Rubio
"The United States is still in the NATO alliance, and we'll be there in Turkey to talk about all these topics. The president
himself will be attending the next NATO meeting of heads of state, where all these points will be made clear," Rubio said.
Romania defuses stray mine found on its Black Sea shore
Romania's navy detonated an anti-landing mine that had drifted to its Black Sea shore, the defence ministry said.
The ministry said the mine was a Russian YaRM-type that had been reported on the beach between the seaside towns Vama Veche and 2 Mai. It did not specify the age of the mine.
Ukraine drone strikes causing 'panic' for Kremlin: EU's Kallas to AFP
"It clearly shows also panic on the Russian side -- why they are increasing the terrorist attacks that they're doing in Ukraine is because they don't know what to do with these things," Kallas said in an interview.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the strikes as "fair" retaliation for Russia's bombardment of Ukraine and threatened to launch more.
"Ukraine has really increased the deep strikes against the oil facilities, because oil is something that is funding the war in Ukraine," Kallas said.
"We see at the same time that Putin is losing money, men, and momentum, and that's why he's increasing attacks on civilians."
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Ukrainian company tests ballistic missile for air defence system
Ukraine's largest missile and drone maker, Fire Point, has conducted a flight test of a ballistic missile that will serve as the foundation of a project to create a missile air defence system, the company's CEO, Iryna
Terekh, said.
"Recently, we conducted an extremely important test: a fully controlled manoeuvring flight of the FP-7.X missile, which will form the basis of the future Freyja anti-ballistic interceptor," Terekh wrote on X.
The FP7.X is the interceptor variant of Fire Point's FP7 ballistic missile, which is currently in development and which the company says will also be able to attack ground targets.
Fire Point's co-owner Denys Shtilierman told Reuters in April that it was in talks with unnamed European companies to launch a new air defence system capable of downing supersonic ballistic missiles by the end of next year, creating a low-cost alternative to the U.S.-made Patriot.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned young Russians that they would probably die if they sign up to join Russia's war in Ukraine.
You are being sold a raw deal," Rutte said during a press conference in Kyiv, in remarks he directly addressed to "young Russians and their families".
"Men like you who join the fight - you won't be trained. Equipment they'll provide you with is substandard. There is a very high chance you'll die or be wounded while you're out there," he said.
In Russia, the Saratov oil refinery has been halted since May 31 after a Ukrainian drone strike
Russia's Saratov oil refinery has been out of operation since May 31 after damage from a drone attack, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
On Sunday, Saratov Governor Roman Busargin said civilian infrastructure had been hit but gave no details. The refinery's sole crude distillation unit, with capacity of 20,000 metric tons per day, has been offline since May 31, the sources said.
In 2024, the plant processed 5.8 million tons of oil, or 2.2% of Russia's total refining, producing 1.2 million tons of gasoline, 1.9 million tons of diesel and 1.0 million tons of fuel oil.
Russian attack kills at least three in Ukraine's Kramatorsk, governor says.
A Russian attack killed at least three civilians in Ukraine's frontline city of Kramatorsk in the east, the Donetsk regional governor said on Wednesday.
Vadym Filashkin said on the Telegram app that Russian troops hit residential buildings during daytime attacks, adding that rescuers were working on the site.
Russian "shadow fleet" captain taken into French custody
French authorities have taken into custody the Russian captain of a seized oil tanker believed to be part of Moscow's "shadow fleet", a prosecutor said on Wednesday.
The captain was arrested on Tuesday and faces up to one year in prison and a 150,000€ ($174,000) fine, the prosecutor in the northwestern city of Brest Stephane Kellenberger said. The French navy detained the Tagor on Sunday on suspicion the ship was flying a false flag and its captain refused to comply with orders.
Moscow is demanding that France release the captain and said the move was illegal and amounted to "international piracy"
The UK summons the Russian ambassador after drone strikes hit NATO ally Romania
Foreign minister Yvette Cooper has condemned the incident, which occurred during a Russian attack on Ukraine and injured two people in the Romanian city of Galati, and said Britain stood united with allies to defend NATO territory.
"Injuring innocent civilians on NATO territory is unacceptable and a stark reminder of the threat that Ukrainian civilians are having to endure on a daily basis."
Additionally, Britain's foreign office said on Wednesday it was appalled by Russia's decision to ban five British nationals, including journalists, from entering the country.
"We have been clear that journalists must be able to carry out their work freely and without interference," a spokesperson for the foreign office said.
Russia on Tuesday banned five British nationals, including The Washington Post journalist Catherine Belton and The i Paper correspondent Richard Holmes, from entering the country.
In Kyiv, Zelensky says it's only a question of time for Ukraine to increase scale of retaliatory strikes in Russia
Speaking to reporters alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, the Ukrainian president said that deep strikes allow Ukraine to negotiate with Russia on equal footing while the NATO chief, who is currently on an unnanounced trip in Kyiv, characterized Russia as 'increasingly desperate'.
Zelensky says Saint Petersburg strikes are a 'fair' response to Russia's attacks and called on Europe to step up efforts on the anti-ballistic programme.
"I believe these are fair strikes. Just a day ago, there was a massive attack. We responded accordingly," Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv, adding: "It's just a matter of time before we can scale up the intensity of our responses."
Kremlin considers former German chancellor Gerhard Shroeder's visit positive
The Kremlin says the visit of former German chancellor Schroeder to Russia is positive, reports the Russian news agency TASS.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday said he would "personally" prefer longtime ally and friend, former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, as mediator in the Ukraine war, an idea that has been met with scepticism in Berlin.
Eastern Europe to reinforce air defence capabilities as drone warfare spillover sparks worries
Romania's foreign minister said on Wednesday several allies were preparing to reinforce air defence capabilities along NATO’s eastern flank after a drone identified by Bucharest as Russian crashed into a residential building on its territory.
Oana Toiu said during a visit to Paris that the incident would accelerate efforts already underway with NATO to strengthen surveillance and response systems, focusing on radars, fighter jets and anti-drone technologies.
The Ukrainian strikes in St. Petersburg demonstrate Ukraine's growing ability to strike Russia deep into its territory
Russian defence ministry says Russia has downed 754 drones over the past 24 hours
Russian air defences have downed 754 Ukrainian drones in the past 24 hours, the Interfax news agency reported.
