Exclusives
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Donetsk was Russia’s safe rear. Now AI drones hunt its supply trucks.. Relentless Ukrainian strikes on Russian air defenses are rendering wide swathes of the Russian rear area defenseless against further aerial attacks. |
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Ukraine MPs vote themselves untracked monthly cash inside an IMF-mandated tax bill. $4,555 per MP per month, no reporting, no liability—signed into law on 15 April. |
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Ukraine is developing its own unstoppable air-launched missile. Russia's Kinzhal air-launched ballistic missile is extremely hard to intercept. That's why Ukraine wants its own version of the missile. |
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Neutrality doesn’t mean indifference: Austria joins tribunal to prosecute Russia’s aggression. Vienna says neutrality doesn't mean indifference as it becomes the 20th state to back prosecution of Russia's crime of aggression. |
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Either Russia’s air defense doesn’t work, or NATO is launching drones, says Russia’s Shoigu. Shoigu cites Article 51. |
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Soviet 14th Army’s heirs just became persona non grata in Moldova. Chișinău drew a line on the Dniester. |
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Ukraine’s executives were most optimistic since the invasion. Oil had other plans.. The results capture a moment that no longer reflects current conditions. |
Military
New roads and artillery positions: Zelenskyy warns of military buildup in Belarus near Ukraine border. Ukrainian intelligence detected the preparations near the border; Kyiv has warned Minsk through diplomatic channels that it is ready to defend itself.
From Belgorod to Crimea: Ukraine strikes 17 targets including Russian radar systems, drone labs, and logistics hubs. A Nebo-M in Belgorod Oblast and a Podlyot in Rostov Oblast are among the high-value systems reported destroyed in the multi-day campaign.
Ukraine depends on Western air defense. Zelenskyy says that has to change – and partners are on board. Speaking after Lviv meetings, Zelenskyy outlined a push for domestic production of missiles and systems as part of long-term security guarantees.
Russia's Black Sea Fleet once fired missiles from the Mediterranean. Now it can barely leave Novorossiysk.. A Ukrainian analyst says years of drone and missile strikes have reduced the fleet to a land-support tool with nowhere to go.
Russia sank the Henichesk in 2022. In June, a ship bearing its name will join Ukraine's Navy — but cannot sail home yet. The replacement vessel trains in the Netherlands, flies Ukraine's flag in June, and waits in a British port for the war to end and the Black Sea to open.
The most dangerous drone unit Russia has just lost its logistics base near Mariupol — Ukraine found it and burned it. Last night, Ukraine's SOF destroyed the base of Rubikon — Moscow's elite unit that operates virtually every Russian attack and reconnaissance drone type except Shaheds.
"Storm a treeline? Better to just take it apart with a Vampire" — drone battalion commander on how war changed in 2026. Maksym, call sign "Rumyn," says the kill zone has grown from 3 km to "many times larger" — and explains what that means for infantry.
SBU and drone forces destroy Russian fuel trains near Luhansk, cutting supplies to frontline troops. FP-2 drones struck railway tankers and damaged rail infrastructure Russia uses to sustain mechanized units on the front.
Ukraine's drone forces claim 16-target overnight strike – Iskander bases, air defenses, and a Rubikon workshop. The operation spanned Crimea, Donetsk, and Zaporizhzhia, coordinated through a newly established deep strike center.
Hero of 2022 battles will now command defense of five oblasts on Ukraine's Eastern Front.
Ukraine's Patriot crews are rationing missiles mid-attack — Ukraine's Air Force confirms interceptor missile shortage. An AF spokesman confirmed that the stocks of Patriot interceptors — the only solution against Russian ballistic missiles — are critically depleted.
Intelligence and technology
Ukraine's private-sector air defense groups downed their first jet Shahed — Russia's drone that flies at 300+ km/h. A private group in Kharkiv Oblast made the interception, a minister reported. The network has grown from 13 to 19 enterprises it operates at since March, integrated into Air Force command.
Russia is pulling strategic reserves to prop up a failing offensive, HUR says — and 20,000 troops is less than one month of its own losses. Moscow's military missed its self-imposed April deadline to seize three Donetsk Oblast cities, now it wants the rest of the region captured by September.
Drones Russia thought were unjammable just met US LEONIDAS microwave weapon. Fiber-optic UAVs threaten logistics 50 km deep.
International
US delays weapons to NATO's eastern flank – Iran war drains stockpiles Europe was counting on. Countries bordering Russia are warned shipments won't arrive on schedule, adding uncertainty for Ukraine's air defense supply chain too.
Trump extended the ban on Russian ships docking in US ports — keeping a Biden-era measure alive through spring 2027. The White House cited Russia's policies as constituting a continuing disturbance to US international relations.
"Russia wants more war" – EU's Kallas pushes €90 billion loan and 20th sanctions after deadliest April strike. The EU foreign policy chief called out Moscow's "terror against the innocent" as ministers prepare to meet.
Humanitarian and social impact
Bullied for speaking Ukrainian, taken to camps, threatened with conscription: 19 children evacuated from Russian occupation. Bring Kids Back UA describe what the children endured before reaching safety – and how many more remain behind.
He flew from Peru to Moscow for work. Russia took his passport and sent him to Ukraine.. A Peruvian's account of abduction and coerced conscription adds Latin America to the map of Russia's global recruitment dragnet.
Political and legal developments
MP accused of ties to Russian security services and Crimea property deal moved to house arrest after sanctions blocked bail payment. Shufrych allegedly paid a Russian National Guard unit to guard his Crimea property – prosecutors say that counts as financing an occupying force.
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