The Norwegian defense company Kongsberg and Ukraine's DevDroid announced on June 30 a collaboration to produce ground drones equipped with state-of-the-art weapons systems, aiming to supply Ukraine and other European countries.

The payment is part of the initial 6-billion-euro ($7-billion) tranche dedicated to drone procurement under the 90-billion-euro ($103 billion) Ukraine Support Loan.

The relay equipment that helps guide Russian drones over Belarus went dark on June 22, days after President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a public ultimatum, threatening to disable the equipment with Ukraine's own forces if the demand is not met. Zelensky's ultimatum to Alexander Lukashenko left the Belarusian dictator between a rock and a hard place: refuse, and Belarus risks joining Ukraine's list of drone targets. Comply, and he risks publicly defying Russian President Vladimir Putin — his count

The EU's new steel allocation, set to enter into force on July 1, was introduced in response to global steel overcapacity, which has been hurting EU producers. The measure aims to restrict tariff-free steel imports to 18.3 million metric tons per year, a 47% reduction.

The child was killed after a private house caught fire following what local authorities said was a drone crash in Yegoryevsk.

"I proposed what I believe was a very fair, partnership-based approach: MiGs in exchange for drones," Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said. "The Ukrainians initially accepted it but did not follow through, so there are no MiGs for Ukraine because there are no drones, or drone capabilities, for Poland."

The number includes 1,350 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

Ukraine has made "progress" in negotiations, but there are still bureaucratic hurdles to clear, Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said on June 29.

According to the French news outlet BFM TV, the blast injured Ukrainian businessman Vadym Yermolaiev, his partner, and 13-year-old daughter. Authorities are investigating the incident as a possible terrorist attack.

Swedish defense company Saab announced on June 29 that it had signed a $4.83 billion contract with Poland to supply three A26 submarines, as Poland and Sweden deepen defense cooperation under the Baltic Sea Pact.

President Volodymyr Zelensky and Danish Defense Minister Jeppe Bruus discussed a potential drone cooperation agreement and expanded efforts to strengthen anti-ballistic capabilities during a June 29 meeting.

A negotiated ceasefire that produces a de facto freeze of the war would be the worst outcome for Ukraine and the best outcome for Russia. To understand why, one needs only to look at what the war itself is revealing. Moscow is on a losing trajectory, and a freeze would lock in conditions that let Russia avoid the political and economic costs of defeat, while denying Kyiv the space it needs to prevail and rebuild. The human impulse to stop the fighting is understandable, but ending active comba

"See you at the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC)" was the departing note after many meetings in Kyiv during the weeks leading up to Ukraine’s largest annual business and economics event. From June 25–26, it felt like half of Ukraine had descended upon Gdansk on Poland’s Baltic coast as a record 7,500 officials, business leaders, entrepreneurs, economists, activists, and journalists envisioned the war-torn country’s economic revival. Last year's conference attracted between 5,000–6,000 people.

Key developments on June 29: * Ukraine reveals new figures for North Korean troop losses in Russia's Kursk Oblast * Ukraine claims strikes on bridges, Russian command posts and logistics * 154th Mechanized Brigade's commander found dead, military say Russian attacks across Ukraine killed at least 15 people and injured at least 118 others over the past day, regional authorities reported on June 29, as the death toll rose from a Russian morning attack on Dnipro. The Air Force said Russia lau

WARSAW, Poland — Walk into Milk Bar in central Warsaw, and you'll find the new face of the city's café scene. The lines are clean, the lighting deliberate, and the cakes arranged with gallery-like precision. Without an ear for accents, you might never guess that for its owners and staff, it is a second home, rebuilt after war in Ukraine and political repression in Belarus that forced many of them to start over in Poland. Anna Kozachenko launched the original Milk Bar in Kyiv twelve years ago.

The strikes were carried out "to reduce the military and economic potential of the Russian aggressor," Ukraine's General Staff said.

Lawmaker Mykola Tyshchenko was also charged with money laundering and lying in his asset declaration.

Tomasz Siemoniak, Poland's minister overseeing intelligence agencies, said that since autumn 2025, the group paid Ukrainian refugees in Poland to take part in pro-Russian demonstrations to influence Ukrainian migrants, with funding allegedly coming from Russia.

The Air Force said Russia launched 108 drones against Ukraine overnight, of which it reported downing 82.

HUR's claimed figure surpasses the previous South Korean and British intelligence assessment, which estimated a total of about 6,000 casualties for North Korean troops, both killed and injured, in Kursk Oblast.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping described Belarus-China relations as being at a "historic peak" and called the two countries "iron friends."

The number includes 1,230 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

Zaporizhzhia regional police later reported that a commander of a military unit had been found dead with a gunshot wound, without naming the brigade commander specifically.

"Unfortunately, there are still lines at gas stations, and the right grade of gasoline isn't always available," Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

The fatalities included a 53-year-old woman, Governor Ivan Fedorov said.

Speaking at a congress of the ruling United Russia party, Putin said the West had failed to defeat Russia "on the battlefield" and was therefore trying to "stir up the political situation and sow internal unrest."

Key developments on June 27-28: * Ukraine struck oil refineries in Russia's Krasnodar Krai and Yaroslavl Oblast, Zelensky says * Ukraine says 'Spirit of Anchorage' is 'dead,' Russia must face reality in peace talks * Explosions, fires reported in Kyiv amid Russian missile attack * Ukraine strikes Russian oil hub supplying Moscow for 2nd time this month, military says Ukraine struck oil refineries in Russia's Krasnodar Krai and Yaroslavl Oblast overnight on June 28, President Volodymyr Zele

In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, Kateryna Denisova examines how Ukraine's attitudes toward LGBTQ people have changed — and why the country's laws have struggled to keep pace.

President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed erecting a monument to Cossack Hetman Ivan Mazepa on the site where a statue of Vladimir Lenin was toppled during the EuroMaidan Revolution in Kyiv, calling it a step toward restoring "historical justice."

Kyiv has been deepening security partnerships across the Gulf region, offering to bolster local defenses against Iranian drones.

Photos and videos posted to social media purport to show large flames and plumes of smoke emanating from what appears to be storage tanks at the Slavyansk refinery.

Ukraine's Air Force said it intercepted all six Iskander-M ballistic missiles, one of the two Zircon hypersonic missiles or Onyx missiles, and 125 of the 142 drones launched by Russia overnight.