Media: North Macedonia expells six Russian diplomats.

9:03 AM

Russia injures at least 28 across Ukraine over past day.

Ukrainian air defenses shot down 40 drones, while 48 disappeared from radars or were intercepted by electronic warfare.

8:23 AM

General Staff: Russia has lost 1,008,240 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.

The number includes 1,080 casualties that Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

3:13 AM

9 people injured in Russian strikes on Kherson Oblast.

Russian attacks on Kherson Oblast injured nine people and damaged residential infrastructure on June 18-19, according to local authorities. The strikes targeted 34 settlements with artillery and drones.

1:22 AM

Putin says he's ready to meet Zelensky if West 'stops pushing' Ukraine to fight.

Russia wants to end the war in Ukraine "as soon as possible," preferably through peaceful means, and is ready to continue negotiations — provided that Kyiv and its Western allies are willing to engage, Vladimir Putin said.

12:35 AM

Senate reportedly delays Russia sanctions as Middle East crisis, Trump’s tax bill take priority.

The U.S. Senate is postponing action on a bipartisan Russia sanctions bill until at least July, as other legislative and foreign policy priorities dominate the agenda, Semafor reported on June 18.

10:46 PM

Opinion

Russia turns sound into weapon

10:39 PM

Putin under pressure from hardliners to declare all-out war on Ukraine following Operation Spiderweb, Telegraph reports.

Russia’s hardline nationalist elite reportedly argues that only a formal war declaration would permit true escalation—full-scale mobilisation, regular missile strikes, and potentially the use of tactical nuclear weapons.

10:09 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: 'Do me a favor Vladimir, mediate Russia first' — Trump roasts Putin over Israel, Iran offer

9:55 PM

Video

Russia’s deadliest attack on Kyiv this year shatters homes and lives

6:19 PM  (Updated:  June 18, 2025 9:19 pm)

'Do me a favor Vladimir, mediate Russia first' — Trump roasts Putin over Israel, Iran offer.

"I said, Vladimir, let's mediate Russia first. You can worry about this later," U.S. President Donald Trump said.

9:14 PM

After speaking out against Trump, former US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink launches congressional bid.

"My next mission: fighting for what's right here at home," Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink wrote.

1:35 AM  (Updated:  June 18, 2025 8:10 pm)

'A brutal strike' — Massive Russian missile and drone attack hits Kyiv, killing 28, injuring at least 140.

At least 28 people have been killed and 134 others injured after a mass Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv overnight on June 17.

7:52 PM

Ukraine kills collaborator tied to POW torture in occupied Berdiansk, intelligence source claims.

Mykhailo Hrytsai, a senior collaborator with the Russian occupation authorities, was shot dead in the city with a silenced PM pistol, according to a source.

5:41 PM

All NATO members to hit 2% defense spending in 2025, Rutte says.

"This is really great news," NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said.

4:58 PM

Ukraine preparing to evacuate citizens from Israel, Iran as Middle East conflict escalates.

As of the morning of June 18, 293 Ukrainians in Israel and 85 in Iran have requested evacuation, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said.

3:58 PM  (Updated:  June 18, 2025 4:22 pm)

4 months after striking Chornobyl, Russia warns Israeli attacks on Iran risk nuclear 'catastrophe'

3:38 PM

Slovak police tried to detain ex-defense minister over Ukraine aid deal, media reports.

The Slovak police reportedly also seek to detain a former Defense Ministry official and have detained an ex-head of the Konstrukta Defense state company in a move denounced by Nad's opposition Democrats party as politically motivated.

10:12 PM  (Updated:  June 18, 2025 3:23 pm)

Business

‘A blueprint’ — foreign investors, Ukrainian hotel chain create jobs for war displaced

3:20 PM

For the first time, Australia sanctions Russian shadow fleet oil tankers.

"Russia uses these vessels to circumvent international sanctions and sustain its illegal and immoral war against Ukraine," Australia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

2:13 PM

Ukraine won't receive NATO invitation at The Hague summit, Lithuanian FM says.

"This issue is certainly not on the NATO agenda and nobody has formulated an expectation that there will be an invitation in The Hague, nor have we heard that from the Ukrainians themselves," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys said in comments quoted by the LRT broadcaster.

1:41 PM

Zelensky may reportedly skip NATO summit over uncertainty about Trump's attendance.

According to the Guardian, some in Kyiv are unsure if President Volodymyr Zelensky's presence at the summit would be worthwhile without a confirmed meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.

10:33 AM  (Updated:  June 18, 2025 1:24 pm)

North Korea sending 6,000 military builders, sappers to Russia, Shoigu says after meeting Kim.

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu is expected to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the visit.

1:17 PM

Ukraine dismisses Russia's 'absurd' ceasefire condition for dismantling Western arms.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry on June 18 brushed off Moscow's demands for Kyiv to destroy or dismantle Western-supplied weapons as a condition for a ceasefire, saying it shows disregard for U.S. peace efforts.

12:39 PM

Ukraine's parliament passes state asset agency reform crucial for EU funding.

The legislation passed with the support of 253 lawmakers "after months of obstructions... unblocking 600 million euros ($690 million) in EU funds," lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak said.

12:31 PM

Ruslan Kravchenko approved as Ukraine's new Prosecutor General.

Kravchenko, a former military prosecutor and most recently head of Ukraine's tax service, replaces Andrii Kostin, who stepped down in October 2024 following a scandal involving fraudulent disability claims by dozens of prosecutors in Khmelnytskyi Oblast.