Putin’s Victory Day and White House chaos | Ukraine This Week

7:03 PM

Ukraine asks allies to earmark 0.25% of GDP for joint defense production, Zelensky says.

Ukraine is currently in talks with Denmark, Norway, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Lithuania on weapons development partnerships, according to the president.

6:18 PM

Culture

Love, sex, survival — Ukrainian author on how war shapes intimacy in Ukraine

5:56 PM

Ukraine approves Termit ground drone for battlefield deployment.

The tracked robot is a next-generation version of Ukraine's existing ground-based unmanned systems already deployed across the front.

5:15 PM  (Updated:  June 21, 2025 5:55 pm)

'My husband is free' — Belarus opposition leader Siarhei Tsikhanouski freed after US envoy visits Minsk.

Sergei Tikhanovsky was sentenced to 18 years in prison on politically motivated charges in 2021.

4:04 PM

NATO

Pro-Russian 'peace protestors' set to descend on NATO summit.

3:21 PM

Video

Inside the Special Operations Forces of Ukraine

Forged from the remnants of the Soviet Spetsnaz, Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces have become a vital pillar of the country’s current defense, playing their role in some of the war’s most decisive engagements – from Kyiv to Donbas, and to Kursk Oblast in Russia.

3:08 PM

'In any case, the aggressor loses' — Zelensky urges Trump to 'make the right choice for history'.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia is attempting to influence U.S. President Donald Trump amid the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.

2:42 PM

Russia 'afraid to admit' scale of losses, trying to hide by dumping soldiers' bodies on Ukraine, Zelensky says.

Ukrainian authorities have confirmed that at least 20 of the bodies Russia returned as Ukrainian were actually Russian soldiers, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

2:18 PM

Russia's Oreshnik missile production can be halted by 'urgent' sanctions, Zelensky says.

Russia first launched the experimental Oreshnik missile in an attack against Dnipro on Nov. 21.

1:15 PM

Environment

How 3 years of war have ravaged Ukraine’s forests, and the people who depend on them.

1:11 PM

Russia recruits Central Asia migrants as 'cannon fodder' in Ukraine war, HUR says.

Citizens of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and other countries in the region are increasingly being drawn into Russia's war effort, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) says.

11:43 AM

At least 13 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine over past day.

Russia launched 272 drones overnight, including Iranian-designed Shahed-type suicide drones, along with two aeroballistic missiles and six cruise missiles, Ukraine's Air Force said.

10:31 AM  (Updated:  June 21, 2025 11:00 am)

Russian economy recession warnings 'greatly exaggerated,' Putin claims, denies war in Ukraine 'killing' growth.

The statement comes after warnings from his own officials about stagnation and looming recession.

10:59 AM

Trump administration sends layoff notices to 600 Voice of America staff, NYT reports.

U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown against Voice of America has been celebrated by Russian propagandists, who welcomed the cuts to the network.

9:21 AM

General Staff: Russia has lost 1,010,390 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.

The number includes 1,060 casualties that Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

8:02 AM

Russian attacks injure 7 people in Kherson Oblast.

Seven people were injured in Russian drone and artillery attacks on Kherson Oblast on June 20-21. Strikes hit multiple settlements, including the city of Kherson.

5:40 AM

Ukraine developing interceptor drones to counter Russian attacks, Zelensky says.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his June 20 nightly address that Ukraine is developing interceptor drones to counter Russian drone strikes, adding that domestic production is "already delivering results."

2:57 AM

Zelensky to attend NATO summit despite media reports that he won't.

President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to attend a NATO summit in The Hague next week, the European Council confirmed on June 20.

12:53 AM

'This is the best offer Ukraine can get today' — Russia won't back down as renewed peace talks loom.

Russia's memorandum on a peace proposal is the "best offer Ukraine can get today," Russia's envoy to the United Nations (UN), Vasily Nebenzya, said at a UN Security Council meeting.

11:33 PM

'Absolutely insane' — Zelensky condemns Russian offensive in Sumy Oblast amid Moscow's maximalist demands.

President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned Russia's attempts to advance in Sumy Oblast, as Moscow intensifies its maximalist rhetoric.

10:22 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: Kyiv calls on West to isolate Moscow after Putin claims 'all of Ukraine' belongs to Russia.

8:04 PM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 10:02 pm)

'All of Ukraine is ours' — Putin on Russia's territorial ambitions in Ukraine.

8:58 PM

Ukraine unites Unmanned Systems Forces with top 'Drone Line' units under new command group.

The grouping was created to "improve the efficiency of management, transform the Forces, and adapt to the requirements of modern warfare," according to the statement.

2:19 PM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 7:47 pm)

KI Insights

Ukraine calendar: What will happen this week

6:41 PM

EU postpones lowering price cap for Russian oil amid tensions in Middle East, Politico reports.

Ukraine has been calling on Western partners to lower the price cap on Russian oil from $60 to $30 per barrel. Meanwhile, two diplomats told Politico that the escalation of the conflict between Iran and Israel would make it impossible to impose new restrictions.