Zelensky: Ukraine 'almost ready' for successful counter-offensive

President Volodymyr Zelensky held separate phone calls with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on July 27, discussing anti-corruption, defense, and EU integration.

A Russian drone targeting a bus killed three and injured 20 in Sumy Oblast on July 27.

The decision to cancel the Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg, an event traditionally held on the last Sunday of July, was announced by Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on July 27, who said it was made "for security reasons."

According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, the decree synchronizes Ukraine's sanctions with European sanctions. "As of now, all 18 sanctions packages are fully aligned and in effect in Ukraine," Zelensky wrote.

"We assessed your attempt yesterday to hit all of us at once," Brovdi said in the Telegram post, without offering further details. The post ended with a string of insults aimed at the Russian forces behind the alleged attack.

"I am very open to having a public debate about the future of Austria's security and defense policy," Austria's Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said. "Although there are currently no majorities in parliament and in the population for joining NATO, such a debate can still be very fruitful."

Protests sweep Ukraine in response to the new controversial law, which carries grim implications for integration into the European Union as peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations resume.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed Russia would prefer to resolve the conflict through dialogue, but said military operations continue because "opponents rejected the path of negotiations."

Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russian forces launched 83 drones overnight, 78 of which were taken out by air defenses.

"Despite having very good interactions with (Russian President) Vladimir Putin and phone calls, it never leads to anything," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. "So, the time has come for some action."

The number includes 920 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

As another sign of deepening bilateral relations, Russia is set to launch direct passenger flights from Moscow to Pyongyang on July 27, marking the first air connection between the two capitals in decades.

Russian forces launched an overnight attack on Ukraine's northeastern Sumy Oblast on July 26, targeting civilian infrastructure and leaving three people injured, local authorities reported.

The Vatican confirmed that Pope Leo received Metropolitan Anthony, the senior Russian Orthodox Church cleric who chairs its department of external church relations, along with five other high-profile clerics, during a morning audience on July 26.