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Exclusives
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EU just held its first summit without Orbán, and discovered his obstruction was covering deeper divisions. Without him in the room, diplomats acknowledged behind closed doors that Orbán had long absorbed the blame for conflicts that were never really his alone. |
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First Ukraine made interceptor drones to hunt Shaheds. Now it’s firing them from a 1969 airplane.. One in three Russian aerial targets over Ukraine is now destroyed by an interceptor drone that costs less than a used car. This week, Ukraine added a new launch platform to that fleet: a 1969 Antonov An-28 transport plane. |
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Save all living things: Europe’s 20th sanctions package still spares Russia’s nuclear war machine. The EU has sanctioned almost everything Moscow touches—except the one company running an occupied nuclear plant and building parts for Russian missiles. |
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Ukraine’s new firms boom where missiles can’t reach. Year four of war, and Ukrainian business formation is accelerating—in sectors and cities the war can’t physically touch. |
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Kremlin builds “hotbed of tension” narrative against Lithuania — ISW warns of groundwork for Baltic aggression. ISW reports Moscow is using accusations against Lithuania and NATO over Kaliningrad Oblast to build justifications for potential future military action against the Baltic states. |
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Russia spent 20 years hardening Ukraine by accident. Europe won’t get that gift.. Two decades of hybrid pressure built the Ukraine that stopped Russian tanks in 2022. Moscow has drawn the lesson. NATO’s eastern flank should assume it has months, not decades. |
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Critics said Ukraine was losing the mid-range drone war. Russia’s burning trucks disagree.. More Ukrainian drones are ranging across the Russian logistical zone to strike trucks and starve front-line regiments’ of vital supplies. |
Military
After days of crawling through Sumy pipes, Russia is now trying same tactic in Kupiansk.
Ukraine’s “points-for-kills” procurement system has delivered 181,000 items to the front this year. Units earn points for confirmed battlefield activity, then order their own equipment via Brave1 Market – 95% of drone units have signed on.
Russia struck Ukraine’s railways 1,200 times in 2025 – more than the previous two years combined. Ukrzaliznytsia reports 17,300 rail sites hit since 2022 and 40 workers killed as Russia shifts targeting to trains themselves.
Ukrainian strikes have wiped $25.5 billion off Russia’s war machine, Syrskyi says. Ukrainian drones now kill Russian troops faster than Moscow can replace them – for four months running, Syrskyi says.
Four troops stranded without food at the front expose concealed failures – brigade commander fired. The General Staff cites hidden logistics problems and lost positions in the Kupiansk sector as grounds for dismissal.
107 Shaheds, 2 ballistic missiles. Russia’s overnight strike kills two in Odesa, hits a ship heading for port. Russia fired 2 ballistic missiles and 107 Shaheds at Ukraine overnight — 2 killed, 14 injured in Odesa, civilian vessel hit. Five oblasts left without power after strikes on energy infrastructure.
12 Russian FSB officers killed as Ukrainian drones hit “dirty war” command post in occupied Donetsk. Facility coordinated recruitment, sabotage, and operations against civilians in occupied areas, commander says.
Intelligence and technology
Ukraine details its “deep strike center” – the coordination unit behind long-range drone operations on occupied territories. The structure within the Unmanned Systems Forces plans and executes precision strikes on high-value Russian assets.
Ukrainian P1-Sun drones down 3,000-plus Shaheds in 2026 — at about $3,000 a piece. Ukrainian P1-Sun interceptor drones by Skyfall shot down over 3,000 Russian Shaheds in 2026 at roughly $3,000 each, Defense Ministry adviser Hanna Hvozdiar said.
“A surprise for the enemy”: Budanov says the next stage of warfare will be defined by autonomy as drone numbers hit their ceiling. Head of Presidential Office says both sides have maxed out current drone control tech; AI is next.
Ukrainian pilots now down Shaheds thousands of kilometers away – including from other countries. Operators can work from Kyiv, Lviv, or abroad – reducing exposure to strikes and electronic warfare.
International
After years of vetoes, Ukraine expects first EU accession talks to open in weeks.
Paris reportedly offers Athens a deal — 43 Greek Mirage 2000 jets for Ukraine, discounted Rafales in return. France may propose that Greece transfer 43 Mirage 2000 fighters and spare parts to Ukraine in exchange for a discounted Rafale package, Le Figaro reports.
“If he came it would probably be very helpful” – Trump on Putin at G20. Trump says Putin attending the December G20 summit at his Miami resort would be “very beneficial.” Moscow says an invitation arrived “at the highest level”; Washington says none has been sent.
EU’s 20th sanctions package hits 20 Russian banks, 46 shadow fleet tankers, and crypto platforms. Shadow fleet total hits 632 ships; new measures cover oil transport, Russian banks, crypto platforms, and re-exports via Kyrgyzstan.
Humanitarian and social impact
193 Ukrainian troops freed from Russian captivity in major prisoner exchange. Wounded troops and defenders from five front-line directions among those freed, with US and UAE mediating.
Washington’s National Mall now holds 20,000 teddy bears — one for each Ukrainian child Russia abducted. Ukraine’s ambassador filled Washington’s National Mall with 20,000 teddy bears — each marking a child Russia abducted. Only 2,000 are home.
Ukrainian Oscar winner Mstyslav Chernov heads L’Œil d’Or jury at Cannes 2026. Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov, whose “20 Days in Mariupol” won an Oscar, will chair the L’Œil d’Or documentary jury at Cannes 2026. Winner announced 22 May.
Sleep loss, family worries, paperwork: the real top complaints in Ukrainian military therapy. More than 70% of Ukrainian soldiers’ consultations with military psychologists concern fatigue and daily issues rather than deep trauma, the Ukrainian Ground Forces reported on Psychologist Day.
Political and legal developments
German prosecutors charge Ukrainian and Latvian with “agent activity for sabotage purposes”. Bavarian police arrested a Ukrainian and a Latvian on 12 April after a routine A6 traffic stop turned up a drone, GPS trackers, radios, and forged IDs. Prosecutors allege sabotage-linked espionage.
Read our previous daily review here.
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