Is the war entering a new phase? Ukraine reinforces Donetsk as it seeks to disrupt Russia's weapons flow Share Ukraine reinforces Donetsk as it seeks to disrupt Russia's weapons flow on social media Ukraine has reinforced the defence of its eastern Donetsk region as Russia mounted renewed efforts to seize Sloviansk, a key part of Ukraine's "fortress belt" of cities that include Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka and Kostiantynivka. At the same time, Britain and France made a crucial decision to transfer Storm Shadow cruise missile technology to Kyiv, as Ukraine shifts its air defence strategy to destroying Russia's means of ballistic missile production and launch, rather than intercepting the missiles individually. Russia has also been infiltrating the fortress city of Kostiantynivka to the south of Sloviansk, but does not control it. Ukrainian military observer Kostyantyn Mashovets said Kyiv still maintains positions in central and northern Kostiantynivka.

Is the war entering a new phase? Video shows the moment a Russian attack hit a parking lot in Vyshneve near Ukraine's capital, causing a woman walking nearby to fall before fleeing to safety. According to authorities, it was the second consecutive day of Russian attacks on the Kyiv region. 'Barrier lake' triggers fresh floods, halts rescue at Nepal-China border Qatar pushes for united Libya with visit to country's east'Typical Trump, silly joke': 'Lake America' has Canadians laughing

Ukrainian commander sped through'kill zone' to save wounded troops Ukrainian commander Vladyslav Polskyi, 29, who rescued injured service members from an unmanned ground vehicle in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on Aug. 20 | REUTERS KHARKIV REGION, UKRAINE - Seeing two wounded fighters stranded on the battlefield -- one of them still strapped to a land drone immobilized by a Russian strike -- Ukrainian commander Vladyslav Polskyi knew he had to do something. The 29-year-old -- a former science teacher who joined the army in 2023 -- was watching the soldiers on a screen in his command post around 15 kilometers away. Between them stretched the "kill zone," riddled with mines and swarmed by aerial drones ready to attack anything that moved. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right. With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories.

Russia is expanding its campaign of hybrid attacks against countries that supply weapons and money to Kyiv and has caught Europe without a plan to respond. From cyber attacks to armed drones and mysterious cases of arson, tensions are rising across the continent as the war in Ukraine is set to enter its fifth winter. Just this month, Poland said it thwarted an attempted assassination of a U.S. citizen originally from Ukraine that was ordered by Russia, while Estonia accused Moscow of being behind a fire at a drone-maker. Meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Tuesday that those responsible for hybrid attacks "will pay the price" after an explosive-laden drone was discovered at an airport in Leipzig near a Ukrainian cargo plane, raising speculation that Moscow was involved in an attempted strike. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.

As Ukraine hits Russia's refineries, Russia targets Ukraine's petrol pumps Fill up quickly and move on, Mayor Ihor Terekhov warns drivers in Ukraine's second largest city Kharkiv. Two petrol stations in the city in Ukraine's north-east were hit by Russian drones on Monday, which local officials say wounded two people. In another attack on a petrol station outside the city of Kryvyi Rih last week, three people were killed. Russia's campaign of targeting civilian filling stations with drones and missiles began in earnest in April, primarily in regions on the front line, and the attacks are steadily growing more frequent. At the same time, Russia has endured two waves of severe fuel shortages across the country as a result of Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries.

Andy Burnham has refused to rule out tax rises in the upcoming autumn Budget, saying he won't be unrealistic about the challenging state of public finances. The prime minister said he would take a careful approach to the economy, and defended his previously announced cost of living pledges as funded spending commitments. Burnham became prime minister in July promising to give people breathing space and help with the cost of living, but questions remain over how major policies such as social care reforms will be funded. Experts have previously warned that he and Chancellor John Healey will have little financial room to manoeuvre in their first Budget on 28 October. Speaking during his first visit to Ukraine, Burnham said the policies announced so far including capping bus fares at £2 and cutting VAT on household electricity bills were the first steps that I've felt able to make, and were doable because he was able to reprioritise funding from elsewhere.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he plans to travel to the US next month with European leaders to lobby US President Trump on Ukraine's defence needs. In an interview with Bloomberg, Burnham said, I'm looking forward to going to New York in September, when the UN General Assembly will meet. He said that while the details were not fully confirmed, it is likely he will go. The trip would be his first to the US since becoming prime minister in July. Leaving today, I'm quite clear what I need to do in the next few weeks, he said following his official visit to Ukraine on Monday, during which he promised to continue pressuring Russia.

Ukraine marked 35 years of independence as an expert said deep strikes inside Russia have Putin panicked and Moscow targeting civilians.

A pilot project will use AI-optimised sensors in buried fibre-optic cables to detect different kinds of movement at a UK defence site. A pilot project will use AI-optimised sensors in buried fibre-optic cables to detect different kinds of movement at a UK defence site. Mon 24 Aug 2026 14.16 EDTLast modified on Tue 25 Aug 2026 00.13 EDT AI models trained on Ukrainian battlefield data will be used to stop protesters and foreign states targeting UK defence sites, railways and energy plants under a deal struck between London and Kyiv. Private companies will also be given access to the vast trove of data from Ukraineâ s Avengers AI lab to help build new systems, the first agreement of its kind in the UK. The scheme will be piloted at a UK defence site, building a model to identify protesters or a hostile-state attack.

Is the war entering a new phase? President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree opening the way for the Russian state to take temporary control of critical infrastructure found to be inadequately protected from attack. The decree, published on Monday, would allow Moscow to strip owners of physical and financial control over facilities should it be determined that they are failing to secure them or repair damage quickly. The move comes as Ukraine maintains an intense drone campaign against Russian infrastructure. Fuel and energy facilities, including nuclear power, are included under the legislation as well as industry, communications, transport and logistics, public utilities and other facilities deemed essential to state security and economic stability.