Could Ukraine hold a presidential election right now? Will Europe use frozen Russian assets to fund war? How can Ukraine rebuild China ties? 'Ukraine is running out of men, money and time' Russian forces launched a drone attack on the Ukrainian city of Odesa overnight on Saturday, killing an elderly woman and damaging residential buildings, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said. A Russian civilian was killed in a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia's border region of Bryansk on Saturday, according to Governor Alexander Bogomaz.

What are Russia's gains from the Iran war? 'We are not losers; we are winners' Fierce fighting continues on the front line between Russian and Ukrainian forces despite the frigid winter temperatures, said Ukraine's Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrskii, who stated the front line now stretches about 1,200km (750 miles) in length along eastern and southern parts of Ukraine. Increasing technological improvements in drone warfare on both sides of the conflict mean that the so-called "kill zone" - where troops are in greatest danger on the front line - is now up to 20km (12 miles) deep, Syrskii told reporters. Russia launched 328 drones and seven missiles at Ukraine overnight and into the early morning on Friday, Ukraine's air force said, claiming that air defences had shot down 297 drones. One person was killed and two others were injured in an overnight Russian attack using drones and powerful glide bombs on the central Dnipropetrovsk region, according to the head of the regional military administration, Oleksandr Hanzha. A Russian aerial attack on the southern Zaporizhia region during early daylight hours injured eight people and damaged 18 apartment blocks, according to regional military administration head Ivan Fedorov.

Russian attacks on Ukraine energy sites'particularly depraved', UK PM Starmer says Russia's attacks on Ukraine's energy sector on Monday night - as temperatures dropped to -20C (-4F) - were barbaric and particularly depraved, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said. He made the comments after speaking to US President Donald Trump hours after Russia hit power plants and critical infrastructure in the capital, Kyiv, and elsewhere. The attacks came at the end of a week-long pause that Trump had asked Russia's President Vladimir Putin to observe as a fierce cold swept Ukraine. Trump said on Tuesday that Putin had kept his word and that he would like him to end the war. Top US envoys are meeting negotiators from Russia and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday and Thursday.

Could Ukraine hold a presidential election right now? Will Europe use frozen Russian assets to fund war? How can Ukraine rebuild China ties? 'Ukraine is running out of men, money and time' At least two people were injured after Russian forces launched a drone and missile attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said. The attack also damaged apartment buildings, a school, and a kindergarten, he added.

Automated negotiation has emerged as a critical area of research in multiagent systems, with applications spanning e-commerce, resource allocation, and autonomous decision-making. This paper presents ChargingBoul, a negotiating agent that competed in the 2022 Automated Negotiating Agents Competition (ANAC) and placed second in individual utility by an exceptionally narrow margin. ChargingBoul employs a lightweight yet effective strategy that balances concession and opponent modeling to achieve high negotiation outcomes. The agent classifies opponents based on bid patterns, dynamically adjusts its bidding strategy, and applies a concession policy in later negotiation stages to maximize utility while fostering agreements. We evaluate ChargingBoul's performance using competition results and subsequent studies that have utilized the agent in negotiation research. Our analysis highlights ChargingBoul's effectiveness across diverse opponent strategies and its contributions to advancing automated negotiation techniques. We also discuss potential enhancements, including more sophisticated opponent modeling and adaptive bidding heuristics, to improve its performance further.

Chernobyl radiation shield'lost safety function' after drone strike, UN watchdog says A protective shield covering the Chernobyl nuclear reactor in Ukraine can no longer provide its main containment function following a drone strike earlier this year, according to a UN watchdog. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors found that the massive structure, built over the site of the 1986 nuclear disaster, had lost its primary safety functions including the confinement capability. In February, Ukraine accused Russia of targeting the power plant - a claim the Kremlin denied. The IAEA said repairs were essential to prevent further degradation of the nuclear shelter. However environmental expert Jim Smith told the BBC: It is not something to panic about.

An Garda Síochána (Irish police force) has launched an investigation after drones were detected in Irish skies on the night the Ukrainian president arrived in Ireland. Volodymyr Zelensky flew into Dublin late on Monday night for a one-day official visit with his wife, First Lady Olena Zelenska. Senior Irish government figures, including Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Micheál Martin, have been briefed on the issue. Martin confirmed it would be discussed at a National Security Council meeting later this month. In a statement, gardaí said its Special Detective Unit (SDU) is investigating the matter and will be liaising with the Defence Forces and international security partners.

A Russian drone and missile attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv has killed at least one person and injured seven others, city officials say. Early on Saturday morning residential buildings in several districts were hit and loud explosions could be heard across the city. Kyiv's mayor Vitaly Klitschko said a 13-year-old child was among the injured and four people had been taken to hospital. Earlier this week a similar attack on Kyiv killed seven people, Ukrainian officials said. The latest bombardment came as Ukrainian negotiators were preparing for talks with US officials this weekend on an amended US peace plan.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has discussed the war in Ukraine with leaders of the United States, Italy, France and Germany, a 10 Downing Street spokesperson has said, in advance of US President Donald Trump's planned call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Monday. The flurry of diplomacy comes shortly after inconclusive direct Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul, Turkiye on Friday. The leaders discussed the need for an unconditional ceasefire and for Putin to take peace talks seriously, the spokesperson said late on Sunday, adding that they also raised the use of sanctions if Russia failed to engage seriously in a ceasefire and concerted peace talks. In remarks to reporters earlier on Sunday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he discussed the issue with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio while the two men were attending the inaugural mass of Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican. Merz said he also spoke at length at the Vatican with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

With the United States set to meet delegations from Russia Ukraine separately in Saudi Arabia on Monday in an ongoing bid to halt the three-year war, Russia has launched a drone attack on Friday night on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing three people and wounding 12, Ukrainian officials said. The city was hit by 12 drones, police said. Regional Governor Ivan Fedorov said residential buildings, cars and communal buildings were set on fire. Photos from the scene showed emergency services scouring the rubble for survivors. Ukraine and Russia agreed this week in principle to a limited ceasefire after US President Donald Trump held separate calls on consecutive days with the countries' leaders, but what actual targets would be off limits to attack remains contentious.