Europe

Ange Postecoglou spoke of his intense pride at his two-year stint as Tottenham Hotspur manager after it ended with him being sacked by the Premier League club.

The 59-year-old Australian took the club to their first trophy for 17 years last month when Tottenham beat Manchester United to win the Europa League.

But the club axed him on Friday after their worst top-flight campaign since 1976-77, finishing one place above the Premier League’s relegation zone after losing 22 games.

“When I reflect on my time as Manager of Tottenham Hotspur my overriding emotion is one of pride,” he said in a statement released shortly after his dismissal was confirmed.

“The opportunity to lead one of England’s historic football clubs and bring back the glory it deserves will live with me for a lifetime. Sharing that experience with all those who truly love this club and seeing the impact it had on them is something I will never forget.

“That night in Bilbao was the culmination of two years of hard work, dedication and unwavering belief in a dream. There were many challenges to overcome and plenty of noise that comes with trying to accomplish what many said was not possible.”

Postecoglou spoke in the build-up to the Europa League final about changing the way the club is perceived, and he said his accomplishments should ensure that Tottenham will not have to wait so long for their next trophy.

“We have laid foundations that mean this club should not have to wait 17 more years for their next success,” he said. “I have enormous faith in this group of players and know there is much more potential and growth in them.”

While Tottenham fans were split over Postecoglou’s future, he had a message for the supporters.

“I sincerely want to thank those who are the lifeblood of the club, the supporters,” he said. “I know there were some difficult times but I always felt that they wanted me to succeed and that gave me all the motivation I needed to push on.

“And finally, I want to thank those who were with me every day for the last two years. A fantastic group of young men who are now legends of this football club and the brilliant coaches who never once doubted we could do something special. We are forever connected.”

The 59-year-old ultimately paid the price for a horrendous Premier League season, which saw Tottenham finish 17th.

“The Board has unanimously concluded that it is in the best interests of the Club for a change to take place,” Tottenham said in a statement.

“Following a positive start in the 2023/24 Premier League (PL) season, we recorded 78 points from the last 66 PL games. This culminated in our worst-ever PL finish last season.”

Postecoglou leaves two years to the day after his appointment and 16 days after his side beat Manchester United 1-0 in Bilbao for the club’s first silverware since 2008, a win that also put them in next season’s Champions League.

The former Celtic manager has had to face questions over his future for several months, yet delivered on his claim early last season that he always wins a trophy in his second season in a job.

He also took Tottenham to the League Cup semifinal, but their league campaign was their worst since the last time the club suffered relegation from the top flight, in 1976-77.

Several of the club’s first team have voiced their support for Postecoglou since beating United, but chairman Daniel Levy is now searching for his fifth full-time manager in six years since Mauricio Pochettino was sacked in 2019.

“At times there were extenuating circumstances — injuries and then a decision to prioritise our European campaign,” the club said. “Whilst winning the Europa League this season ranks as one of the Club’s greatest moments, we cannot base our decision on emotions aligned to this triumph.”

Several managers have been linked to the Tottenham job, including Brentford’s Thomas Frank and Crystal Palace’s Oliver Glasner.

Postecoglou will walk away with his pride intact and a handsome bonus, but his recent comment to fans at the Europa League victory parade that the third season of a TV series is always better than the second now looks hollow.

It all started so well for Postecoglou. He began the 2023-24 campaign by guiding Tottenham to their best start to a top-flight season since the 1961 title-winning team.

That form soon dipped, and despite finishing fifth in his first campaign, the momentum had long since gone.

This season, Tottenham earned only 38 points and lost 22 top-flight matches. They managed five points from their last 12 league games, and the only win they earned during that run was against a Southampton side who narrowly avoided becoming statistically the worst team ever in the Premier League.

Postecoglou has pointed to a long injury list, which denied him the likes of Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Dejan Kulusevski, Destiny Udogie, Dominic Solanke, James Maddison and Son Heung-min for significant periods.

But while it has clearly been one of long-serving chairman Levy’s toughest calls, he has concluded that Postecoglou is not the man to lead the club forward.

“We have made what we believe is the right decision to give us the best chance of success going forward, not the easy decision,” the club statement said.

“We have a talented, young squad and Ange has given us a great platform to build upon. We should like to express our gratitude to him. We wish him well for the future — he will always be welcome back at our home.”

Polls indicate a close race between Dutch far-right PVV party and the Labour/Green Left alliance.

Dutch voters will head to the polls on October 29 in snap elections triggered by the dramatic collapse of the right-wing ruling coalition.

Interior Minister Judith Uitermark announced the election date on Friday and said she would coordinate with municipalities to ensure a smooth voting process.

Polls indicate a close race between the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), led by firebrand Geert Wilders, and the Labour/Green Left alliance, headed by former European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans.

The centre-right VVD is trailing slightly behind, suggesting a tightly contested vote.

The election was called after Wilders withdrew the PVV from the governing coalition in a dispute over immigration policy, pushing Prime Minister Dick Schoof and his cabinet to resign.

Wilders had accused the government of dragging its feet on implementing what was intended to be the “strictest-ever” immigration policy agreed by the four-way coalition.

His decision to bring down the coalition prompted a backlash from partners, who accused him of acting out of self-interest.

“We had a right-wing majority and he’s let it all go for the sake of his ego,” said Dilan Yesilgoz, leader of the VVD, which was a coalition member.

“It is irresponsible to take down the government at this point,” added Nicolien van Vroonhoven, leader of the NSC, another member of the collapsed alliance.

Wilders’s PVV stunned the political establishment in November 2023 by winning 37 of the 150 seats in parliament – emerging as the largest party by a strong margin.

To govern, he assembled a four-party coalition with the VVD, the farmers’ BBB party and the anticorruption NSC – but the price was to give up his ambition to become prime minister.

Polling as of May 31 shows the PVV’s support has dipped slightly – from 23 percent at the time of the 2023 election to 20 percent. The Labour/Green Left alliance follows closely with 19 percent and currently holds 25 seats in the lower house of parliament, second only to the PVV.

The fragmented political landscape makes the outcome difficult to predict.

In the meantime, Schoof has said he and his cabinet will continue in a caretaker role until a new government is formed.

EU affirms its unwavering support for the ICC, denouncing US sanctions as a threat to judicial independence and justice.

The European Union “deeply regrets” the United States sanctions placed on four judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC), European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday announced sanctions on four judges whom the US accuses of taking “illegitimate and baseless actions” against the US and its allies.

Responding to the announcement on Friday, von der Leyen said the Hague-based court had the “full support” of the EU.

“The ICC holds perpetrators of the world’s gravest crimes to account & gives victims a voice,” von der Leyen said on X on Friday. “It must be free to act without pressure.”

United Nations Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said he was “profoundly disturbed” by the US decision.

“Attacks against judges for performance of their judicial functions, at national or international levels, run directly counter to respect for the rule of law and the equal protection of the law – values for which the US has long stood,” Turk said.

“Such attacks are deeply corrosive of good governance and the due administration of justice,” he added, calling for the sanctions to be withdrawn.

Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, which represents national governments of the 27 EU member states, also called the court “a cornerstone of international justice” and said its independence and integrity must be protected.

The Commission fully supports the @IntlCrimCourt & its officials.

The ICC holds perpetrators of the world’s gravest crimes to account & gives victims a voice.

It must be free to act without pressure.

We will always stand for global justice & the respect of international law.

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) June 6, 2025

The US State Department said the sanctions were issued after the court made decisions to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a separate decision in 2020 to open an investigation into alleged war crimes by US troops in Afghanistan.

The four sanctioned judges include Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza of Peru, Reine Alapini-Gansou of Benin and Beti Hohler of Slovenia.

EU member Slovenia said it “rejects pressure on judicial institutions” and urged the EU to use its blocking statute.

“Due to the inclusion of a citizen of an EU member state on the sanctions list, Slovenia will propose the immediate activation of the blocking act,” Slovenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a post on X.

The mechanism lets the EU ban European companies from complying with US sanctions that Brussels deems unlawful. The power has been used in the past to prevent Washington from banning European trade with Cuba and Iran.

Slovenia regrets the announced sanctions by the US🇺🇸 government against 4 judges of the @IntlCrimCourt , including a judge from #Slovenia. SI🇸🇮 rejects pressure on judicial institutions and influence on judicial operations, and courts must act in the interests of law and justice.… pic.twitter.com/xhwBj8XeMz

— MFEA Slovenia (@MZEZ_RS) June 5, 2025

The US sanctions mean the judges are added to a list of specially designated sanctioned individuals. Any US assets they have will be blocked and they are put on an automated screening service used not only by US banks but by many banks worldwide, making it very difficult for sanctioned people to hold or open bank accounts or transfer money.

This is not the first time the US has issued restrictions against an ICC official since Trump returned to office for a second term on January 20.

Shortly after taking office, Trump issued a broad executive order threatening anyone who participates in ICC investigations with sanctions. Critics warned that such sweeping language could pervert the course of justice, for example, by dissuading witnesses from coming forward with evidence.

But Trump argued that the 2024 arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant necessitated such measures.

He also claimed that the US and Israel were “thriving democracies” that “strictly adhere to the laws of war” and that the ICC’s investigations threatened military members with “harassment, abuse and possible arrest”.

Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan was renting a luxury New York townhouse for $40,000 a month, enjoying the fruits of his highly lucrative investments in cryptocurrency. But in May, his 17-room Manhattan home became a torture chamber in which he was held by kidnappers for 17 days.

Carturan’s captors, John Woeltz and William Duplessie, who wanted access to his cryptocurrency accounts, used brutal methods in their bid to prise open Carturan’s Bitcoin wallet, purportedly containing some $28m worth of cryptocurrency. Among other torture methods, they hung him from the building’s roof, shocked him with electrical wires and threatened him with a chainsaw.

When all else failed, they forced him to smoke crack cocaine. Ultimately, they were unsuccessful. After more than two gruelling weeks, Carturan managed to escape the townhouse and Woeltz and Duplessie were subsequently arrested and charged with kidnapping and assault.

Carturan’s ordeal was one of the latest in a spate of “wrench attacks”, which include so-called “crypto kidnappings”, combining high-tech cybertheft with old-fashioned thuggery and have been taking place in several countries around the world.

Have arrests for crypto kidnapping attacks been made elsewhere?

Yes. On May 31, 26 people were charged for several attempted kidnappings of a top figure in France’s cryptocurrency world, French prosecutors said.

It was the culmination of a police investigation into an “attempted kidnapping by an organised gang” of the daughter and grandson of the CEO of crypto firm Paymium in Paris on May 13, and “other unsuccessful plans”, a failed attempt on the same targets the day before, and another attempt near the western city of Nantes on June 2.

“Eighteen people have been placed in pre-trial detention, three have requested a deferred hearing, and four have been placed under judicial supervision,” the Paris public prosecutor’s office said, concerning the Paris attack. The suspects are all aged between 16 and 23.

France has been the centre of several attacks on prominent crypto entrepreneurs in recent months. But crypto-linked kidnappings have occurred in other countries, too.

Where else have crypto kidnappings taken place?

In addition to the recent attempted abductions in Paris, a group of criminals kidnapped David Balland, cofounder of the cryptocurrency firm Ledger, and his wife in central France in January.

In a particularly gruesome turn of events, the kidnappers cut off one of Balland’s fingers and sent the video of the mutilation to Ledger. Within two days, however, the French gendarmerie had freed both victims.

Nine suspects are under criminal investigation in that case.

In December 2024, the wife of crypto investor and influencer Stephane Winkel was kidnapped from the couple’s home in Belgium. She was rescued after her kidnapper crashed his car during a dramatic police chase.

Canada and Australia have also witnessed high-profile kidnappings, with crypto executives and traders abducted and forced to pay ransoms ranging from $40,000 to $1m in digital assets.

It is unclear whether the recent spate of crypto kidnappings is connected in any way.

What is cryptocurrency?

Bitcoin, which began trading in January 2009, was the very first cryptocurrency. This form of monetary exchange allows people to bypass central banks and traditional payment methods. It is now a functioning, decentralised monetary system, with hundreds of millions of users worldwide.

Bitcoin was first used in a transaction in 2009, valued at just $0.004 per Bitcoin. Yesterday, Bitcoin’s price closed at nearly $101,576 per Bitcoin – about 53 percent higher than a year ago, and nearly 2.5 trillion percentage points higher than in 2009.

Initially, the digital currency was favoured by internet libertarians who were drawn to the idea that money should be free from government interference. It quickly gained more mainstream popularity, and the price has shot up.

More recently, United States President Donald Trump has taken steps to mint several cryptocurrencies, meaning they would be included in a “Crypto Strategic Reserve”, boosting their price even more in the process.

While cryptocurrency thefts are nothing new, they have historically involved hacking digital accounts holding large sums of the currency. In 2022, for instance, internet thieves stole an estimated $570m from Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.

But as Bitcoin and other digital assets continue to climb in value, criminals are shifting their efforts from online hacking to real-world extortion, via kidnappings and torture.

How do criminals target victims in crypto kidnappings?

Victims are not hard to find.

Some crypto tycoons, many of whom are young men, have a habit of flaunting their wealth on social media or by appearing at cryptocurrency conferences, which allows criminals to easily identify targets.

Many have continued to flaunt their wealth in spite of the 2016 Kim Kardashian kidnapping incident. The US reality TV star was tied up in her hotel room in Paris as robbers made off with millions of dollars worth of jewellery. The men – dubbed the “grandpa robbers” because of their ages – were later caught and sentenced to prison by a French court.

That was not a crypto attack, but as more crypto tycoons have appeared, there is little to differentiate them from the fabulously wealthy like the Kardashians.

Even those with large crypto wealth who are more cautious about displaying their wealth on social media and in public have been exposed to criminal activity via data breaches at cryptocurrency exchanges, however.

In May 2025, Coinbase Global announced that hackers had managed to obtain personal information, including the home addresses of almost 70,000 customers in the previous few months, putting thousands at risk of attack or extortion.

Besides hacking the accounts of crypto millionaires for this sort of information, criminals have also bribed insiders at crypto exchanges for customer data. This information is then used to select and find high-value targets for kidnappings or home invasions.

Why are crypto kidnappings on the rise?

It is easier to steal money from a digital wallet than from a traditional bank account, and kidnapping is one way to do this.

Attackers simply need to gain access to someone’s cryptocurrency account password, as there’s no third-party financial institution to protect the funds held in the digital wallet.

Transactions on an open-ledger blockchain – the technology which facilitates cryptocurrencies – are also permanent, meaning transactions are irreversible.

And, unlike cash, jewellery and gold, thieves don’t need to carry away the stolen cryptocurrency with them. With a few clicks, money can simply be moved from one account to another.

Furthermore, cryptocurrency’s ability to skirt traditional law enforcement also means it is much easier to launder, making it popular with internet-based drug dealers.

Therefore, if criminals can force a victim to give up their account, they can gain immediate access to vast wealth – hence the rise in physical attacks and kidnappings.

Can you get insurance against a crypto kidnapping?

Yes, you can. At least three insurance companies which provide services for cryptocurrency investors are in the process of designing policies specifically for abductions, called kidnap and ransom (K&R) policies, according to a report by NBC News.

Becca Rubenfeld, chief operating officer at AnchorWatch – a crypto insurance firm aiming to launch K&R protection later this year – said that fear of violence was a key talking point at this year’s annual Las Vegas Bitcoin Conference, in May.

“They’re [cryptocurrency holders are] tense,” Rubenfeld told NBC. “I’m not saying that because I’m trying to sell insurance, but overall, the mood is a very good environment for me.”

Kidnapping and ransom insurance is not uncommon for high-profile corporate executives.

What else are crypto investors doing to stay safe?

Elsewhere, security experts are urging investors to avoid sharing details of their crypto holdings online, even with friends, and to use pseudonyms and new digital wallet addresses for each transaction.

Increasingly, crypto traders are avoiding making social media posts with geotagged photos, especially any that show themselves with luxury items, or revealing their travel plans.

Who: Portugal vs Spain
What: UEFA Nations League final
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany
When: Sunday, June 8, 2025 – 3pm kickoff (13:00 GMT)

How to follow our coverage: We’ll have all the build-up from 12pm (10:00 GMT) on Al Jazeera Sport.

Portugal, the inaugural winners in 2019, and defending champions Spain have set up one of the most highly anticipated international finals in years as the pair prepare to face off for the UEFA Nations League trophy.

The final not only pits the Iberian rivals together, but also two of football’s greatest talents – Cristiano Ronaldo and Lamine Yamal.

Although at opposing ends of their careers, both were vital in leading their sides to Sunday’s showdown in Munich.

Al Jazeera Sport takes a closer look at the game – and the mouth-watering prospect of Ronaldo vs Yamal.

How did Portugal reach the Nations League final?

Portugal beat the host nation Germany 2-1 in the first semifinal on Wednesday with Ronaldo scoring the winner.

Liverpool target Florian Wirtz gave the Germans the lead early in the second half before Francisco Conceicao levelled just past the hour mark, with the winner coming five minutes later.

How did Spain fare in their semifinal against France?

Spain and France then served up one of the all-time greats in a 5-4 thriller that saw the latter come from 4-0 and 5-1 down to push the game to the wire.

Yamal scored twice and was the star turn as he outshone the much-lauded French trio of Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue – the latter two being fresh from Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League final victory.

How important is the UEFA Nations League final?

There is little doubt that both finalists, and the defeated semifinalists, will see these final three games of the 2024-2025 edition of the competition as vital game time ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The tournament itself, which runs qualification over a two-year period, has replaced the much-maligned and ever-more meaningless list of friendlies between nations on the continent, providing competitive games to keep club-focused players interested during the global international breaks.

The way the two semifinals have played out has built even greater anticipation for the already notable final, and added weight to the Nations League value as a warm-up competition between the more prestigious World Cups and UEFA European Champions, both of which take place every four years.

On the meeting with Ronaldo in the final, Yamal remarked after the win against France: “Playing against Cristiano? He’s a football legend. I’ll do my job, which is to win the game, and that’s it.”

Is this Lamine Yamal’s moment to shine?

So much of the external focus in the build-up to the game will turn to the showdown between young Barcelona star Yamal and former Real Madrid and Manchester United legend Ronaldo.

Yamal will turn 18 next month and has already stirred imaginations with star turns for the Catalan club over the last two years, helping them to a domestic treble this season. The Barca-born forward also shone for Spain in last summer’s Euro 2024 success, scoring in the semifinal against France – only days before his 17th birthday.

Taking to the field, and battling for the spotlight, with Ronaldo – regarded as arguably the greatest footballer of all time – offers a unique and potentially final chance for Yamal to prove himself against a player who, at 40 years of age, is winding down his career.

Is Yamal in the running for the Ballon d’Or?

With Doue’s rise at PSG this year, and Yamal’s ever-growing stock, the question has now been posed as to whether there is a changing of the guard from Ronaldo and Argentinian legend Lionel Messi as the game’s two best current players.

Both are strong contenders to lift the Ballon d’Or trophy – the award for the global game’s best player each year. Spanish international Rodri is the current holder after helping Manchester City to their unique five-trophy winning year in 2023.

Dembele, Mbappe and his fellow Real star Vinicius Junior will also be in the running for the 2025 award but Sunday’s final could tip the balance in favour of Yamal ahead of the award ceremony in September.

What is the latest on Ronaldo’s club future?

Much of the talk heading into the final three games of the UEFA Nations League has focused on Ronaldo’s club future – and whether he would participate at the imminent FIFA Club World Cup in the United States.

The global club competition has been rebranded and expanded to 32 teams for this edition and is headlined by Lionel Messi at the host nation’s Inter Miami, who will kick off the tournament against Egyptian club Al Ahly on June 14.

Ronaldo’s time at Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League appears to be over following a social media post from the forward following the final day of the competition’s season.

The question remains: Where next for Ronaldo? A host of participants at the Club World Cup are being linked with a move for a player who still grabs the headlines the world over, and it would give FIFA’s attempt to elevate the tournament a much-needed boost.

What happened the last time Portugal played Spain?

Spain won 1-0 in Portugal in a Nations League group stage match in 2022 in the last encounter between the sides.

Alvaro Morata netted the only goal of the game in the 88th minute of the match at Estadio Municipal de Braga.

Head-to-head – Portugal vs Spain

Although this will be a first meeting for Yamal and Ronaldo, the Spain and Portugal on-field rivalry dates back to a friendly in 1921.

Spain won the fixture 2-1 in December of that year and have claimed victory in 17 of the 34 encounters overall.

Portugal have only recorded six wins against their neighbours, with the last being in a friendly in 2010.

Six of the following seven matches have ended in a draw.

Who did Spain beat in the 2023 Nations final?

Spain – who were defeated finalists in the 2021 edition of the tournament – beat Croatia 5-4 on penalties after a goalless draw in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in June 2023.

In the 2021 final, the Spaniards were beaten 2-1 by France, whom they face in Thursday’s second semifinal. Their victory in 2023 ended an 11-year search for silverware.

Who did Portugal beat in the inaugural final?

Portugal beat the Netherlands 1-0 in the 2019 final.

The match itself was played on home soil for the Portuguese at Porto’s Estadio do Dragao, where Goncalo Guedes scored the only goal of the game in the 60th minute.

Possible Portugal and Spain lineups:

Potential Portugal XI: Diogo Costa; Joao Neves, Ruben Dias, Inacio, Mendes; Ruben Neves, Bernardo Silva; Trincao, Fernandes, Neto; Ronaldo

Potential Spain XI: Simon; Porro, Huijsen, Le Normand, Cucurella; Zubimendi, Merino, Pedri; Yamal, N Williams, Oyarzabal

On May 30, the last day of Poland’s presidential campaign, Karol Nawrocki laid flowers at a monument that has long sparked controversy.

The 14-metre tall statue commemorating the Volhynian massacre depicts a crowned eagle, the symbol of Poland, with a cross shape cut out from its chest. In that cross, a child’s body is impaled on a trident, representing the Ukrainian coat of arms, the “tryzub”.

The statue was revealed in July 2024 in Domostawa, a village in southeastern Poland close to Ukraine’s border. It commemorates the ethnic cleansing of Poles by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army in the Polish-Ukrainian borderland between 1943 to 1945. While statistics vary, it is assumed that between 40,000 and 100,000 people perished in the massacre.

But before Domostawa accepted the monument, several cities, including Rzeszow, Torun and Stalowa Wola, refused to host it due to the brutality of the sculptor’s vision and in order not to damage relations with Ukraine.

To Nawrocki, formerly the head of the Institute of National Remembrance, a state research institute, the scene felt like the place to end his presidential bid.

“The Volhynian Massacre was a cruel crime. The methods of murdering Poles were cruel. It was a neighbourly crime, because neighbours murdered neighbours. It was also a robbery, because Ukrainian nationalists often robbed their neighbours,” Nawrocki said.

“We have the right to talk about it. I have the right to talk about it as the president of the Institute of National Remembrance and I will have this right as the president of Poland after June 1.”

Dear President @ZelenskyyUa, thank you for your message. I am looking forward to countinue partnership of our countries, based on mutual respect and understanding. I believe it requires not only good dialogue but also solving overdue historical issues. Poland has been Ukraine’s…

— Karol Nawrocki (@NawrockiKn) June 3, 2025

During his ultimately successful campaign, President-elect Nawrocki, a nationalist, said that Poles should have priority in queues for doctor’s appointments and called to limit Ukrainians’ access to benefits. He also said he was against Ukraine joining NATO and the European Union, a stark contrast from Poland’s traditional position of support as Kyiv fights off Russian forces.

Warsaw’s support, Nawrocki believes, should depend on Ukraine making amends for the Volhynian massacre, which could include the exhumation of Polish victims.

Following the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in early 2022, Poland, under the rule of the Law and Justice – or PiS – party, which supported Nawrocki, accepted more than a million Ukrainian refugees and backed Ukraine with weapons as Kyiv’s other European allies, such as Germany, hesitated.

Thousands of Poles hosted Ukrainians in their homes as Poland became the loudest pro-Ukrainian voice in the EU and NATO.

But while PiS has a long history of supporting Ukraine throughout its revolutions in 2004 and 2014, and following the Russian onslaught, anti-Ukrainian rhetoric is now taking hold.

‘Playing the anti-Ukrainian card’

In the first round of the presidential election, 51 percent of Poles voted for candidates who had touted positions at odds with Ukraine’s ambitions. Even the liberal candidate from the Civic Platform, Rafal Trzaskowski, suggested that Ukrainians who do not pay taxes should be deprived of child benefits.

According to research by the Mieroszewski Centre, in 2022, 83 percent of Ukrainians had a positive opinion of Poles, but by November 2024, this number fell to 41 percent.

In January 2025, 51 percent of Poles said that Ukrainian refugees receive too much support. Almost half of respondents said that difficult historical issues should be solved to improve Polish-Ukrainian relations.

Research published in February 2025 by CBOS found that just 30 percent of Poles had a positive attitude towards Ukrainians, down from 51 percent in 2023, while 38 percent had a negative attitude towards their Ukrainian neighbours, up from 17 percent in 2023.

“I think that Poland should continue its support for Ukraine, but I am disappointed with the position of the Ukrainian state. If not for Poland’s strong and decisive reaction at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, which encouraged Europe’s support, Ukraine would not survive. And then in front of the United Nations General Assembly, Ukraine’s president compared Poland to Russia,” said Nawrocki voter Michal, a 33-year-old travel guide.

“Ukrainians never showed any remorse for the Volhynian massacre. And I find it unacceptable that figures like Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevych, who are responsible for massacres of Poles during World War II, are considered Ukraine’s national heroes,” Michal added, referring to the Ukrainian nationalist leaders and Nazi collaborators.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine considers the decision of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland to establish 11 July as a Day of Remembrance for the victims of the so-called “genocide committed by the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the Ukrainian… pic.twitter.com/c5nu1hPaDl

— MFA of Ukraine 🇺🇦 (@MFA_Ukraine) June 5, 2025

Michal’s views are not uncommon.

Meanwhile, grudges against Ukrainian refugees have swelled.

“In February and March 2022, in a few weeks, Poland became a country that was no longer culturally uniform. For many Poles, who had no experience of diversity, the very fact that suddenly their neighbours spoke a different language became difficult to accept,” said Rafal Pankowski from the antiracism Never Again association.

Currently, more than 50 percent of Poles declare solidarity with Ukrainian refugees, down from 90 percent in 2022, he said, citing his organisation’s polling data.

“One of the reasons why support for Ukrainians has fallen is right-wing propaganda and conspiracy theories spread on social media. We have been monitoring the situation since the beginning of the war, and it has been clear that in the long run, playing the anti-Ukrainian card will bring the far right political benefits. And this is what happened in this campaign.”

Igor Krawetz, a Ukrainian commentator who has lived in Poland for almost 20 years, said that he is surprised at the speed of the shift. Two years ago, open hostility towards Ukrainians was viewed as inappropriate, even among the right, he said.

“Polish anti-Ukrainian xenophobia is no longer limited to spaces where Ukrainian migrants compete with Poles, such as low-skilled jobs. Now xenophobia is expressed by the middle class, too, who see that Ukrainians moved businesses to Warsaw, buy expensive apartments and are no longer poor people that need the Poles’ support,” he added.

The shift brings back memories for Krawetz.

Polish solidarity with Ukraine ended in disillusionment and mutual accusations in 2004, when Poles supported Ukraine’s Orange Revolution and in 2014, after the Euromaidan.

“Poles have got used to seeing Ukraine’s misfortunes as their own pain. For the past 20 years, during crises, there have been romantic waves of brotherly support that lasted for several months and were always followed by complaints: ‘I helped you in 2022 and you still haven’t won the war’ type of thing,” Krawetz said.

“I have survived the first and second wave of solidarity with Ukraine. I will survive the last one, too. It always comes back full circle.”

As pressure mounts from the EU and his domestic rivals, Hungary’s prime minister is rallying allies to paralyse European institutions.

A “Trump tornado” has swept the globe, bringing with it a wave of “hope” for a return to “normalcy and peace.” So declared Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in a strikingly blunt keynote speech at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Budapest.

Originally a platform for United States Republican Party politicians and theorists, CPAC has, in recent years, evolved into a global forum for radical right-wing forces. Its arrival in Europe was facilitated by the Foundation for Fundamental Rights – a government-organised NGO backed and funded by the Orban administration.

While Orban lavished praise on Donald Trump, this year’s CPAC had a distinctly European focus. After 15 years in power, Orban faces growing opposition at home. Public frustration over entrenched corruption, economic stagnation and increasingly hostile relations with Hungary’s allies has eroded his popularity. A newly emergent opposition movement, led by former Fidesz insider Peter Magyar, is now polling 6 – 8 percentage points ahead of Orban’s Fidesz–KDNP coalition, posing a serious challenge ahead of the 2026 general election.

In response, the government has ramped up attacks on dissent. Fidesz recently introduced a series of sweeping legislative proposals that threaten opposition politicians, independent media, NGOs and private businesses with Russian-style crackdowns. June’s LGBTQ+ Pride march in Budapest was among the first casualties – banned on the grounds of “child protection”. Alongside these measures, the government has begun rewriting electoral laws and funnelling state resources towards potential Fidesz voters.

Alarmed by Orban’s escalating authoritarianism, 20 European Union member states this week issued a joint declaration urging him to reverse the new measures. They called on the European Commission to deploy the full range of rule-of-law mechanisms should the laws remain in place. Orban’s behaviour is no longer just a domestic matter. His confrontational, transactional approach increasingly paralyses EU decision-making – a luxury the continent can ill afford amid intensifying challenges from Russia, China and the second Trump administration. European unity is not merely a motor of prosperity; it is a cornerstone of collective security.

The Article 7 process – a rarely used EU mechanism that can strip a member state of voting rights for violating fundamental values – was triggered by the European Parliament in 2018 due to concerns over judicial independence and media freedom in Hungary. While the European Council has discussed the matter eight times, it has yet to move forward with a vote on sanctions. That may soon change as tensions continue to mount.

CPAC 2025 thus served as a strategic platform for Orban to consolidate and expand a coalition of radical right-wing Central European leaders – particularly those with a realistic shot at gaining or retaining power. His aim: to forge a bloc capable of obstructing any EU efforts to sanction his government, whether by suspending voting rights or slashing financial transfers. The EU is already withholding over 20 billion euros ($23bn) in structural funds from Hungary – a figure that could rise, creating a serious political liability for Orban ahead of the 2026 elections.

Orban’s ambition is to entrench support among regional allies – and it is telling that the governments of Bulgaria, Croatia, Italy, Poland, Romania and Slovakia have yet to join the growing list of countries condemning Hungary’s recent democratic backsliding. Through CPAC, the Visegrad Group – a longstanding alliance between Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic — and the “Patriots for Europe” group – a far-right alliance in the European Parliament launched by Orban and allies in 2024 – the Hungarian leader is laying the foundations for a counterweight bloc designed to frustrate EU countermeasures.

This makes the presence of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Poland’s Mateusz Morawiecki – of the Law and Justice (PiS) party – at this week’s event especially significant. While neither of their parties belongs to the Patriots group in the European Parliament, they remain political allies with growing mutual dependence.

Orban has developed a near cult-like following on the European far right: he consistently wins elections, offers a ready-made ideological narrative, and has poured resources into building a pan-European coalition. But his greatest limitations are Hungary’s small size and his own deepening isolation from the European mainstream. Should far-right parties enter government elsewhere in Europe, they may opt to distance themselves from Orban – as Italy’s Giorgia Meloni has already done.

CPAC underscored the scale of Orban’s effort to preserve the influence he has worked so hard to build. He cannot take on the EU alone. He needs allies if he is to realise his vision of “occupying Brussels” and unleashing his own “tornado” of “civility” across Europe. The Patriots group, Hungary’s Visegrad neighbours and a Trump-led Washington may yet serve as vehicles for that ambition – and for Orban’s own political survival.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

At least four people were killed and 20 were wounded in multiple Russian missile and drone attacks overnight on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, local officials have said.

Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Friday morning search and rescue operations were continuing in several locations. Among the wounded, 16 were admitted to hospital.

Ukrainian authorities said Russian forces launched 407 drones and 45 missiles, including cruise and ballistic missiles, of which they succeeded in destroying, respectively, around 200 and 30.

“It was a very frightening night. We heard some of the drones go over this area in central Kyiv, giant explosions ringing out across the city, some so loud that they were shaking the glass here of our hotel, we’ve seen pictures of people who took shelter in the metro stations underground and underground car parks,” said Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford, reporting from the Ukrainian capital.

Multiple explosions were heard in Kyiv, where falling debris sparked fires across several districts as air defence systems attempted to intercept incoming targets, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Administration.

“Our air defence crews are doing everything possible. But we must protect one another – stay safe,” Tkachenko wrote on Telegram.

Ukraine’s human rights chief, Dmytro Lubinets, called for a strong international response to the overnight attack, saying the assault violated basic human rights.

“Russia is acting like a terrorist, systematically targeting civilian infrastructure,” Lubinets wrote on Telegram. “The world must respond clearly and take concrete steps, including condemning the aggressor’s actions.”

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha also called on Western allies to ramp up pressure on Russia.   “Russia’s overnight attack on civilians once again demonstrates that the international pressure on Moscow must be increased as soon as possible,” he said in a statement.

Moscow denies targeting civilians since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Authorities reported damage in several districts, and rescue workers were responding at multiple locations. They urged residents to seek shelter.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs said three emergency workers were killed in Kyiv while responding to the aftermath of Russian attacks. “They were working under fire to help people,” the ministry said in a statement.

In Solomyanskyi district, a fire broke out on the 11th floor of a 16-storey residential building. Emergency services evacuated three people from the apartment, and rescue operations were under way. Another fire broke out in a metal warehouse.

Tkachenko said the metro tracks between two stations in Kyiv were damaged in the attack, but no fire or injuries occurred.

The attack hit at least six regions across Ukraine, leaving a trail of civilian injuries, damaged infrastructure and disrupted utilities.

The number of people injured in a Russian attack on the western city of Ternopil early Friday rose to 10, including five emergency workers, regional governor Viacheslav Nehoda said. The strike damaged industrial and infrastructure facilities, left parts of the city without electricity, and disrupted water supplies.

Three people were injured in Ukraine’s central Poltava region following a Russian attack that damaged administrative buildings, warehouses and a cafe, regional head Volodymyr Kohut said. Fires caused by the strike have been extinguished, and debris fell on a private home.

Russian forces also struck the Khmelnytskyi region overnight, damaging a private residential building, outbuildings, a fence, and several vehicles, regional governor Serhii Tiuryn said.

Meanwhile, air defence forces shot down three Russian missiles over the western Lviv region overnight, the regional head Maksym Kozytskyi said.

In the northern Chernihiv region, a Shahed drone exploded near an apartment building, shattering windows and doors, according to regional military administration chief Dmytro Bryzhynskyi. He said explosions from ballistic missiles were also recorded on the outskirts of the city.

The overnight attack took place as hopes for a truce between Russia and Ukraine seemed to be faltering, despite two rounds of direct talks in Istanbul.

On Thursday, United States President Donald Trump said it may be better to let Ukraine and Russia “fight for a while” rather than pursue peace immediately – a remarkable shift from Trump’s previous appeals for a quick end to the war.

Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin told Trump in a telephone conversation that Moscow would have to respond to the earlier huge Ukrainian drone attacks deep inside Russia against Russian military warplanes.

The United States was once Ukraine’s most important ally – supplying arms, funding and political cover as Kyiv fought for its sovereignty. But today, Washington is losing interest. President Donald Trump, more at home on the golf course than in a war room, is pulling away from a conflict he no longer seems to care to understand.

Trump has not hidden his disdain. He has echoed Kremlin narratives, questioned NATO’s relevance and reduced Ukraine’s defence to a punchline. Even his recent comment that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “gone absolutely crazy” does little to undo years of indulgence and indifference.

He has not become a credible peace broker or a consistent supporter of Ukraine. His words now carry little weight – and Kyiv is paying the price.

Just last week, Ukraine launched what it called Operation Spiderweb, a coordinated series of drone strikes deep inside Russian territory. Dozens of aircraft were destroyed at airfields, and key military infrastructure was disrupted. The White House swiftly denied any US involvement. Trump responded by again threatening to “walk away” from the war.

Shortly afterwards, a second round of peace talks in Istanbul collapsed. The only agreement reached was a sombre one: the exchange of the remains of 6,000 fallen soldiers. That may help bring closure to grieving families – but it has done nothing to alter the course of the war.

Trump’s belated proposal – relayed by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt – that he supports direct talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Putin sounded more like political theatre than diplomacy. The moment had already passed.

It is Trump – not Zelenskyy – who now lacks leverage. And with the US pulling back from its traditional security leadership, the burden is shifting decisively to Europe.

Despite the brutality of Russia’s invasion in 2022, American officials have frequently treated Kyiv as the side to pressure and Moscow as the side to appease. European leaders pushed back – but mostly with words. They posted pledges of “unwavering support” yet hesitated to take full ownership of Europe’s defence.

Now, as US military aid slows and Trump continues to distance himself from the war, Europe faces a historic reckoning.

For the first time in nearly 80 years, the continent stands alone. The future of NATO – the alliance created after World War II to ensure collective defence – is in question. Ukraine’s ability to resist Russian aggression increasingly depends on European guarantees.

Can Europe meet the moment? Can a loose coalition of willing nations evolve into a durable security bloc? And can it do so without the US?

As of early 2025, Ukraine was meeting roughly 40 percent of its own military needs, according to the Centre for Security and Cooperation in Kyiv. Europe provided 30 percent and the US the remaining 30 percent. To sustain the fight, Europe must now do more – quickly.

The alternative would be disastrous. The Kiel Institute for the World Economy has estimated that if Russia were to occupy Ukraine, it could cost Germany alone 10 to 20 times more than maintaining current levels of support – due to refugee flows, energy instability, economic disruptions and defence risks.

One of Ukraine’s most urgent needs is ammunition – particularly artillery shells. Until recently, the US was the main supplier. As American deliveries decline, Ukraine is burning through its reserves. Europe is now scrambling to fill the gap.

The problem is scale. Europe’s arms industry has long been underdeveloped. It is only now beginning to respond. According to European Union Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius, the bloc aims to produce 2 million artillery shells annually by the end of 2025. This would just meet Ukraine’s minimum battlefield requirements.

A particularly ambitious initiative is a Czech-led plan to procure and deliver up to 1.8 million shells to Ukraine by the end of next year. Confirmed by Czech President Petr Pavel in May and backed by Canada, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and other countries, the effort is one of the few on track to make a meaningful impact – if it arrives on time.

Germany has also moved beyond donations. In late May, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius signed an agreement with his Ukrainian counterpart, Rustem Umerov, to cofinance the production of long-range weapons inside Ukraine, tapping into local industrial and engineering capacity.

The United Kingdom remains one of Kyiv’s most dependable allies. On Wednesday, London announced a new 350-million-pound ($476m) drone package – part of a broader 4.5-billion-pound ($6.1bn) support pledge. It includes 100,000 drones by 2026, a substantial increase on previous commitments.

But war is not waged with weapons alone. Financial and economic power matter too.

Trump recently told Fox News that US taxpayer money was being “pissed away” in Ukraine. The remark was not only crude – it was also misleading.

Since 2022, the US has provided about $128bn in aid to Ukraine, including $66.5bn in military assistance. Meanwhile, the EU and its member states have contributed about 135 billion euros ($155bn), including 50 billion euros ($57bn) in military support, 67 billion euros ($77bn) in financial and humanitarian aid, and 17 billion euros ($19.5bn) for refugee programmes. The UK has added another 12.8 billion pounds ($17.4 billion).

These are not gifts. They are strategic investments – meant to prevent far higher costs if Russia succeeds in its imperial project.

Europe has also led on sanctions. Since 2014 – and with renewed urgency since 2022 – it has imposed 17 successive rounds of measures targeting Russia’s economy. None has ended the war, but each has taken a toll.

On May 20, one day after a reportedly warm call between Trump and Putin, the EU and UK unveiled their most sweeping sanctions package yet. It included nearly 200 vessels from Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, used to smuggle oil and circumvent global price caps.

Some estimates, including AI-assisted modelling, suggest the sanctions could cost Russia $10bn to $20bn per year if loopholes are closed and enforcement holds. Even partial implementation would disrupt Moscow’s wartime revenue.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas was clear: “The longer Russia wages war, the tougher our response.” Europe is beginning to back that promise with action.

From drones to shells, sanctions to weapons production, the continent is finally moving from statements to strategy – slowly but steadily building the foundations of Ukrainian resilience and Russian defeat.

But this momentum cannot stall. This is no longer just Ukraine’s war.

The US has stepped aside. Europe is no longer the backup plan. It is the last line of defence. If it fails, so does Ukraine – and with it, the idea of a secure, sovereign Europe.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

A MAJOR car manufacturer is axing its record-breaking hot hatch just three years after its latest revamp.

The FL5-generation Honda Civic Type R is being culled in the UK and Europe from 2026 – but is set to go out with a bang.

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Forty final Ultimate Edition models with a classic Championship white paint job, and red accents, including a central pinstripe, are being made as a swansong – but is likely to cost more than the regular Type R (£48,900).

Just 10 of these special edition motors will be available in the UK – and these will be available on a first come first serve basis, according to Honda.

The news will come as a bittersweet blow to petrol heads, with the FL5 having broken countless front-wheel drive lap records during its short reign.

Honda’s European strategy boss Hannah Swift put the axing down to the industry “changing” and an evolution of its model range “in accordance with European legislation”.

Those changes relate to stricter emissions standards in Britain and the EU, with which the Type R doesn’t comply.

The four-wheel-drive hatch market comprises of the Golf R, Toyota GR Yaris and Mercedes-AMG A45 S – but all are risk due to the new regulations.

Several brands are instead moving to e-performance cars.

It comes 28 years after the first Civic Type R arrived as a grey import from Japan.

Arriving in late 1997, before a second generation model in 2001, a third in 2007 and a fourth in 2015.

Its fifth and sixth generations are widely regarded by experts as the finest driver’s cars of the modern age.

According to the Honda website, the current Type R features a two litre- four cylinder VTEC TURBO engine and can accelerate from 0-100km/hr in 5.4 seconds.

It adds: “The Type R is the fastest front wheel drive car to have driven the legendary 5.8km Suzuka circuit.”

Ms Swift said: “As we say farewell to a true icon of the Honda automobile line-up in Europe, we thought it was fitting to give the Civic Type R the ultimate send-off with this special edition model offering our customers a unique opportunity to celebrate its legacy.

“The industry is changing, and our model range is having to evolve with it in accordance with European legislation.

“However, Type R has always been Honda’s ultimate expression of our passion for driving excitement, and we look forward to celebrating its heritage in the weeks and months ahead.”

Ten things YOU should know as a car owner

To help you feel more confident as a car owner, here are ten things you should be familiar with about your vehicle:

These are the key events on day 1,198 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Here’s where things stand on Friday, June 6 :

Fighting

• Russian drones attacked Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, where authorities said drone fragments had fallen in at least three districts of the city. Tymur Tkachenko, head of the city’s military administration, said the strikes triggered fires in residential buildings in different parts of the city. There were no immediate reports on casualties.

• Air defence units were in action repelling Russian drones, according to military authorities in Kyiv, as news outlets reported a series of explosions in the city.

• International monitors at the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine have reported hearing repeated rounds of gunfire that appeared to be aimed at drones apparently attacking the site’s training centre, the UN’s nuclear watchdog said.
• The nuclear plant’s Russian management had earlier said that Ukrainian drones landed on the roof of the training centre in “yet another attack” on the facility. The management said there had been no casualties or damage. The nuclear facility’s reactors are in shutdown mode amid the war.
• Russian investigators announced that they have opened a criminal case into an “act of terrorism” after a stretch of railway track in Russia’s Voronezh region was damaged in an explosion.
• Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, at his daily briefing with reporters, described the latest rail attack as “nothing other than terrorism at the state level”. Russia has not yet provided evidence that Ukraine ordered the rail attacks, and Kyiv has not acknowledged responsibility.

Politics and diplomacy

• Russia will respond to Ukraine’s latest attacks – which have included an audacious drone attack on heavy bomber warplanes in Siberia – as and when its military sees fit, the Kremlin said, accusing Kyiv of state terrorism as US President Donald Trump downplayed prospects for an immediate peace between the countries.
• Speaking to reporters before his meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump said he believed that “at some point” there would be peace between Russia and Ukraine. When asked if he would impose further sanctions on Russia, Trump responded, “When I see the moment where it’s not going to stop … we’ll be very, very, very tough. And it could be on both countries, to be honest. You know, it takes two to tango.”
• Trump also said that he had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to not retaliate after Ukraine’s drone attacks on Russia’s airbases.
• North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has promised to “unconditionally support” Russia in its war in Ukraine and said he expects Moscow to emerge victorious, the country’s state media reported.
• Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs said it had put Artyom Timofeyev, a Russian citizen who was born in Ukraine, on a national wanted list on suspicion of taking part in the attacks on Russian military airfields, state news agency TASS reported. Russian media reported earlier that Timofeyev, who reportedly owns a freight forwarding company, had left Russia for Kazakhstan.

• Russian warplanes targeted in the June 1 drone attack were damaged but not destroyed, and they will be restored, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said. The US has assessed that up to 20 warplanes were hit and around half were destroyed during the attack.
• Germany needs up to 60,000 additional troops under new NATO targets for weapons and personnel, the country’s Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said in advance of the meeting between Trump and Merz on Thursday. NATO is focused on building up its forces to respond to what it sees as an increased threat from Russia.
• The Trump administration has announced the nomination of US Air Force Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich as the next top US general in Europe, and said he would also assume the traditional role of Supreme Allied Commander in Europe.
• Russia’s Federal Security Service has accused British intelligence of using the British Council, which promotes international education and cultural relations, as a cover to undermine Russia. The security service said it had identified teachers at leading universities who cooperated with the London-based charity. The United Kingdom is now considered “enemy number one” by Russian officials, amid the intensifying conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
• Slovakia’s parliament, in a thinly attended session, approved a resolution calling on the government not to vote in favour of new sanctions on Russia, raising questions over the country’s future stance on European sanction packages.

Economy

• Ukraine’s export losses are set to reach $800m for the period June to December this year, following the expected end of free access to the European Union market, the country’s central bank deputy governor, Serhiy Nikolaichuk, said.

Yamal inspires Spain to thrilling 5-4 win over France to book a final against Iberian rivals Portugal.

Lamine Yamal won the battle of Ballon d’Or contenders by scoring twice as Spain eclipsed France 5-4 in their Nations League semifinal.

The 17-year-old Yamal outshone French counterparts Desire Doue and Ousmane Dembele on Thursday as Spain initially ran riot against Didier Deschamps’s tired-looking team to book its place in Sunday’s final against Portugal.

Portugal defeated host nation Germany 2-1 on Wednesday.

Thursday’s game had been billed as a contest between young stars, but it was clear that Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League win in Munich on Saturday had added more weight to French legs, with PSG stars Doue and Dembele disappointing.

It was the highest-scoring game in the Nations League’s short history, but three of the four French goals came after Yamal had made it 5-1 and the Spanish players eased up, thinking the game was won.

“It was a great game. In the end, it was a little close, but we played very well and I think deserved to win,” Yamal said.

Nico Williams opened the scoring in the 22nd minute after Yamal threaded the ball through to Mikel Oyarzabal, who held off two defenders and served it on a plate for Williams to rifle to the roof of the net.

Mikel Merino, the hero when Spain last played in Stuttgart, made it 2-0 three minutes later after playing a one-two with Oyarzabal.

Theo Hernandez struck the crossbar and Spain needed goalkeeper Unai Simon to deny Doue, then Mbappe and Dembele.

But Spain looked capable of scoring at any time. Real Madrid defender Dean Huijsen thought he had scored spectacularly after a brilliantly worked free kick, only to have the goal ruled out for offside.

It was the 20-year-old Huijsen’s third game for Spain. It looks like he is set to stay.

Adrien Rabiot conceded a penalty for a mistimed challenge on Yamal, who dusted himself off to make it 3-0 from the spot in the 54th.

Pedri scored a minute after that, taking Williams’s pass with his first touch and dinking it past the bewildered Mike Maignan with his next.

Pedro Porro’s foul gave Mbappe his chance from the penalty, but Yamal replied to that by prodding the ball past Maignan for 5-1.

Substitute Rayan Cherki scored late on his France debut after Yamal scored Spain’s fifth, then Spain defender Daniel Vivian conceded an own goal, and Cherki set up fellow substitute Randal Kolo Muani in stoppage time as France ultimately came close to an improbable comeback.

Zia Yusuf, a self-described ‘British Muslim patriot’, leaves a party accused of fuelling Islamophobia after 11 months.

The Muslim chairman of the United Kingdom’s radical right-wing Reform UK party has quit after denouncing a call from within party ranks to ban the burqa as “dumb”.

“I no longer believe working to get a Reform government elected is a good use of my time, and hereby resign the office,” Zia Yusuf announced on X on Thursday, hours after hitting out at Reform UK lawmaker Sarah Pochin for asking Prime Minister Keir Starmer whether his government would consider banning the burqa.

Pochin won her seat in a by-election last month that saw the anti-immigration party, some of whose members have been accused of Islamophobia, make significant gains in a political landscape traditionally dominated by the governing Labour Party and the opposition Conservatives.

The new lawmaker had urged Labour’s Starmer during her debut appearance at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday if he would consider the move “in the interests of public safety”, according to the BBC.

“I do think it’s dumb for a party to ask the PM if they would do something the party itself wouldn’t do,” Yusuf said on X amid an ensuing flare-up over whether banning the burqa should be party policy.

Yusuf, a former banker and self-described “proud British Muslim patriot”, became Reform UK chairman after last year’s general election, having jumped ship from the Conservative Party.

Reform UK, led by Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage, won four parliamentary seats in a breakthrough result last year, going on to gain a fifth parliamentary seat, its first mayoralty and a number of council seats in local elections last month.

It currently leads national opinion polls, ahead of the Labour Party.

Farage said on X that Yusuf was “a huge factor in our success on May 1st and is an enormously talented person”.

Divisions in the party’s upper ranks have been made public before.

In March, Reform referred one of its lawmakers, Rupert Lowe, to police over a number of allegations, including threats of physical violence against Yusuf.

Prosecutors later said they would not bring charges against Lowe, who was suspended by the party.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called on the US to apply more pressure on Russia to end its three-year-old war on Ukraine.

“You know that we gave support to Ukraine and that we are looking for more pressure on Russia,” Merz told US President Donald Trump at the start of their meeting on Thursday at the Oval Office.

Merz emphasised that Germany “was on the side of Ukraine”, while Trump likened the war to a fight between two young children who hated each other.

“Sometimes, you’re better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart,” Trump said. He added that he had relayed that analogy to Russian President Vladimir Putin in their phone conversation on Wednesday.

Asked about Trump’s comments as the two leaders sat next to each other, Merz stressed that both he and Trump agreed “on this war and how terrible this war is going on,” pointing to the US president as the “key person in the world” who would be able to stop the bloodshed.

Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett said that, while the two men agreed that the war needed to end, how that happens “seems to be a point of contention”.

“What we saw there was the German chancellor suggesting and pointing out that … Russia continues to hit back at civilian targets, whereas, when it comes to Ukraine, the focus in the eyes of Germany has been strictly on military targets inside Russia,” she said from Washington, DC.

Halkett added that Trump revealed during the meeting that he “implored the Russian president not to retaliate for that attack that took place over the weekend … and Vladimir Putin said he was going to attack regardless.”

A ‘decent’ relationship

Thursday’s meeting marked the first time that the two leaders sat down in person. After exchanging pleasantries – Merz gave Trump a gold-framed birth certificate of the US president’s grandfather, Friedrich Trump, who immigrated from Germany – the two leaders were to discuss issues such as Ukraine, trade and NATO spending.

Trump and Merz have spoken several times by phone, either bilaterally or with other European leaders, since Merz took office on May 6. German officials say the two leaders have started to build a “decent” relationship, with Merz wanting to avoid the antagonism that defined Trump’s relationship with one of his predecessors, Angela Merkel, in the Republican president’s first term.

The 69-year-old Merz, who came to office with an extensive business background, is a conservative former rival of Merkel’s who took over her party after she retired from politics.

Merz has thrown himself into diplomacy on Ukraine, travelling to Kyiv with fellow European leaders days after taking office and receiving Zelenskyy in Berlin last week.

He has thanked Trump for his support for an unconditional ceasefire while rejecting the idea of “dictated peace” or the “subjugation” of Ukraine and advocating for more sanctions against Russia.

In their first phone call since Merz became chancellor, Trump said he would support the efforts of Germany and other European countries to achieve peace, according to a readout from the German government. Merz also said last month that “it is of paramount importance that the political West not let itself be divided, so I will continue to make every effort to produce the greatest possible unity between the European and American partners.”

Under Merz’s immediate predecessor, Olaf Scholz, Germany became the second-biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine after the United States. Merz has promised to keep up the support and last week, pledged to help Ukraine develop its own long-range missile systems that would be free of any imposed range limits.

At home, Merz’s government is intensifying a drive that Scholz started to bolster the German military after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In Trump’s first term, Berlin was a target of his ire for failing to meet the current NATO target of spending 2 percent of gross domestic product on defence, and Trump is now demanding at least 5 percent from allies.

The White House official said the upcoming NATO summit in the Netherlands later this month is a “good opportunity” for Germany to commit to meeting that 5 percent mark.

During their meeting on Thursday, Trump described Merz as a good representative of Germany and also “difficult,” which he suggested was a compliment. He said US troops would remain in Germany and said it was positive that Berlin was spending more money on defence.

‘Ok with tariffs’

Another top priority for Merz is to get Germany’s economy, Europe’s biggest, moving again after it shrank the past two years. He wants to make it a “locomotive of growth,” but Trump’s tariff threats are a potential obstacle for a country whose exports have been a key strength. At present, the economy is forecast to stagnate in 2025.

Germany exported $160bn worth of goods to the US last year, according to the Census Bureau. That was about $85bn more than what the US sent to Germany, a trade deficit that Trump wants to erase.

“Germany is one of the very big investors in America,” Merz told reporters Thursday morning. “Only a few countries invest more than Germany in the USA. We are in third place in terms of foreign direct investment.”

The United States and the European Union are in talks to reach a trade deal, which would be critical for Germany’s export-heavy economy, but Trump said he would be fine with an agreement or with tariffs.

“We’ll end up hopefully with a trade deal,” Trump said. “I’m OK with the tariffs, or we make a deal with the trade.”

“Sometimes you let them fight for a little while.” Donald Trump said Russia and Ukraine are like two children fighting in a park and sometimes it’s better to wait before breaking them up. He was speaking in an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz who said America is in a strong position to end the war.

Lula criticises Israel during Paris visit, as German FM voices rare criticism of onslaught in Gaza and West Bank settlements.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva accused Israel of carrying out “premeditated genocide” in Gaza during a visit to Paris, as it emerged the military had killed at least 52 people in its latest onslaught in the besieged coastal enclave where a crippling blockade is fuelling starvation.

“What is happening in Gaza is not a war. It’s a genocide being carried out by a highly prepared army against women and children,” said Lula at a joint news conference in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday.

“[It is] a premeditated genocide from a far-right government that is waging a war, including against the interests of its own people,” he said of Israel’s 20-month offensive, which has killed at least 54,607 Palestinians so far, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.

At least 52 people were killed on Thursday, including women and children, according to medical sources, who spoke to Al Jazeera, amid growing concern about deadly incidents at aid distribution sites run by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation since last week.

While Lula has previously used the term “genocide” to characterise Israel’s actions in Gaza, Macron has reserved judgement, saying last month that it was not for a “political leader to use the term, but up to historians to do so when the time comes”.

The Brazilian leader’s condemnation of Israel’s offensive came as German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told his visiting Israeli counterpart, Gideon Saar, to allow more humanitarian aid into the enclave in accordance with “prevailing international law”.

Last week, Wadephul had said Germany was assessing “whether what is happening in Gaza is in line with international law” and that arms sales to Israel would be evaluated on this basis.

Wadephul also said he was “concerned about the extremely tense situation in the West Bank”, decrying the Israeli government’s announcement that it would allow 22 more settlements in the occupied territory, saying it threatened the two-state solution further.

On Thursday, King Abdullah of Jordan praised Spain for recognising Palestine and calling for an end to the war in Gaza during a meeting with King Felipe in Madrid. He said work was underway to gain European support.

Jordan’s state news agency Petra cited him as saying work was under way to harness European support for an Arab plan to rebuild Gaza without displacing its residents, as threatened by US President Donald Trump this year.

The Netherlands is still supporting the supply chain of Israel’s version of the F-35 fighter jet, more than a year after a court banned direct Dutch exports of F-35 parts to Israel, a report claims.

Research by the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) shared with Al Jazeera shows that the port of Rotterdam is frequented by ships carrying F-35 parts for maintenance and assembly. The ships belong to the Danish shipping giant Maersk.

By examining import data and shipping receipts of Maersk and Lockheed Martin – the United States weapons manufacturer that designed the F-35 – the group found that more than a dozen shipments from Israel travelled through the port of Rotterdam on their way to the US from April 2023 until early 2025.

The F-35 fighter jet has been used by Israel to bomb Gaza from the air with devastating effect. Much of the Strip, where more than 50,000 people have been killed since October 2023, is in ruins.

“Maersk now operates a recurring shipping cycle between Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth facility in Texas and Israel Aerospace Industries in Israel, routed through Rotterdam,” the report stated. “In this cycle, Maersk transports pairs of empty F-35 wing containers from Houston to Ashdod, Israel, where they are loaded with completed F-35 wings. The filled containers are then shipped back to the US for final assembly or repair.”

The researchers noted that Rotterdam is a “key stopover point in this process, and shipments for this cycle have occurred beyond February of 2024”.

Then, a judge at a Dutch appeals court ordered the Netherlands to stop exporting and transiting F-35 parts to Israel, saying there was a “clear risk” they were being used in “serious violations of international humanitarian law”.

The Dutch state immediately lodged an appeal at the Supreme Court, but until a decision is made, it is still bound by the lower court’s ruling.

“The findings in the report show that the port of Rotterdam plays an important role in sustaining the operational capacities of Israel’s F-35 fighter jets. This way, the port of Rotterdam is complicit to international law violations in Gaza,” Gerard Jonkman, director of a Dutch NGO, The Rights Forum, told Al Jazeera.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry told Al Jazeera that the court had subsequently confirmed that the judgement in February 2024 applied only to the export or transit of F-35 parts from the Netherlands to Israel and that the Dutch state had implemented the judgement accordingly.

A spokesperson for the port of Rotterdam told Al Jazeera that the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs was responsible for issuing permits for the transhipment of military goods. Port officials check vessel compliance with environmental and safety regulations for shipping on behalf of the government and municipality of Rotterdam, they said.

“The harbour master receives only limited information regarding vessel cargo. The information received mainly pertains to whether the vessel is carrying hazardous substances. Other aspects of vessel cargo are monitored by various other public authorities, such as customs.”

They said they were “aware” of the February 2024 court ruling.

“All activities in the port must comply with international laws and regulations and the permits issued by the government. If we see any indication that this is not the case, the Port of Rotterdam Authority alerts the competent authority.”

‘The Netherlands is still part of the supply chain’

The Rights Forum was one of three parties, together with the Dutch affiliate of Oxfam and PAX for Peace, the largest peace organisation in the Netherlands, that sued the Dutch state over its export of F-35 parts to Israel.

“In this case, there is no direct export from the Netherlands to Israel, but the Netherlands is still part of the supply chain for the Israeli F-35 programme,” Gerard Jonkman, head of the Rights Forum, said of the Palestinian Youth Movement’s findings. “This way the Netherlands facilitates the Israeli F-35 programme and might breach its obligations under international law.”

PAX for Peace project leader Frank Slijper told Al Jazeera: “This indeed shows that the Netherlands is part of the F-35 supply chain.”

A grassroots organisation, the Palestinian Youth Movement believes that targeting Maersk directly disrupts the flow of weapons in the “supply chain of death used to genocide Palestinians”.

According to the group, Maersk has shipped the wings for every Israeli F-35 since March 2022.

In November 2024, following a decision by Spain to deny docking permission to two ships carrying weapons bound for Israel, Maersk adjusted its routes. The company’s fleet now avoids Spain in favour of Rotterdam and the port of Tangier in Morocco

“Maersk has, for years, knowingly supplied the Israeli military with key weapons components used to carry out genocide in Gaza,” Aisha Nizar of the Palestinian Youth Movement told Al Jazeera. “The company has done so without hesitation, potentially violating multiple arms embargo policies across Europe.”

The F-35 is considered a top-of-the-line fighter jet. The aircraft designed by Lockheed Martin costs at least $80m in its most basic configuration.

Currently, 12 countries operate the jet. F-35 parts are made in the United States and several participating partner countries, giving the project the moniker Joint Strike Fighter.

“It is very sad to see that Maersk is not distancing itself from Israel’s crimes against humanity in Gaza and more broadly continues lending itself to the crucial replenishment of Israel’s armed forces,” Slijper said. “Shipping military supplies for the benefit of Israel’s arms industry and the [Israeli army] risks Maersk being complicit in Israel’s crimes.”

The use of the jet by Israel, the only country with its unique version of the F-35, has been scrutinised since the start of the onslaught in Gaza.

Recently, campaign groups took the United Kingdom government to court in a bid to halt the exports of British-made F-35 parts to Israel.

In a statement to Al Jazeera, Lockheed Martin said: “Foreign military sales are government-to-government transactions, and we closely adhere to US government policy with regard to conducting business with international partners.”

Regarding F-35 shipments, Maersk told Al Jazeera that it upholds a strict policy of not shipping weapons or ammunition to active conflict zones and that it conducted due diligence, particularly in regions affected by active conflicts, including Israel and Gaza, and adapts this due diligence to the changing context. It confirmed, however, that its US subsidiary Maersk Line Limited was one of “many companies supporting the global F-35 supply chain” with transport services.

The F-35 programme includes several coalition countries, including Israel.

“As part of the coalition-building of the F-35, Maersk Line Limited regularly transports parts between participating countries, including Israel, where F-35 wings are manufactured,” it said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov says Russia will respond to recent Ukrainian attacks when its military sees fit.

A Russian drone strike has killed five people in the northern town of Pryluky in Chernihiv region, including three members of one family, Ukrainian authorities said.

Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Thursday morning that a local first responder’s wife, daughter and one-year-old grandson were killed in the attack.

Regional Governor Viacheslav Chaus said the family was among five people killed when Russia launched six drones to attack the town overnight.

Six others were admitted to hospital, he said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy slammed the attacks and accused Moscow of “constantly trying to buy time for itself to continue killing.

“When it does not feel strong enough condemnation and pressure from the world – it kills again,” he wrote on X.

Zelenskyy said Russia launched 103 drones and one ballistic missile overnight targeting the Donetsk, Kharkiv, Odesa, Sumy, Chernihiv, Dnipro and Kherson regions.

“This is yet another reason to impose maximum sanctions and put pressure together. We expect action from the United States, Europe, and everyone in the world who can really help change these terrible circumstances,” he urged.

In the northeastern city of Kharkiv, 18 people were injured, including four children, in a Russian drone attack, Klymenko said.

Resident Anastasiia Meleshchenk told the Reuters news agency that the overnight strike had flown into her neighbour’s apartment, and she managed to run out into the hallway with her child.

“Yesterday, workers had just finished repair work in my apartment after the previous attack,” she said.

There was no immediate comment from Russia.

In Russia, Ukraine’s military said it struck missile systems in the Bryansk region, which it said were preparing to attack Ukraine.

Russia pledges response

The attacks come days after Ukraine targeted four of Russia’s military airfields in Siberia and the far north in an operation using 117 unmanned aerial vehicles launched from containers close to the targets, codenamed “Spider’s Web”.

Russia also accused it of blowing up rail bridges in the south of the country, killing seven people.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday that Russia will respond to the attacks as and when its military sees fit.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Thursday that the warplanes that were held in the facilities were damaged and would be restored.

Two US officials told Reuters that Washington assesses that up to 20 warplanes were hit and about 10 were destroyed.

In recent weeks, fighting and aerial attacks have escalated despite the two warring sides holding direct talks in Turkiye aimed at ending the conflict.

Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s John Hendren said, the “US embassy has warned US citizens here in Ukraine that major strikes are to come.

“Donald Trump, the US president, said in a conversation with [Russian President] Vladimir Putin that lasted about an hour and 15 minutes that Putin was going to have to retaliate for the strikes on Russian airfields,” Hendren said.

Russian and Ukrainian delegations met in Istanbul for the second time in a month on June 2 to explore the possibility of a ceasefire. The talks lasted just over an hour and, once again, produced no meaningful progress. As with the May 16 negotiations, both sides claimed they had laid the groundwork for prisoner exchanges. But despite Ukraine’s offer to hold another meeting before the end of June, a deep and unbridgeable divide remains between Kyiv and Moscow.

More meetings are unlikely to change that. Russia continues to demand Kyiv’s capitulation to the full list of conditions President Vladimir Putin set at the war’s outset: Ukrainian neutrality, a government reshaped to suit Moscow’s interests, and the surrender of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions. Between the two rounds of talks, Putin even raised the stakes, adding a demand for a “buffer zone” in northern Ukraine.

Kyiv, meanwhile, remains resolute. It refuses to cede any territory and maintains that a full ceasefire along all fronts is a non-negotiable precondition for serious negotiations.

Still, both sides appear prepared to continue the diplomatic charade.

That’s because these talks are not truly about achieving peace or securing a lasting bilateral agreement. Neither side is genuinely negotiating with the other. Instead, both are using the forum to send messages to the United States – and to Donald Trump, in particular.

This dynamic persists despite Trump’s recent efforts to distance himself from the war he once claimed he could end within 24 hours of returning to the White House. That shift in rhetoric has been echoed by key figures in his administration. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who just six months ago represented opposite ends of the Republican spectrum on Ukraine – with Vance nearly endorsing surrender to Putin, and Rubio among the Senate’s most vocal Ukraine hawks – have both signalled that Trump’s White House is no longer interested in mediating the conflict. Reflecting that disengagement, there was no high-level prenegotiation meeting between US and Ukrainian officials in Turkiye ahead of the latest talks, unlike those held in May.

Yet despite Rubio’s apparent reversal – likely intended to align with Trump – Ukraine still enjoys broad support in the US Senate, including from senior Republicans. A bipartisan bill aimed at codifying existing sanctions on Russia and imposing new ones – thereby limiting Trump’s power to roll them back – has garnered 81 Senate co-sponsors. The bill’s authors, Senators Lindsey Graham (R–South Carolina) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), recently travelled to Kyiv to reaffirm their backing. Graham has suggested the bill could move forward in the coming weeks.

Still, Ukraine knows the bill stands little chance in the House of Representatives without Trump’s blessing. Despite Trump’s enduring animosity towards Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Kyiv has recently adopted a more deferential posture, particularly after their disastrous February meeting in Washington. The Ukrainian government quickly signed and ratified the so-called “minerals deal” that Trump demanded last month. A subsequent meeting between the two leaders – held on the sidelines of Pope Francis’s funeral – was notably more productive.

So far, Kyiv’s strategy of appeasement has yielded little change in Trump’s approach. While Trump has occasionally hinted at taking a tougher stance on Putin – usually in response to particularly egregious Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians – he consistently deflects when asked for specifics. For months, he has promised to reveal his plan for Ukraine “in about two weeks,” a vague assurance that remains unfulfilled. A new sanctions package reportedly prepared by his own team over a month ago still sits untouched.

Hoping that mounting battlefield violence or bipartisan pressure from the US Senate might force Trump to act, Kyiv presses on with negotiations. Just one day before the Istanbul talks, Russia launched a record-setting overnight assault on Ukraine, firing more than 430 missiles and drones. Ukraine responded forcefully: on June 1, it conducted a large-scale drone strike deep inside Russia, destroying dozens of military aircraft, including airborne command platforms and nuclear-capable bombers.

Yet these high-profile losses have done little to shift Putin’s strategy. He continues to use the negotiation process as a smokescreen, providing Trump with political cover for his inaction. Meanwhile, Russian forces are advancing, making incremental gains in northern Ukraine’s Sumy region – where they hope to establish a “buffer zone” – and pushing forward on the southwestern Donetsk front.

Ultimately, Ukraine’s ability to strike deep inside Russian territory, including potentially vulnerable targets like oil infrastructure, may have more bearing on the war’s trajectory than any outcome from the Istanbul talks. Yet neither military escalation nor stalled diplomacy seems likely to bring a swift end to the conflict.

Trump says he abhors the civilian toll of this war, even if he stops short of blaming Putin for starting it. But it is Trump’s lack of strategy – his hesitation, his mixed signals, his refusal to lead – that is prolonging the conflict, escalating its brutality and compounding its risks for global stability.

Trump’s advisers may call it “peace through strength,” but what we are witnessing is paralysis through posturing. Russia’s delegation in Istanbul was never a step towards resolution – it was a diplomatic decoy, shielding a brutal military advance. If Trump refuses to back a serious escalation in pressure on Moscow – through expanded sanctions and renewed military aid to Kyiv – he won’t just fail to end the war. He will become complicit in prolonging it. The choice before him is clear: lead with resolve, or let history record that under his watch, weakness spoke louder than peace.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

Ukraine has destroyed Russian strategic bombers in an unprecedented undercover drone operation while Russia launched its biggest-yet air raid on Ukraine’s cities and intensified attacks on its northern region of Sumy, when the two sides met for peace talks in Istanbul.

The two respective drone operations were emblematic of how direct peace talks, which began on May 15, have not abated the intensity of the conflict and may have deepened it.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly pledged a response.

Russia’s drone-and-missile attack on Saturday night involved 472 Shahed kamikaze drones, four cruise missiles and three ballistic missiles. Ukraine neutralised 385 aerial targets, its air force said, including three of the cruise missiles.

Ukraine’s operation Spiderweb came a day later, and hit the types of planes Russia has used to launch those cruise missiles – Tupolev-22M3, Tupolev-95 and Tupolev-160, among others.

Spiderweb involved 117 drones smuggled into Russia and launched simultaneously near Russian airfields where the bombers were parked.

Video released by Ukraine showed Tu-95s exploding in orange flames as the drones passed over them, demonstrating that their fuel tanks were full and they were in service.

Ukraine’s State Security Service (SBU), which carried out the operation, told Ukrainian media 41 planes were hit, which, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, amounted to “34 percent of the strategic cruise missile carriers stationed at air bases”. The SBU estimated the damage at $7bn.

Western military analysts and open-source media had not fully corroborated Ukraine’s story by Wednesday, but fires and explosions were reported at five Russian bases.

For the first time, Ukraine claimed to have hit the Olenya airbase in the Russian Arctic, almost 2,000km (1,240 miles) from Ukraine, where all Tu-95 bombers were reported destroyed.

Also reportedly struck were the Belaya airbase in Irkutsk, more than 4,000km (2,500 miles) from Ukraine, where three Tu-95 strategic bombers were reported destroyed; the Dyagilevo airbase in Ryazan, only 175km (110 miles) from downtown Moscow; and the Ivanovo airfield, 250km (155 miles) northeast of the Russian capital, where at least one A-50 was destroyed – a $500m airborne radar Russia uses to identify Ukrainian air defence systems and coordinate Russian fighter jet targeting. Fire was reported at a fifth airfield, also near Moscow.

Zelenskyy called it “an absolutely brilliant result, an independent result of Ukraine”, and said it had been “a year, six months and nine days from the start of planning”.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence admitted that “in Murmansk and Irkutsk Regions, as a result of [First Person View] drones launched from an area in close proximity to airfields, several aircraft caught fire,” but that similar attacks were repelled in Ivanovo, Ryazan and Amur.

Russia also said “some participants of the terrorist attacks were detained,” although Zelenskyy said “our people who prepared the operation were withdrawn from Russian territory on time.”

“Russia regularly deploys Tu-95 and Tu-22M3 to launch … cruise missiles against Ukraine,” wrote the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington-based think tank, adding, “The downing of Russian A-50 aircraft has previously temporarily constrained Russian aviation activities over Ukraine.”

Russian pro-Kremlin Telegram channel Rybar and Ukrainian military observer Tatarigami said Russia no longer builds chassis for Tu-95s and Tu-22s, making them impossible to replace. Bloomberg reported that Russia’s reliance on sanctioned Western components will keep it from putting even damaged aircraft back into service.

The New York Times estimated Ukraine may have destroyed or damaged 20 aircraft, but it is possible that not all strike video has yet been posted on open-source media.

“If even half the total claim of 41 aircraft damaged/destroyed is confirmed, it will have a significant impact on the capacity of the Russian Long Range Aviation force to keep up its regular large scale cruise missile salvoes against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure,” aviation expert Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute told The New York Times.

The operation “will force Russian officials to consider redistributing Russia’s air defence systems to cover a much wider range of territory”, said the ISW.

Ukraine’s SBU struck again on June 3, damaging the Kerch Bridge, a vital Russian supply line to Crimea, for the third time during the war. Video showed an underwater explosion against one of the bridge’s stanchions, suggesting Ukraine had used an underwater unmanned vehicle.

Moscow denied there was any real damage.

Russia creeps forward

Marring Ukraine’s success was the news of persistent Russian advances.

The most alarming were near the northern city of Sumy, only 30km (20 miles) from the Russian border.

Geolocated footage showed that Russian troops took the villages of Konstyantynivka on the border and Oleksiivka, 4km (2.5 miles) from the border, on Sunday.

By Tuesday, Russian forces were close enough to launch rocket artillery into the city of Sumy, reportedly killing four people and wounding 30.

“Rocket artillery against an ordinary city – the Russians struck right on the street, hitting ordinary residential buildings. Sleazebags,” said Zelenskyy.

On Sunday, Russian troops also appeared to have seized the settlements of Dyliivka and Zorya, north and west of Toretsk in Ukraine’s east.

Geolocated footage indicated that Russian troops had also advanced towards Lyman and Kurakhove, two other key targets in Ukraine’s east.

These gains were part of a slow advance that has gone on for more than a year, but they were signs of Putin’s determination to complete his conquest of Ukraine’s east.

Talks secure another POW exchange

That determination was on display in Istanbul, where Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met on Monday for a second round of peace talks.

Russia presented a ceasefire memorandum that demanded Ukraine formally cede all the territory Russia has taken in Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson, plus the parts of those regions it has not yet seized, which could take years to conquer and come at great cost.

Syrskii said Russian casualties this year alone passed the 200,000 mark on Tuesday – a figure Al Jazeera is unable to independently verify.

Russia’s memorandum also demanded a limit to the size of Ukraine’s armed forces, and a commitment that Ukraine will neither join foreign military alliances nor allow foreign troops on its soil.

It also demanded a Ukrainian election within 100 days of signing the ceasefire agreement, underlining Moscow’s desire to replace the pro-Western Zelenskyy in Kyiv.

These demands are consistent with the terms Putin laid out in a speech in June 2024, and Ukrainian negotiators, who had not seen Russia’s memorandum before arriving at the talks at 1pm on Monday, departed after little more than an hour.

The two sides did agree to an exchange of at least 1,000 prisoners of war, and possibly as many as 1,200, prioritising the young (18-25) and wounded. They also agreed to an exchange of 6,000 bodies a side.

They agreed to hold a third round of talks in the last 10 days of June, with Ukraine’s defence minister, Rustem Umerov, suggesting it involve Putin and Zelenskyy, “because decisions can only be made by those who really make decisions”.

Some observers thought it was possible that the two leaders would meet at the first round of talks on May 15, but only Zelenskyy showed up.

“The Istanbul talks are not for striking a compromise peace on someone else’s delusional terms but for ensuring our swift victory and the complete destruction of the neo-Nazi regime,” explained Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, on his Telegram channel.

“Our army is pushing forward and will continue to advance. Everything that needs to be blown up will be blown up, and those who must be eliminated will be,” he concluded.

More sanctions for Russia?

United States President Donald Trump has refrained from imposing new sanctions on Moscow, but his stance is now losing supporters in the US Congress.

Sidney Blumenthal, a former presidential adviser, and Lindsey Graham said they would this week table legislation imposing 500 percent tariffs on any country that imports oil, gas and uranium from Russia. Graham called it “the most draconian bill I’ve ever seen in my life in the Senate.”

They made the announcement after a weekend trip to Kyiv and a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

“What I learned on this trip was he’s preparing for more war,” Graham said of Putin.

The bill would target China and India, which account for the bulk of Russian energy exports, totalling 233bn euros ($266bn) last year, according to a BBC investigation.

But it could theoretically include European Union members, who spent a reported 23bn euros ($26bn) on Russian oil and gas last year.

A number of EU members sought exceptions from Russian oil bans in early 2023, and the EU has never banned Russian gas, though it has almost completely stopped importing it.