Trump claims progress on Iran peace deal, eyes Ukraine war resolution

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Donald Trump has said a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine could be next after he held talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky separately.

Trump was speaking immediately after announcing that he had signed a memorandum to bring an end to the Iran war.

Trump said he had “good conversations” with Putin and Zelensky on Sunday and that both leaders are open to “do something” about bringing an end to the war.

He made the remarks alongside French president Emmanuel Macron as he arrived in Evian-les-Bains in France for talks with G7 leaders.

The summit comes as Russian advances in Ukraine have slowed and Ukraine seeks more military funding from its allies, amid a barrage of attacks on Kyiv.

Meanwhile, a Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bomber plane crashed in Siberia's Irkutsk region during a training flight, the Russian defence ministry said.

The nuclear-capable Tu-22 is a Soviet-era supersonic bomber that Russia has since used for combat missions in Syria and Ukraine.

Trump says he can now focus on ending Ukraine war after peace deal struck with Iran

Donald Trump has suggested that after reaching a deal to end the war with Iran, he will now have greater bandwidth to focus on the Russia-Ukraine war.

“Now that this [Iran] is finished, we’re going to be focusing on that [Ukraine],” he said, referring to diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting that has followed Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbour in February 2022.

His remarks were quickly followed by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s offer to meet Vladimir Putin at a G7 summit in France this week or even in the United States.

Zelensky said the US had agreed to invite Putin to the gathering, which started yesterday in Evian-les-Bains.

“We gave message that ​we ⁠are ready to meet with Putin during (the) G7, because Trump is there and Macron is there, so Europeans plus America. This is a good, I think, ⁠very good opportunity to meet all together," Zelensky told reporters.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 08:54

In photos: Zelensky reaches France for G7 summit

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 08:40

‘Like bombing Notre-Dame’: The 1,000-year-old Ukraine monastery damaged in Russia’s latest strike

A 1,000-year-old monastery that symbolises Ukraine’s spiritual and cultural heritage was badly damaged in the heaviest Russian aerial attack on Kyiv in two weeks, authorities said on Monday, while 10 people were killed nationwide in the overnight strikes.

France’s foreign minister ⁠said the attack on the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, a Unesco world heritage site founded in 1051, was akin to bombing Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris.

The Russian strikes came after Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday he had discussed with US president Donald Trump efforts to secure an end to the conflict, ahead of a G7 meeting in France this week.

“A Russian strike on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra set the Dormition Cathedral on fire – a church whose history dates back to the 11th century. And this is one of Russia’s most serious crimes against Christian ⁠culture to date,” Mr Zelensky said on X.

‘Like bombing Notre-Dame’: The Ukraine monastery damaged in Russia’s latest strike

The Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery was set alight on Monday during a Russian attack, Ukrainian authorities said

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 08:17

Moscow oil refinery damaged in Ukrainian drone attack, mayor says

A Ukrainian drone attack has damaged a Moscow oil refinery owned by Russia's ⁠Gazpromneft, Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said this morning.

The Gazpromneft refinery ‌serves the Moscow ⁠region, which has not so far ⁠been among the dozen or so ‌Russian regions ​where there have been ‌supply disruptions.

“There were no casualties. Emergency services are working at the scene," Sobyanin wrote on Telegram.

Sobyanin did not say whether the refinery's operations have been affected.

The ⁠plant, the biggest in the ​Moscow ⁠region, processed 11.6 million ‌tonnes of oil, producing 2.9 million tonnes of petrol and 3.2 million ‌tonnes of diesel in ‌2024, the latest available data.

The number of drone strikes on Russian refineries ⁠has doubled since the start of 2026, leading to full or partial shutdowns of oil processing and a decline in the production of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel, according ‌to official data, social media, and ​Reuters calculations.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 07:46

New EU sanctions target Russian shadow fleet, judges and a bishop

The European Union has issued new sanctions targeting Russia, including those accused of involvement in Russia's shadow fleet and ⁠linked to the murder of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

In total, 34 individuals and 47 entities linked to Russia's military and industrial complex, its shadow fleet of oil and gas tankers and others involved in political interference activities were added to the list, the European Council said.

Among them were Tahir Garayev – ⁠founder of Coral Energy, which later became 2Rivers Group – and ​Konstantin ⁠Rogach.

Garayev had enabled the shipment and export of Russian crude, in particular from sanctioned energy giant Rosneft, through a network of companies by concealing the oil's true origin, the EU said.

Rogach had "facilitated ‌insurance coverage and provided administrative consultancy for the benefit of vessels transporting crude oil or petroleum products originating in Russia or exported from Russia," the ⁠EU said.

The EU also targeted 15 individuals, including Russian judges and prosecutors, related to the 2024 poisoning death of Alexei Navalny, a leading opponent of Russian president Vladimir Putin.

A number of people "responsible for spreading disinformation aimed at justifying, promoting or legitimising Russia's war of aggression" were also targeted with sanctions, including journalists, ‌a Russian social media influencer and Georgiy Shevkunov, a ​bishop in the Russian Orthodox Church.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 07:36

Lukashenko says Ukraine has nothing to fear from Belarus

Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko has claimed Ukraine has nothing to fear from his country.

Belarus offered a launch pad to Russia in February 2022 to station troops and artillery ahead of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It has continued to offer military and diplomatic support to Moscow and also stations nuclear weapons for Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

“Absolutely nothing to fear. Absolutely. They know it, the soldiers ‌know it. The people ​of Ukraine know it," he said.

“This topic gets ‌stirred up by political ambitions,” Lukashenko claimed.

Nearly two weeks ago, Lukashenko threatened to strike a “major” target in Ukraine if the two countries came to blows.

“They may have identified 500 targets. But we have one major target, with precise coordinates, and it is very close to Belarus. They understand that too,” Lukashenko said in late May, likely referring to Ukraine's capital Kyiv – located less than 200km from the Belarus border.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 07:34

Ending Ukraine war on agenda as G7 leaders open summit talks

Leaders at the Group of Seven summit of major industrialised nations face a packed agenda on their first full day today, including challenging discussions on ending Russia's war in Ukraine and addressing the Middle East crisis.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky will be in attendance at the invitation of host France.

The Ukraine talks come on the heels of US president Donald Trump's announcement of an agreement to end the US war against Iran.

Trump said he had good conversations on Sunday with both Zelensky and Vladimir Putin.

“Now that this (Iran) is finished, we’re going to be focusing on that,” he said, speaking during a bilateral meeting Monday with French president Emmanuel Macron.

The exchange suggests Washington hasn’t given up on its diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting that followed Moscow’s all-out invasion of its neighbour in 2022.

“The right negotiation is one in which Ukraine and Russia are at the table, but with Europeans and Americans present as well,” Macron said on French television.

Macron said he’ll seek to persuade Trump to continue supporting Ukraine and increase pressure on Russia to help reach a peace agreement.

Hours before the start of the G7 summit, Russia fired hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles at Ukraine’s biggest cities in a barrage that killed 11 people and set fire to a religious landmark.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 06:59

Belarus's Lukashenko says battlefield victory unrealistic for both Russia and Ukraine

Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko has said it was clear that victory on the battlefield was unrealistic for both sides in the Russia-Ukraine war but claimed that Russian forces were still advancing.

Speaking to Al Arabiya newspaper, one of Vladimir Putin's closest allies said that both sides – Russia and Ukraine – must compromise to end the war that has raged for more than four years with no end in sight.

“Today, we need to use any steps to reach ​a ⁠peaceful agreement through compromises. For the long term," he said in the interview, which was republished by Belarus' Belta news agency.

“If they realise on both sides... you can't go further, otherwise there will be escalation and an even worse situation... If this sinks into the minds of the fighters and their supporters, it means a compromise can be reached," he said.

Belarus allowed Russia to use its territory for the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine and has allowed Moscow to deploy nuclear weapons on its soil.

Lukashenko said that while Russian forces were "advancing step-by-step" in the face of stout Ukrainian defence, both sides faced a shortage of troops.

“Russians are experiencing this shortage. Maybe not like in Ukraine, but it's there. But that's the main issue of this conflict – they are running out of people," Lukashenko said.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 06:26

Animals killed as Russian drone hits zoo in Ukraine's Kharkiv

A Russian drone struck enclosures at the zoo in Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv, killing rabbits and inflicting stress on other animals, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors in Kharkiv region in Ukraine's northeast said the ⁠drone hit ​an area ⁠described as a vivarium in which hundreds of ⁠rabbits, Guinea pigs, rats and ​mice ⁠were housed.

A ‌statement on Telegram said 10 rabbits were killed and 15 ‌injured.

The statement said an elephant was suffering from stress after the strike damaged the outside of its adjacent enclosure. There were no casualties among staff or visitors.

An "eco park" outside Kharkiv came under a Russian attack earlier this year and staff said at the time that several birds had been killed. Kharkiv, about 30⁠km (18 miles) from the ⁠Russian border, has been a frequent target ‌of ​Russian attacks in ‌the more than four-year-long ​war.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 05:53

Drone debris causes fire at oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar region near Crimea

Drone debris caused a fire at an oil depot in Russia's southern Krasnodar region, authorities said this morning, as ⁠they closed a local road connecting the damaged area to the Crimean peninsula.

The bridge is one of the supply routes to ⁠the Black Sea peninsula in addition to a few other roads from the nearby Russia-held areas of Ukraine.

There were no casualties following the fire at the oil depot, located in the Poltavskaya area of the region of Krasnodar, just across from Crimea, regional officials said.

Authorities ⁠said they closed a ‌local road connecting the area with a regional route leading to the bridge across ‌the Kerch Strait linking Crimea to ‌the Krasnodar region, built by Moscow after illegally annexing the peninsula.

The attack could deal a serious blow to the population in Crimea which is already facing a massive fuel shortage amid rising drone attacks on fuel and oil facilities.

Arpan Rai16 June 2026 05:17