Trump isn’t just burning his MAGA coalition over Iran — he’s inspiring a new one to rise against him
Tom Watling20 June 2025 17:00
In pictures: Russia’s drone attack on Odesa
We have some more pictures showing Russia’s latest overnight attack on the Ukrainian port city of Odesa.
A destroyed multistorey apartment building following Russia’s massive air attack in Odesa, Ukraine (AP)
A firefighter puts out a fire in an apartment building following Russia’s massive air attack in Odesa, Ukraine (AP)
Tom Watling20 June 2025 16:00
Russia’s economy minister says the country is on the brink of recession
Russia’s economy is “on the brink of going into a recession,” the country’s economy minister said Thursday, according to Russian media reports.
Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov delivered the warning at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the annual event in Russia’s second largest city designed to highlight the country’s economic prowess and court foreign investors.
Tom Watling20 June 2025 15:00
Ukrainian refugee’s life shattered again by Iran-Israel conflict
Tetiana Kurakova believed she had left the devastation of war behind when she fled Ukraine in 2022, escaping the gaping holes in buildings, streets choked with rubble, and the pervasive fear of airstrikes.
The 40-year-old makeup artist had painstakingly rebuilt her life in the Israeli coastal city of Bat Yam, aided by friends who helped her relaunch her career.
Tom Watling20 June 2025 14:00
Zelensky calls for ‘strong response’ against Russia after latest attacks
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has renewed calls for Kyiv’s western supporters to issue a “strong response” against Russia following its latest aerial attacks.
“Russia continues its tactics of deliberate terror against our people. And it is precisely for this that it must face a strong response – one that will significantly impact Russia as a whole and its ability to continue the war,” he wrote on X.
“The G7 countries and the EU know the recipe: strong pressure, sanctions targeting the energy sector and the shadow fleet, and a $30 price cap on Russian oil. The sooner the sick minds in the Kremlin lose the ability to finance the war, the more lives we will be able to save in Ukraine.”
You can see his full statement below.
Tom Watling20 June 2025 13:00
As Putin ramps up his summer offensive in Ukraine, will he succeed?
Tom Watling20 June 2025 12:00
Spain rejects NATO’s anticipated defense spending increase as ‘unreasonable’
Spain has rejected a Nato proposal to spend 5% of GDP on defense needs that’s due to be announced next week, calling it “unreasonable.”
In a letter sent Thursday to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said that Spain “cannot commit to a specific spending target in terms of GDP” at next week’s Nato summit in The Hague.
Most US allies at Nato are on track to endorse Donald Trump’s demand that they invest 5% of gross domestic product on their defense and military needs. In early June, Sweden and the Netherlands said that they aim to meet the new target.
Tom Watling20 June 2025 11:34
In pictures: Odesa residents see aftermath of Russian attacks 
(REUTERS)
(REUTERS)
Tom Watling20 June 2025 11:00
Norway to meet 5% NATO goal on defence, security spending, prime minister says
Norway plans to raise its defence spending to 3.5% of the country’s GDP, and also aims to use an additional 1.5% for broader security related purposes, its prime minister said on Friday, in line with a planned common goal among Nato states.
Nato chief Mark Rutte has proposed that member nations should agree at a June 24-25 meeting in The Hague to aim for spending of a total of 5% of their gross domestic product on defence and broader security measures.
“We must do more to secure our country and contribute to our common security with our allies in Nato,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere told a press conference on Friday.
The 3.5% spending includes Norway’s financial support to Ukraine’s military defence, he said.
Norway in 2024 spent an estimated 2.2% of GDP on defence, up from a low of 1.4% in 2022, the national statistics agency (SSB) said in April, and the government said in May it aims to spend 3.3% in 2025.
Tom Watling20 June 2025 10:31
North Korea will send 5,000 military construction workers to Russia, Kremlin says
North Korea is sending 5,000 military construction workers and 1,000 sappers to Russia’s Kursk oblast, where Moscow is repairing widespread damage from a Ukrainian incursion, according to a top Kremlin official.
Presidential security adviser Sergei Shoigu said the workers would help rebuild the strategic border region, which was invaded by the Ukrainian military last August and retaken by Russian forces earlier this year.
The dispatch of the workers was discussed in Mr Shoigu’s meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, state media outlet KCNA reported on Wednesday.
Tom Watling20 June 2025 10:00