Trump and Putin’s secret phone calls | Ukraine This Week

9:21 AM

General Staff: Russia has lost 1,010,390 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.

The number includes 1,060 casualties that Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

8:02 AM

Russian attacks injure 7 people in Kherson Oblast.

Seven people were injured in Russian drone and artillery attacks on Kherson Oblast on June 20-21. Strikes hit multiple settlements, including the city of Kherson.

5:40 AM

Ukraine developing interceptor drones to counter Russian attacks, Zelensky says.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his June 20 nightly address that Ukraine is developing interceptor drones to counter Russian drone strikes, adding that domestic production is "already delivering results."

2:57 AM

Zelensky to attend NATO summit despite media reports that he won't.

President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to attend a NATO summit in The Hague next week, the European Council confirmed on June 20.

12:53 AM

'This is the best offer Ukraine can get today' — Russia won't back down as renewed peace talks loom.

Russia's memorandum on a peace proposal is the "best offer Ukraine can get today," Russia's envoy to the United Nations (UN), Vasily Nebenzya, said at a UN Security Council meeting.

11:33 PM

'Absolutely insane' — Zelensky condemns Russian offensive in Sumy Oblast amid Moscow's maximalist demands.

President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned Russia's attempts to advance in Sumy Oblast, as Moscow intensifies its maximalist rhetoric.

10:22 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: Kyiv calls on West to isolate Moscow after Putin claims 'all of Ukraine' belongs to Russia.

8:04 PM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 10:02 pm)

'All of Ukraine is ours' — Putin on Russia's territorial ambitions in Ukraine.

8:58 PM

Ukraine unites Unmanned Systems Forces with top 'Drone Line' units under new command group.

The grouping was created to "improve the efficiency of management, transform the Forces, and adapt to the requirements of modern warfare," according to the statement.

2:19 PM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 7:47 pm)

KI Insights

Ukraine calendar: What will happen this week

6:41 PM

EU postpones lowering price cap for Russian oil amid tensions in Middle East, Politico reports.

Ukraine has been calling on Western partners to lower the price cap on Russian oil from $60 to $30 per barrel. Meanwhile, two diplomats told Politico that the escalation of the conflict between Iran and Israel would make it impossible to impose new restrictions.

1:26 PM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 6:20 pm)

Russian losses

Russia just accidentally admitted to its staggering troop losses in Ukraine

5:59 PM

Not content with waging war inside Ukraine, Russia has now taken it into the virtual world

The new game is the first to focus on Russia’s war in Ukraine, featuring real battles and characters.

5:15 PM

Ukraine imposes new sanctions on Russian, Chinese, Belarusian companies involved in drone production.

Ukraine introduced new restrictions as Russia has escalated drone attacks against Ukrainian cities over the past weeks, launching record 400-500 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) per night.

12:29 PM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 4:10 pm)

Russia's war-fueled economy is running on empty, Central Bank chief warns.

"We grew for two years at a fairly high pace because free resources were activated," Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said.

4:02 PM

Russia

Russia pulls its scientists out of Iranian nuclear plant, as Israeli strikes threaten decades of collaboration

3:59 PM

Russian cannibal soldier ate his own comrade, leaked audio from Ukraine's HUR claims.

"Nobody ran away. 'Brelok' took him (comrade) out and then ate him for two f*cking weeks," a speaker identified by HUR as a commander of a reconnaissance unit from Russia's 68th Motorized Rifle Division can be heard saying in the intercept.

3:28 PM

Russian drone strikes on Ukraine might drop due to Iran-Israel conflict, Estonian intel says.

"While it can be assessed that Russia has been able to largely localize and transfer the production of Shaheed and Geran-type drones to Russia, it can be assumed that some critical nodes for drone production continue to come from Iran," Estonian military intelligence commander Ants Kiviselg said.

2:31 PM

Ukraine, Russia carry out 2nd prisoner swap this week under Istanbul deal.

Ukraine has brought home another group of prisoners of war released from Russian captivity, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 20, following another prisoner exchange a day earlier.

1:57 PM

Russian political party requests political asylum for Musk, senior MP claims.

Davankov, deputy speaker of the State Duma, told reporters at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum that his party had formally petitioned the Russian Foreign Ministry to provide Musk with asylum. The request is expected to be reviewed within a month, he reportedly said.

1:40 PM

Shmyhal confirms Deputy PM's official travel abroad as questions mount amid corruption probe.

Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Chernyshov's official trip abroad has been approved until the end of the week, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on June 20 amid media speculations connecting Chernyshov's stay abroad to an ongoing corruption investigation.

11:23 AM  (Updated:  June 20, 2025 12:43 pm)

Baltics, Nordics, Poland propose Schengen ban for Russians who fought in Ukraine.

"There are hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens who have fought against Ukraine," Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro said. "We must take a clear stance, these individuals cannot freely travel across Schengen."

10:20 AM

2 killed, 39 injured in Russian attacks against Ukraine over past day.

Russian forces launched 86 Shahed-type attack drones and decoys against Ukraine overnight, the Air Force said. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 34 drones, while 36 disappeared from radars or were intercepted by electronic warfare.

10:14 AM

Dutch parliament recognizes Soviet 1944 deportation of Crimean Tatars as genocide.

In the adopted text, Dutch lawmakers declared that the Soviet-led deportation of Crimean Tatars, which took place between May 18 and 21, 1944, constitutes genocide by contemporary legal and historical definitions.

9:37 AM

Russia would react 'very negatively' to Iran leader's assassination, Kremlin says.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov warned that any attempt at regime change in Tehran or threats to its leadership would "open Pandora's box," deepening instability across the Middle East and beyond.