Putin doesn’t want ceasefire, says Zelensky after 16 killed in drone attack

The death toll in Russian attack on Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih rose to 19 last night, including nine children, local officials said.

Photos posted online showed bodies of the dead, including elderly, and wounded lying on the pavement as grey smoke rose into the sky.

Rescue workers toiled through the night with flashlights in Kryvyi Rih, moving around wrecked cars, buildings with shattered windows and a gaping crater. Residents carried armloads of foil and timber for emergency home repairs, according to a Reuters eyewitness.

At least 50 people were wounded, the emergency services said, adding that the figure was growing. More than 30 people, including a three-month-old baby, were in hospital, said regional governor Serhiy Lysak.

Russia’s defence ministry claimed it targeted a military gathering there but did not explain the death of children and an infant.

“There were dead children lying there, crying parents, it was horrible,” Yulia, 47, told Reuters as she surveyed the damaged blinds, fixtures and furniture in her apartment.

Britain and France on Friday accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of dragging his feet in ceasefire talks aimed at halting his country’s invasion of Ukraine and demanded a swift response from Moscow after weeks of U.S. efforts to secure a truce.

Russia has effectively rejected a U.S. proposal for a full and immediate 30-day halt in the fighting. A Kremlin official said Monday that Moscow views efforts to end its more than three-year war with Ukraine as “a drawn-out process.”

“Our judgment is that Putin continues to obfuscate, continues to drag his feet,” British Foreign Secretary David Lammy told reporters at NATO headquarters, standing alongside his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot in a symbolic show of unity.

Read the full report:

Although Russia was not included in Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariff measures he unveiled earlier this week, the Kremlin is preparing to take “extra measures” minimise damage.

Moscow said it must do what it can to protect its economy from the turbulence the tariffs will bring to the global market.

“We see quite a high level of turbulence in international markets”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “We are hearing very unfavourable forecasts from various economists, including world-renowned economists, who are pessimistic about this latest news.”

He said that while the Russian economy was robust, thanks to the government’s efforts, “additional efforts” would be necessary to protect it from tariff shocks. He did not specify what those efforts would be.

“Let’s just say that with a storm like this, we need to be very careful to minimise the negative effects on our economy,” Peskov said.

Vladimir Putin does not want a ceasefire, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has said, as 16 were killed in a drone attack on Kryvyi Rih.

Mr Zelensky said: “People die every day. There is only one reason why this continues: Russia does not want a ceasefire, and we see it. The whole world sees it.”

He said rescue operations were ongoing in the central city, with regional governor Serhii Lysak adding that at least 50 people were injured.

The US will know within weeks whether Vladimir Putin is serious about peace, US secretary of state Marco Rubio has said – with Washington’s Nato allies accusing Russia of stalling ceasefire efforts.

Donald Trump and his White House officials have reportedly become wary of Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin’s commitment to peace in Ukraine – despite the US president having insisted for weeks that Putin was serious about reaching a truce.

Speaking at the end of a two-day meeting of Nato foreign ministers, Mr Rubio said: “We will know soon enough, in a matter of weeks, not months, whether Russia is serious about peace or not. I hope they are.

“If this is dragging things out, President Trump’s not going to fall into the trap of endless negotiations about negotiations,” Mr Rubio said.

Read the full report:

Russia has placed Elton John’s charity focussing on HIV/AIDS prevention on its list of “undesirable organisations”, the prosecutor general’s office said on Thursday.

The office derided what it described as the charity’s “promotion of non-traditional sexual relations”.

The Elton John AIDS Foundation, launched in 1992, works in over 90 countries “to increase access to health care, tackle LGBTQ+ stigma, and end AIDS”.

The foundation, established by the singer and songwriter, has previously clashed with Russian authorities over LGBTQ+ rights. Sir Elton, who has performed in Russia, has criticised what he views as discrimination against gay people by the Russian government.

In the statement by Russian prosecutors, they said the charity is “focused on the promotion of non-traditional sexual relations, Western family models, and gender reassignment.”