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Morning Headlines
Reuters: A Russian missile attack on Kyiv killed three people including two children and injured 14 on Thursday, officials in the Ukrainian capital said.
Reuters: The U.N. has proposed that Kyiv, Moscow and Ankara start preparatory work for the transit of Russian ammonia through Ukraine as it tries to salvage a deal allowing safe Black Sea grain exports, a source close to the talks said on Wednesday.
FT: Brussels is working on a four-year financing plan for Ukraine worth tens of billions of euros as it seeks to put its support for the war-torn country on a more stable and predictable footing.
Reuters: The United States will extend by another year the temporary suspension of tariffs on Ukrainian steel, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday, citing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
ISW: The Kremlin may be attempting to reintroduce Kadyrovites as the main offensive force following the culmination of Wagner forces and their withdrawal from the frontlines. It may also be attempting to sever Kadyrov’s relationship with Wagner's Prigozhin and re-emphasize federal authority over Chechen forces.
UK Ministry of Defence: In the last 15 months, Russia has introduced limitations on freedom of speech which haven’t been seen since Soviet times. However, there is a realistic possibility that recent vitriolic rhetoric by nationalist figures such as Wagner's Prigozhin is emboldening opposition figures to challenge taboo topics.
The Guardian: ‘Fear is contagious but so is courage’: the Ukrainian soldiers training to retake Bakhmut. The new recruits of the 3rd Assault Brigade are preparing for a long-anticipated counteroffensive.
Bloomberg: A lopsided trade relationship with India is forcing Russia to accumulate up to $1 billion each month in rupee assets that remain stranded outside the country.
More News
POLITICO: Gathering more than 40 European leaders in Moldova on Thursday will be a symbolic thumb in Vladimir Putin’s eye — a sign of collective commitment to join hands against Moscow.
Meduza: The Russian news outlet Kommersant reports that the drones used in the strikes on Moscow failed to detonate because they didn’t hit their intended targets.
The East African: Burundi will maintain a neutral stance on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the government said Tuesday, even as it hosted Moscow’s top diplomat Sergey Lavrov.
The Guardian: Negotiating with Vladimir Putin could take priority over a war crimes trial if he is the only person the west has to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine with, Emmanuel Macron has said.
AP News: Complex questions about if — and how — Russian athletes could return to their competitions ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics looked far from being resolved when sports governing bodies met Wednesday.
Bloomberg: Liquidators have been appointed to two European units of sanctioned Russian leasing company GTLK after their bid to win the protection of the Irish courts failed.
U.S. Department of Defense: The Pentagon said the $300 million package includes munitions for Patriot air defense systems, AIM-7 air defense missiles, Avenger air defense systems and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. Also part of the package is ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds, 105mm tank ammunition and Zuni aircraft rockets.
Reuters: Russia's most powerful mercenary, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said on Wednesday that he had asked prosecutors to investigate whether senior Russian defence officials had committed any "crime" before or during the war in Ukraine.
The Moscow Times: When Ukrainian forces launch their long-awaited counteroffensive this summer, they will be up against multiple lines of Russian fortifications stretching hundreds of miles from the Black Sea to Ukraine’s northern border. The military hazards include trenches and anti-tank obstacles, but Russian soldiers have also been busy laying thousands of landmines.
Novaya-Europe: In 2022, the Russian orphaned children database had 2,500 more new entries compared to the average number from the last six years. Media outlet IStories speculates that this difference could be the number of children deported from Ukraine.
The Kyiv Independent: Russia is building facilities for sorting and storing corpses of its soldiers killed during Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, the Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR) claimed on May 31. This indicates that Russia can no longer hide the scale of its losses in the war, the intelligence said.
The Kyiv Independent: Ukraine is within its right to launch strikes on Russian territory when it qualifies as self-defense, German government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit told Deutsche Welle on May 31.
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Norway will open for Ukraine a five-year military aid program worth a total of EUR 7 billion.
Reuters: "It is for Ukraine and NATO allies to decide when Ukraine becomes a NATO member, it's not up to Moscow to decide," Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt told reporters on the eve of a two-day meeting with her NATO counterparts.
Bloomberg: Moscow will continue to pretend it has reduced oil supply, but the fiction may become harder to maintain.
AFP: French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday called on the West to offer Ukraine "tangible and credible" security guarantees as it battles Russia's invasion.
AP News: The German government said Wednesday that it has told Russia to close four out of five consulates in Germany in a tit-for-tat move after Moscow set a limit for the number of staff at the German embassy and related bodies in Russia.
Bloomberg: Countries supporting Ukraine are taking varying stances on how it should beat back Moscow’s invasion.
Sky News: The Zaporizhzhia power plant was taken under Russia control last March, becoming one of the first major areas to be captured by Vladimir Putin's forces - but staff say they are intimidated by Russian troops to keep quiet about what's happening behind closed doors.
Reuters Special Report: For years, Russia and Germany had an unbreakable bond. A German soccer club and its chairman were especially useful in advancing Russian interests, Reuters reporting shows.
worth mentioning
A required ideological curriculum is about to be thrust upon Russia’s colleges.
North Korean IT Workers Help Spy from UAE and Russia, UN Says
The notorious Russian jail holding U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich
Rosneft's first-quarter net profit up 45.5% quarter over quarter to $4 billion, beating forecast
Why Ukraine might struggle to maintain U.S. M1 Abrams tanks
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