The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]
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Russia’s war against Ukraine
Firefighters extinguish a fire on a damaged car following a drone strike in Kharkiv on June 5, 2025. (Oleksandr Magula/AFP via Getty Images)
Putin ‘will have to respond’ to Ukraine’s attack on Russian bombers, Trump says after call with Kremlin chief. Trump said he spoke to Putin over the phone for an hour and 15 minutes on June 4 and that it was “a good conversation, but not a conversation that will lead to immediate peace.”
Putin rejects Zelensky’s call for peace talks, accuses Ukraine of deadly bridge attack in Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 4 accused Ukraine of being governed by a terrorist regime that deliberately targets civilians and claimed it is continuing to lose the war. He rejected the possibility of holding talks.
Putin stays silent on Ukraine’s drone attack that hit 41 Russian bombers, caused $7 billion in damage. On June 4, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the incident, saying Putin had been informed about the strike and that Russia’s Investigative Committee had launched a probe.
‘Nothing secret left’ — Ukraine hacks Russia’s Tupolev bomber producer, source claims. HUR’s cyber corps accessed over 4.4 gigabytes (GB) of internal data, including official correspondence, personnel files, home addresses, resumes, purchase records, and closed meeting minutes, a source claimed.
Russia strikes Ukrainian military training facility in Poltava Oblast, military says. “Thanks to timely and carefully planned security measures… the worst has been avoided,” the Ground Forces press service said, saying that no soldiers have been killed in the attack.
Trump administration redirecting anti-drone tech from Ukraine to US forces in Middle East, WSJ reports. According to the Wall Street Journal, special fuzes used in ground-to-air rocket systems that protect against drone attacks will be redirected towards units in the Middle East, as the U.S. braces for conflict with Iran as well as Houthi militants in Yemen.
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Trump urges Senate to postpone vote on Russia sanctions bill, Senator says. U.S. President Donald Trump has asked the Senate to delay voting on a bipartisan Russia sanctions bill, Republican Senator Roger Wicker said on June 4.
Ukraine wouldn’t launch Operation Spiderweb if Russia agreed to ceasefire, Zelensky says. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that roughly half of the 41 Russian planes targeted in the attack on June 1 will be impossible to repair.
US hasn’t decided yet on new Ukraine aid, focuses on peace, NATO envoy says. U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker stressed that Washington counts on European leadership in providing Ukraine with the resources needed to achieve a lasting peace, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported.
Ukraine defaults on GDP-linked sovereign debt payment. The country’s Finance Ministry announced last week it would skip a $665 million government debt payment after failing to agree on restructuring terms with creditors.
Zelensky to consider allowing private army formations after latest ultimatums from Russia. President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a briefing on June 4 that he may consider allowing the creation of private armies in Ukraine.
Reuters: Ukraine struck fewer Russian bombers during Operation Spiderweb than estimated, US officials claim. Two U.S. officials told Reuters on June 4 that Ukraine struck as many as 20 Russian military aircraft during Operation Spiderweb, destroying around 10 of them. The claims stands in contrast with estimates made by Ukraine’s security service (SBU) which claimed more than 40 aircraft were hit in the June 1 attack.
New footage from Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb hitting Russian bombers
Read our exclusives
Ukraine war latest: Kyiv hacks Russian bomber maker; Putin’s ‘disregard’ for troops highlighted as Russian losses near 1 million
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) has gained access to sensitive data of Russia’s strategic aircraft manufacturer Tupolev, a source in HUR told the Kyiv Independent on June 4.
Photo: Host photo agency / RIA Novosti via Getty Images
Hiding in plain sight — how Russia’s cultural centers continue to operate in US, Europe despite espionage claims
Despite sanctions and espionage claims, Russia’s Russian House centers still operate in the U.S. and parts of Europe. How do they get away with it?
Photo: Russian House of Science and Culture in Paris
With music festival honoring fallen combat medic, Ukrainians reinvent memorial culture
On June 1, thousands of Ukrainians gathered to celebrate the 27th birthday of a fallen military medic and memorialization activist, Iryna ‘Cheka’ Tsybukh.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolienko / The Kyiv Independent
Exclusive: Ukraine could face 500+ Russian drones a night as Kremlin builds new launch sites
Russia will soon be able to deploy more than 500 long-range drones a night to attack Ukraine as it ramps up production and builds new launch sites for them, a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) has told the Kyiv Independent.
Photo: Southern Operational Command/Telegram
Human cost of Russia’s war
Russian missile, drone attack on Kharkiv injures 17, including 2 children. Russian missile and drone attacks on the city of Kharkiv overnight on June 5 injured 17 people, including two children, regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported.
Putin’s ‘disregard’ for troops highlighted as Russian losses approach 1 million, CSIS report shows. The total number of military casualties on both sides is nearing 1.4 million, including approximately 400,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed or injured.
Ukraine expects to exchange 500 POWs in next swap with Russia, Zelensky says. Ukraine will bring home a total of 500 prisoners of war (POW) from Russian captivity in a prisoner exchange with Russia on June 7 and 8, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a meeting with journalists on June 4 attended by the Kyiv Independent.
Russia launches over 48,000 aerial attacks on Ukraine in 6 months, Zelensky says. Zelensky said on social media that Russia launched nearly 27,700 aerial bombs, 11,200 Shahed drones, approximately 9,000 other types of attack drones, and over 700 missiles at Ukraine in 2025.
International response
Ukraine’s drone strike on Russia’s air bases under ‘investigation,’ Kremlin says in first reaction to Operation Spiderweb. “The president received information about the incident online,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
‘Risk level goes up’ — Ukraine’s strike on Russian bombers could escalate war, US envoy Kellogg says. “I’m telling you the risk levels are going way up,” U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said.
Trump raises steel, aluminum tariffs to 50%, hitting key Ukrainian export. Steel production is one of Ukraine’s core industrial sectors and its second-largest source of foreign currency after agriculture.
For the first time, Pentagon chief to skip Ramstein-format meeting of Ukraine’s allies. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will not arrive in Brussels until the conference is over and will not participate in the event online either, the AP reported.
France, Belgium wary of EU’s plan to halt Russian LNG imports by 2027. Russia’s energy exports remain a major source of revenue for the Kremlin’s military campaign against Ukraine.
Kremlin confirms explosion at Crimean Bridge after Ukraine’s sabotage, claims ‘no damage.’ “There indeed was an explosion. There was no damage, the bridge continues to function,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claimed.
Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb ranks with ‘raid on Bin Laden,’ US Senator Blumenthal says. “Just in the skill and audacity of these attacks, it will rank with the United States raid on Osama bin Laden and the Israeli pager operation as one of the great military achievements in recent years,” U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal told Politico.
Putin tells new pope Kyiv seeks to escalate war, urges Vatican support for Moscow-linked church in Ukraine. Russia wants the Vatican to “take a more active role” in advocating for what it described as freedom of religion in Ukraine, the Kremlin said in a statement on June 4 following recent diplomatic contacts.
Russia seeks to deploy 10,000 troops to Transnistria, potentially undermining election, Moldovan PM Recean says. Russia aims to deploy 10,000 troops to Transnistria and install a pro-Kremlin government in Moldova to enable it, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean told the Financial Times in an interview published June 4.
In other news
In second fire at Russian engine plant in 2 days, fire engulfs US-sanctioned Yaroslavl facility. Located roughly 280 kilometers (174 miles) northeast of Moscow, the Yaroslavl Motor Plant has been under U.S. sanctions since May 2024.
Ukraine passes Budget Code changes to implement US mineral deal. The legislation, supported by 309 members of parliament, enshrines financial provisions critical to executing the U.S.-Ukraine deal signed on April 30 and ratified by Kyiv on May 8.
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