Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in
Ukrainian military officials say that North Korean ballistic missiles fired by Russian forces have become far more precise
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
North Korean ballistic missiles fired at Ukraine by Russian forces have become far more precise over time, according to senior Ukrainian military officials.
Vladimir Putin‘s invading forces have been using imported North Korean projectiles since the end of 2023, and their accuracy and performance have changed drastically since then, military sources told Reuters.
All the more than 20 ballistic missiles that hit Ukraine over the past several weeks landed within 50-100m of their intended target, the sources said.
This is not only helping Russia in its war effort but also improving North Korea‘s military capabilities, they warned.
Meanwhile, the first batch of French Mirage 2000 fighter jets arrived in Ukraine, the French armed forces minister Sebastien Lecornu announced this morning.
“With Ukrainian pilots on board who have been trained for several months in France, they will now participate in defending the skies of Ukraine,” he wrote.
The fourth-generation jets have been modified to focus on air-to-ground combat, reportedly so they can fire French and British long-range missiles at Russian targets.
Preparations for a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump are at an “advanced stage”, Russian state news agency RIA quoted a senior lawmaker as saying on Thursday.
It cited Leonid Slutsky, head of the State Duma’s international affairs committee, as saying the meeting could take place in February or March.
Trump and Putin have both said they are keen to hold a meeting whose agenda could include nuclear arms control and global energy prices as well as Trump’s stated aim to bring a swift end to the Ukraine war.
Slutsky said he also expected them to talk about the situation in the Middle East.
“The work requires serious preparation, which – I’m not giving away any secret – is currently at an advanced stage,” he said.
Slutsky declined to speculate on exactly when a meeting could take place.
“February or March – let’s not guess, and let’s give the leaders the opportunity to prepare for it competently and comprehensively, but it will be soon,” RIA quoted him as saying.
UK defence secretary John Healey will lead next week’s Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UKDCG), his ministry has announced, while the new Donald Trump administration decides whether to provide more weapons to Kyiv.
The group was convened by the previous US administration in April 2022 to coordinate support for Ukraine. It was led by the former US defence secretary Lloyd Austin III.
His successor, Pete Hegseth, is expected to attend next week’s meeting, to be held on 12 February, but no further weapons pledges are expected from the US.
Canadian defence minister Bill Blair said he expected Mr Healey’s lead to be temporary, with US leadership to continue.
Britain said on Thursday it would revoke the accreditation of a Russian diplomat, in retaliation to a similar move made by Moscow last year.
Russia said in November that it was expelling a British diplomat for spying. The accusation was denied by London.
Britain’s Foreign Office said in a statement on Thursday that it had summoned the Russian ambassador to announce its decision, saying it was in response to “Russia’s unprovoked and baseless decision to strip the accreditation of a British diplomat in Moscow in November”.
“Any further action taken by Russia will be considered an escalation and responded to accordingly,” the statement added.
The statement, which did not name the British diplomat or the Russian official whose accreditation is due to be revoked, said Britain “will not stand for intimidation of our staff in this way,” calling its decision a reciprocal action.
The Russian embassy in London did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Relations between Britain and Russia have plunged to post-Cold War lows since the start of the Ukraine war. Britain has joined successive waves of sanctions against Russia and provided arms to Ukraine.
Ukraine’s defence minister Rustem Umerov has announced that the Netherlands has delivered US-made F-16 fighters to Ukraine.
The aircraft, along with French Mirage jets also delivered today, “will soon begin carrying out combat missions, strengthening our defence”, Mr Umerov said on Facebook.
The exact number of F-16 and Mirage jets delivered was not revealed.
The Dutch defence ministry said that for security reasons it would not comment on the timing of deliveries, nor on the amount supplied at any given time.
The Netherlands has promised to deliver Ukraine a total of 24 F-16s, next to the fighter jets it supplies to a training centre for Ukrainian pilots and crew in Romania.
The United States needs to formulate a policy on how to end the conflict in Ukraine and what role it will play and Moscow will then base its own position on specific steps and US action, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.
Zakharova said that Russia has heard many words and statements from Washington on the subject, but that for now there was no clarity on what exactly the US envisaged when ot came to trying to strike a deal to end the war in Ukraine.
Russia’s RIA state news agency earlier on Thursday quoted a senior lawmaker as saying that preparations for a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump were at an “advanced stage”.
Trump and Putin have not spoken by phone since Trump’s inauguration, according to public statements from officials on both sides.
Askold Krushelnycky witnesses Russian ballistic missile strikes on the southeastern city and speaks to residents who remain unbowed and determined never to surrender to Putin
In the final part of our series on the plight of people with disabilities caught up in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Bel Trew speaks to a man who had only the use of one limb, his arm, about the terrible treatment Ukrainians are subjected to in Russian-occupied territory. He was returned to Kyiv and his family, but would later die
All remaining transmission lines between them and Russia and Belarus and will be switched off one by one
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in