Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 06-02-2024

For too long the West has avoided talking of Ukraine’s “victory” over Russia but for some the language has changed and it’s time for Washington to adopt the same tone.

An article appeared last week in the Foreign Affairs journal entitled “A Theory of Victory for Ukraine” which immediately sparked broad interest and comment across the globe. 

The authors, Ukraine's former Minister of Defense, Andriy Zagorodnyuk, and Eliot A. Cohen, a well-known American diplomat and political scientist, rightly point out that until recently the US and the West as a whole refrained from using the term “victory” and generally avoided describing its goal in Ukraine as a Russian defeat, at least in public.

US Space Forces Command announced on May 30 it will conduct separate tests of two unarmed Minuteman III ICBM from its Vandenberg base on June 4 and 6

Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) announced on Thursday May 30 that it will conduct two test launches of unarmed LGM-30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) during the first week of June; the tests will take place on the mornings of Tuesday and Thursday June 4 and 6. The missiles will be launched from the northern area of the VSFB, which is located 210 kilometers (130 miles) northwest of Los Angeles, between 12:01 a.m. and 6:01 a.m. on the test days.

The LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBMs have been in service since the 1970s and were slated to be replaced by a modernized replacement, the Sentinel ICBM, slated to enter service in the mid-2030s for which Congress has already received a funding request of $4.4 billion.

Russian media reported two dead as a result of the fire, adding that allegedly “the UAV attack version is not considered.”

In Ukhta, in the Russian Republic of Komi, a fire broke out at a local oil refinery owned by Lukoil, following a series of explosions, as reported by the Russian Telegram channels.

Hungary’s Prime Minister told Saturday’s “March for Peace” in Budapest that the EU and NATO had “dangerous plans” for Ukraine that would lead to the expansion of the war.

Several thousand supporters of Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán held a “peace march” in the country’s capital on Saturday, June 1 in what was seen as a show of strength ahead of next week’s European parliamentary elections.

The demonstration brought Orbán supporters from all over Hungary and heard him categorize the polls as being an opportunity to change the course of the war in Ukraine, and a choice between peace in Europe or a world war.

The footage shows the detonation of a Russian tank’s ammunition after being hit by a Ukrainian kamikaze drone, resulting in the tank's turret being torn off.

A video circulating on social media showcases the explosion of a Russian T-80BV tank following the arrival of a Ukrainian kamikaze drone.

The drone attacked a Russian tank near the village of Novomikhailivka in the Donetsk region.

Mourners and fighters laid flowers at a statue of Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner mercenary group who died in a suspicious plane crash, at his grave on Saturday.

A bronze statue of the founder of the Wagner private military company, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was revealed adjoining his grave in the Porokhovskoye cemetery in St. Petersburg on Saturday, June 1 – which would have been his 63rd birthday. The mercenary leader died in a suspicious plane crash in August 2023, two months after he led an unsuccessful mutiny against the Russian authorities.

According to Russian social media dozens of supporters of the billionaire businessman, civilians as well as fighters in uniforms bearing the Wagner insignia their faces covered, paused to pay their respects. Some placed bouquets of flowers or posed for photographs beside his effigy which depicts him standing in his familiar aggressive stance.

Beijing believes the conference "should have the recognition of Russia and Ukraine, equal participation of all parties and fair discussion of all peace plans."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused China on Sunday of working hard to stop countries from going to a peace summit, which Beijing has publicly criticized because Russia is not invited.

Zelensky made the remarks at a security forum in Singapore as he sought to rally support for the conference and appealed for more military aid for Ukraine, which has been ceding ground to Russian troops.

Weekend summary of latest developments in Russia’s war against Ukraine from a top British military analyst.

The Kharkiv Offensive, which Russia launched its Kharkiv Offensive more than three weeks ago (started March 10). It’s been fascinating to see how the reporting changed—first great drama and doom about Russian “success.” Then a period of confusion when the Russian success seemed to stumble. Now there is only the occasional story about it.

Actually, on reflection the Russian Kharkiv offensive has all the hallmarks of a strategic failure and a tactical morass…

Despite the destruction and huge costs wrought by Russia’s war against Ukraine, as the example of Zhytomyr shows, the country’s cities and communities are managing to adapt, rebuild and modernize.

Zhytomyr is a unique Ukrainian city. Last winter, there were almost no blackouts here, and even now, the community does not suffer from blackouts. The radiators are always warm in winter, and utility bills are lower. The city became the record holder in Ukraine for implementing resource-saving and energy efficiency programs. When the full-scale war broke out, this became even more evident. The city is also one of the leaders in helping the Armed Forces of Ukraine army.

In addition to an unprecedented level of disinformation, public trust in media has been at record-low levels in the last two years.

Against a backdrop of hybrid warfare and continuous security crises, Armenian civil society is striving to institutionalise mechanisms to combat disinformation.

Armenia has long been a target of disinformation. Before 2018, campaigns mainly focused on marginalised groups, such as the LGBTQ+ community, women’s rights activists, and human rights defenders, usually in response to specific legislative initiatives. However, campaigns intensified after the Velvet Revolution and the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Americans appear divided over Trump's conviction of a criminal offence.

50% of Americans approve of the verdict, 30% disagree with it, and 19% are undecided.

Among those who approve of the court's decision, 86% are Democrats and 15% are Republicans. Independents were almost twice as likely to say he was guilty as innocent.

The world in focus, as seen by a Canadian leading global affairs analyst, writer and speaker, in his review of international media.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party is set to win a decisive majority in India’s election for the third time in a row, several exit polls showed, extending his decade in power atop the world’s fastest-growing major economy. The polls showed his Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance will win substantially more seats than the 272 needed for a majority in India’s 543-seat lower house of parliament. Official election results will be released June 4. Modi claimed victory for the BJP-led alliance based on the exit poll results, saying the ruling party’s track record resonated with voters, especially the poor. “I can say with confidence that the people of India have voted in record numbers to reelect the NDA government,” he said in a post on social media platform X. He also criticized the opposition alliance’s campaign for failing to provide a vision for the country. - Bloomberg

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has warned China not to cross a red line in the South China Sea, where a standoff between the countries continues to escalate. If any Filipino died as a result of China’s wilful actions, he said on Friday, the Philippines would consider it as close to “an act of war” and respond accordingly. Mr Marcos was speaking at a security forum in Singapore attended by defence chiefs from around the world, including the US's Lloyd Austin. He stressed the region remained a main focus for Washington, and that the US was only secure if Asia was too. In recent months the longstanding dispute between China and the Philippines over territory in the South China Sea has sharpened into aggressive clashes. Manila has complained vociferously about Chinese patrol ships firing water cannon at Philippine boats and supply vessels. Beijing has said that it is defending its sovereignty. At the summit, a Chinese military spokesman accused the Philippines of making “provocations”. - BBC

Many European countries are seduced by the irresistible temptation of fashioning a modus vivendi with even the worst of regimes in Moscow. It’s a mistake that should not be repeated.

“Peace in Europe cannot be achieved against Russia but only with Russia”; that was the prevailing conviction of Germany’s leading politicians after the end of the Cold War – particularly among the leadership of the Social-Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). Until today, the tradition of Willy Brandt’s Ostpolitik (Eastern Policy), which was rooted in the mindset that “change through rapprochement” (Wandel durch Annäherung) was possible in the Soviet Bloc, is still “uncritically held up as a trademark of Germany’s Social Democratic Party,” five renowned social-democratic historians wrote in an open letter to the party’s Executive Committee. The letter criticizes the fact that there has been no honest reappraisal of the SPD’s Russia policy.

Germany’s post-Cold War Russia policy, the so-called “New Eastern Policy” (“Neue Ostpolitik”), marketed under the adapted motto “change through trade” (Wandel durch Handel), also invented by Social Democrats, was equally shared by the coalition government led by Chancellor Angela Merkel of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Ukraine's president urges world to rally around his attempts to promote Kyiv's vision of a just peace settlement to end Russia's war.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed disappointment Sunday that "some world leaders" had not signed up to a peace summit, after China signaled Xi Jinping would not attend and with Joe Biden yet to commit.

Zelensky made the remarks at a security forum in Singapore as he appealed for more military aid for Ukraine, which has been ceding ground to Russian troops.

Serhiy Kolyada on the mobilization of Russia's right-wing allies in the European elections.

Kyiv post speaks to Andreas Umland, analyst at the Stockholm Center for Eastern European Studies and one of the foremost scholars regarding contemporary Europe and Russia.

How much of Putin’s influence will get into the EU Parliament after June elections?

The current Russian regime, shaped by the organizational culture of the Soviet KGB, is constantly finding new weak points and subversion tactics to undermine Western political systems, liberal institutions and pluralistic politics.

While Odesa residents are getting up early to enjoy the sunrise, Russia continues to systematically steal the property of Ukrainian citizens in the occupied territories.

This spring a new tradition has appeared in Odesa. An increasing number of residents go to the shore early in the morning, before dawn, and greet the sunrise. Videos of the “Odesa” sunrises appear on social networks every day. Often spectacular, these videos are accompanied by texts that all contain the same underlying message: “If you can’t change anything, then just enjoy every moment of beauty.”

These days, when the real hot summer is about to begin, those who come to watch the sunrise also swim in the sea. The water is slowly warming up and now it seems to many that the Black Sea water in Odesa and near the city is cleaner than it used to be. The environmental situation has benefited from the fall in the number of ships entering Odesa and neighboring Ukrainian ports.

Ukraine began tracking war-related environmental damages when the invasion began in 2022. Since then 5,000 incidents have already been identified, which it considers to be environmental crimes.

Ukraine’s environment has been the “silent victim” of the Russian invasion, according to the country’s environment minister Ruslan Strilets, but thanks to app-wielding Ukrainian citizens, he can now put a price on the damage – more than €56 billion so far.

Ukraine’s minister for environmental protection and natural resources spoke with Euractiv, during his visit to Brussels on Wednesday 29 May. Strilets made clear that he had one priority in mind – making Russia pay for the pollution its invasion has inflicted upon Ukraine’s soil and air.

Ukrainian forces intercepted 24 Shaheds across eight regions using fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft missile units, mobile fire groups, and radio-electronic warfare equipment to repel the airstrike.

Russian troops launched an air attack on Ukraine using missiles and kamikaze drones early on June 2, according to Mykola Oleschuk, the commander of the Air Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU).

The AFU’s air defense forces shot down 24 enemy attack drones. Overall, Russian forces launched the following overnight strikes in Ukraine:

The meeting came after Washington decided to partially lift restrictions on using US-provided weapons to strike inside Russia, which Zelensky has hailed as a "step forward".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday he had a "very good" meeting with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin in Singapore, as he seeks to rally support for Kyiv while a Russian offensive gains ground.

Zelensky met with Austin on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, a major security forum attended by defense officials from around the world.

Alibaba’s reported move to reject payments in rubles and cease deliveries to Russia in fear of secondary US sanctions is likely to further restrict access to foreign goods for Russian citizens.

Alibaba, the business-to-business (B2B) equivalent of the business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce platform AliExpress, reportedly no longer accepts payment in Russian rubles and would cease deliveries to Russia. But is that true?

Both Alibaba and AliExpress belong to the Alibaba Group Holding Limited, but AliExpress’s social media page confirmed the restrictions do not apply to AliExpress.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently himself pressed the newcomers to stand on their own feet rather than rely on social handouts.

Like a million of her compatriots, hairdresser Valentyna Vysotska fled Ukraine for Germany when Russia invaded. After a 10-month crash course to learn German, she found work, at a hair salon in Berlin.

"My German isn't great but my boss, my colleagues and the clients are all very understanding," Vysotska, 54, told AFP.

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Sweden says Kyiv still needs the Gripen fighter aircraft the day after Stockholm announced it had frozen plans to provide them.

Sweden is pausing plans to transfer JAS 39 Gripen fighters to Ukraine, reportedly to enable Kyiv’s air forces to focus on integrating the US-made F-16 fighters when they eventually arrive. Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson announced the decision on May 28, citing a request by members of NATO’s aviation coalition.

How Gripen fighters became a possibility for Ukraine