Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 04-04-2025

The missile struck a residential area near a children’s playground and wounded more than two dozen others, according to the head of the city’s military administration.

A Russian ballistic missile strike on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s home city of Kryvyi Rih killed 18 people on Friday, six of them children, authorities said.

The missile struck a residential area near a children’s playground and wounded more than two dozen others, according to the head of the city’s military administration.

A look at opinions from around Europe on why US-Russia / US-Ukraine peace negotiations are stalling.

The US-led talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine are in crisis: Donald Trump has declared that he is “very angry” and “pissed off” at Putin after the latter stipulated the lifting of sanctions and new elections in Ukraine under UN supervision as preconditions.

And Kyiv, for its part, has rejected a new draft agreement on economic cooperation with the US as unacceptable. The media discuss the chances of a ceasefire.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s centrist government will hope to end the awkward cohabitation it has been forced into with conservative President Andrzej Duda, who has repeatedly vetoed key reforms.

Seventeen candidates will face off to become president of Poland, the electoral commission said on Friday, in a key ballot-box test pitting the ruling pro-European government against two nationalist challengers. 

Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s centrist government will hope to end the awkward cohabitation it has been forced into with conservative President Andrzej Duda, who has repeatedly vetoed key reforms. 

America’s new tariffs will trigger seismic geopolitical changes. Globalization will become a dirty word. Mercantilism will return.

Tariffs made headlines, but the real news was that Donald Trump grabbed control of the global economy this week by weaponizing tariffs. This was the first salvo in an unprecedented geo-economic war aimed at toppling unfair trade and eventually reshaping geopolitics.

Trump’s tariffs will level the playing field concerning some nations, but will also hurt economies and punish or isolate allies as well as foes.

Top US diplomat’s welcomed by allies, didn’t hide differences on key issues.

BRUSSELS - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday wrapped his first trip to NATO by telling reporters that Washington was monitoring Russia’s actions closely to determine its seriousness about peace.

“We want to know whether they want to do peace or not, and if they do, then there’s a way there, and we’re willing to help. If they’re not, then it’s good to know earlier so we can adjust our policies accordingly,” Rubio told Kyiv Post’s Washington correspondent who is currently traveling with him.

Trump claims Zelensky and Putin are both ready to make a deal to end the war, saying “you will stop the killing of thousands of young people a week.”

US President Donald Trump claimed that both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin are ready to strike a deal to end the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling from Washington, D.C. to Miami, he said:

Marina Orlova, a real estate agent from Tomsk, Russia, said her suggestion women can buy property by marrying soldiers who die in combat was just a joke – but some officials are taking it seriously.

A Russian realtor has come under fire after joking that women can buy property by marrying soldiers who die in combat fighting in Ukraine.

Marina Orlova, a real estate agent from Tomsk, made the controversial remark during a podcast. When asked how a woman over 30 could afford an apartment, she replied:

Western militaries have looked to the war in Ukraine, where drones have become a defining feature of the conflict, to draw lessons for their own armed forces.

Germany said Friday it would buy explosive drones for the first time as Berlin boosts investments in its armed forces to counter the threat from Russia. 

The government had signed two contracts to purchase so-called loitering munitions, defense ministry spokesman Mitko Mueller said at a regular press conference.

North Korean Koksan artillery was reportedly spotted in Crimea, raising concerns that Pyongyang may soon send troops into Ukraine for Russia’s spring offensive.

North Korean artillery systems, specifically the powerful 170mm “Koksan” guns, have been spotted in Russian-occupied Crimea – potentially signaling Pyongyang’s growing involvement in the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine.

The Crimean Wind Telegram channel shared a photo on March 26 showing a military train in transit. The train was spotted at a railway station in northern Crimea, carrying 7-8 self-propelled artillery systems on flatbed railcars, along with military cargo, including a truck equipped with a crane.

Kormotech expects to up production by 2.5 times over the next few years. They have already invested in a second plant in Lithuania and are looking at opening a third in Romania.

The Ukrainian pet food manufacturer Kormotech plans to increase production by 2.5 times over the next three years, from 100,000 tons to 250,000 tons of pet food per year by 2028, Kormotech’s Chief Operating Officer Igor Paranyak told Interfax-Ukraine in an interview.

Kormotech intends to expand production in Lithuania and Ukraine and is also considering opening a new facility in Romania to reach these aims.

The political party Propozytsiya identified the victim as Yuriy Fedko, a member of the Dnipro city council and said he died while undergoing treatment in hospital.

Ukraine said Friday that an official in the central city of Dnipro had died in hospital after a blast rocked his car.

The office of the prosecutor general said the apparent attack had taken place at 04:30 GMT and that it was investigating the incident as a terror attack.

The world in focus, as seen by Canadian leading global affairs analyst Michael Bociurkiw in a quick review of the biggest news in international media today.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff blitz swept away roughly a $3.5 trillion worth of market capitalization from listed companies in Japan, Europe and the U.S., making it the worst day for those stock markets since March 16, 2020. The ripples went around the global markets.

• Benchmark stock indexes in Asia continued to fall on Friday, after Trump’s reciprocal tariffs swept trillions of dollars in market capitalization from Japanese, European and U.S. market in one day, Nikkei Asia reported. In Tokyo, the benchmark Nikkei Stock Average dropped 965.64 points, or 2.8%, from the previous day’s close at one point to 33,770.29, an intraday low since Aug. 6, 2024. This follows a 2.8% loss on Thursday. Singapore’s ST and Vietnam’s VN slid 2.6% and 5.8% at one point respectively.

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The US 24 hours later hit almost every country on Earth with import tariffs – but not Russia. The White House said it wasn’t making a special exception for the Kremlin, but the data shows it is.

The United States Office of the Treasury on Wednesday canceled sanctions on Karina Rotenberg, a long-time member of the European jet set and wife to businessman Boris Rotenberg, a billionaire oligarch and close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control removed Mrs. Rotenberg from its sanctioned persons list without an explanation, and did not respond to media requests for comment on the decision.

Despite this advice, Trump could still decide to contact Putin, sources said. However, his inner circle believes a call before a ceasefire is in place “isn’t a good idea.”

Top advisers to US President Donald Trump have urged him not to call Russian President Vladimir Putin until Russia agrees to a full cease-fire in Ukraine, NBC News reported, citing two US officials.

Despite this advice, Trump could still decide to contact Putin, sources said. However, his inner circle believes a call before a ceasefire is in place “isn’t a good idea.”

Ukrainian troops decimate Russian assault in the Donetsk region, destroying 19 vehicles and killing dozens in a devastating artillery and drone ambush.

In the area of the village of Andriivka in the Donetsk region, Ukrainian forces successfully repelled a major assault by Russian troops involving two platoons and 19 armored vehicles.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and the tactical group “Vuhledar” reported the incident on Facebook, publishing several videos of the battle.

This marks Denmark’s 25th military aid package since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Denmark has announced a military aid package for Ukraine worth 6.7 billion kroner (€900 million) to help Kyiv battle Russia’s invasion.

Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said it was essential for his country to maintain its “massive support” for Ukraine.

Kyiv and Moscow have accused each other of breaking a supposed US-backed deal to stop firing on energy sites, though a formal agreement has not been put in place.

The foreign ministers of France and Britain on Friday said Russia was still striking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and accused President Vladimir Putin of dragging its heels over US peace efforts.

At the same time, Paris said that the military chiefs from the two countries were visiting Kyiv to discuss a possible deployment of troops to secure any ceasefire.

At a gathering of foreign ministers of the NATO alliance in Belgium, officials tells Kyiv Post that Russia is looking to link any ceasefire agreement to a broader geopolitical realignment.

BRUSSELS – As top diplomats from NATO countries gathered in Brussels for two days of meetings to discuss key security challenges, senior NATO intelligence officials said Thursday that the allies are currently sharing more intelligence with Ukraine “than ever before,” with the US being the largest contributor, Kyiv Post’s US correspondent reports from NATO headquarters.

On the battlefield, Ukraine is conducting defensive operations and making minor tactical gains, pulling some Russian forces away from other front lines, said NATO officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military assessments.

The drone assault on Kyiv was part of a broader wave of Russian strikes. Earlier in the night, drones hit Kharkiv, where officials reported at least four people dead and 32 injured.

A Russian drone attack hit the Kyiv region overnight, sparking fires and injuring at least two people, local officials said Thursday.

According to Mykola Kalashnyk, head of the Kyiv Regional State Administration, the attack struck the Brovary district, injuring a man, who was then hospitalized with leg and neck wounds.

Russia has stepped up aerial attacks even as US President Donald Trump pushes Kyiv and Moscow to agree to a ceasefire after more than three years of costly fighting.

Russian drone strikes killed at least five people and wounded more than 30 in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, authorities said Friday, the latest barrage amid mounting US pressure for a ceasefire.

Russia and Ukraine have stepped up aerial attacks even as US President Donald Trump pushes them to agree to a ceasefire after more than three years of costly fighting.

An exclusive report on the first day of the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Belgium.

BRUSSELS – The top US diplomat and his NATO counterparts on Thursday expressed overwhelming support for Ukraine and President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the war, while also recognizing that Russia needs to do more, a senior State Department official told reporters Thursday night, wrapping up the first day of NATO Foreign Ministerial meetings in Brussels, Kyiv Post’s Washington correspondent, currently traveling with Secretary Marco Rubio, reports.

“Russia has not demonstrated a commitment to the ceasefire yet, and a number of allies raised that point,” the senior official said, following a day-long series of discussions in various settings, including the NATO-Ukraine Council session, in which Rubio participated for the first time.

As a result of 271 auctions, more than 20,000 hectares of state-owned land were leased to Ukrainian farmers with the launch of the “Land Bank” project.

Since it launched the “Land Bank” project in October 2024 Ukraine has leased 20,521 hectares of state-owned land to farmers to a total value of Hr.584.9 million ($14.2 million), according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Economy. 

The “Land Bank” project allows Ukrainian farmers to lease agricultural plots from state-owned agricultural companies through online auctions held on the digital public sales platform “Prozorro.Sale.”

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• Russia seeks to leverage ongoing ceasefire and future peace negotiations to seize large amounts of territory in Ukraine and install a pro-Russian puppet government in Kyiv but will likely continue military operations in Ukraine if the Kremlin is unable to achieve a full Ukrainian surrender through diplomacy.
• Russia is facing significant military and economic challenges that could seriously compromise Russia’s ability to wage its war in Ukraine, factors that could increase the Kremlin’s desire to accomplish its objectives in a mediated ceasefire or peace negotiation in the short-term if possible.
• The US Treasury Department announced on April 2 that the United States lifted sanctions on Karina Rotenberg, the wife of Russian businessman and oligarch Boris Rotenberg.
• Ukrainian forces advanced near Pokrovsk. Russian forces advanced in Kursk and Belgorod and near Lyman, Toretsk, Kurakhove, and Velyka Novosilka.
• The Russian State Duma adopted a bill on April 3 to grant veteran status to Russian military personnel and volunteer formations that fought in Kursk Oblast.

Russia is covering buildings with anti-drone nets, claiming they protect against attacks. But do they work, or is this just another money grab? Even Ukrainians are debating the idea.

Entire apartment blocks are disappearing behind anti-drone nets in Belgorod Oblast, Russia. Officials claim they shield civilians from Ukrainian strikes – but is this a real defense or just a costly illusion?

More than 40 apartment buildings have already been equipped with all-metal material protective nets against drones in the town of Shebekino.

Kyiv-born and US-educated, Kirill Dmitriev met his counterpart in the White House after Trump’s public comments that he is “pissed off” at the Kremlin for demanding removal of Zelensky from office.

Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin’s new chief negotiator with the US, Kirill Dmitriev, met in the White House on Thursday with special envoy Steve Witkoff and said that while “disagreements remain” with the administration of President Donald Trump, the two sides “discussed possible cooperation in the Arctic, in rare earth metals, in various other sectors where we can build constructive and positive relations.”

The White House did not comment on progress made with Dmitriev, the most senior Russian official to visit Washington since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.

Six people from the NSC were sacked after the meeting, including three senior officials on the body which advises the president on top foreign policy matters from Ukraine to Gaza.

Donald Trump fired several US national security officials after a far-right conspiracy theorist questioned their loyalty in a White House meeting with the president, US media reported Thursday.

Influencer Laura Loomer, who is known for claiming that the 9/11 terrorist attacks were an inside job, laid out her concerns to Trump on Wednesday, the New York Times said in a report followed up by other outlets.