Russia-Ukraine war

Surging prices -- annual inflation came in at a little over nine percent in August -- is just one of the economic headaches Russia is grappling with as it has increasingly militarised its economy since ordering troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

Russian attack drones flying towards Ukraine also breached the airspace of NATO members Romania and Latvia, the countries said Sunday, triggering calls for a robust response from the military alliance.

He will also meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and then head to Italy, following the meeting at Ramstein Air Base, which comes days after 55 people were killed and 300 wounded in a Russian missile strike on the city of Poltava.

Moscow has stepped up its aerial attacks after Ukraine's offensive in Russia's Kursk region, which caught Russian troops by surprise.

An announcement has not been made but is reportedly in the works. The weapon has range to hit targets inside Russia

Donetsk has been partially controlled by Russian proxy forces since they wrested control over swathes of the industrial territory in 2014.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly warned of the dangers of fighting around nuclear plants following Russia's full-scale military offensive into Ukraine in February 2022.

Officials said 15 regions across the country were targeted in the aerial assault which began during the night and was the biggest in weeks.

"The activities of The Clooney Foundation for Justice are declared undesirable on the territory of our country," it said in a statement.

Ukraine said it now controlled dozens of settlements and Sudzha, a town eight kilometres (five miles) from the border.

AFP journalists saw dozens of Ukrainian military vehicles daubed with white triangles, the insignia apparently used to identify forces involved in Kursk operation, kicking up dust on roads in the Sumy border territory.

The Ukrainian offensive into Russia's western Kursk region, launched Tuesday, appears to be the most significant attack on Russian soil since Moscow invaded in February 2022.

For more than two years, Ukraine has pleaded with its Western partners for the aircraft -- long considered the crown jewel in the sprawling list of military hardware Kyiv has sought.

The announcement came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited special forces in the border region of Kharkiv, where Moscow's forces launched a surprise ground offensive in May but failed to make any major breakthrough.

With its castle, medieval tower and river-side beach, the western Ukrainian tourist town of Starokostiantyniv doesn't seem an obvious target for Russian missile and drone strikes.

Zelensky said on Monday that Russia "should be" represented at a second summit on the Ukraine conflict, following high-level talks last month in Switzerland that Moscow did not attend and heavily criticised.

Ukraine in recent weeks has resorted to consumption restrictions and rolling blackouts after Russian forces stepped up attacks on the country's power stations and transmission lines.

Kicking off three days of events for the 32-nation alliance with a celebration Tuesday evening, Biden announced a new air defense system for Kyiv and urged unity against Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched the Ukraine invasion in 2022.

Modi, visiting Moscow for the first time since Russia launched its campaign in Ukraine in February 2022, will seek to nurture New Delhi's long-standing relationship with Moscow.

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV quoted Xi as saying the "international community should create conditions and provide assistance for the two sides to resume direct dialogue and negotiations".

Last year, NATO's failure to issue Ukraine a clear timeframe for membership did not go down well.

That Russia now has Toretsk in its sights underlines a worrying trend for Kyiv as the war grinds through its third year.

When Russian paramilitary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin sent his Wagner mercenaries charging towards Moscow last year in a short-lived rebellion, President Vladimir Putin looked weak and vulnerable.

The targeted aerial barrages over recent months have crippled Ukrainian electricity generation capacity and forced officials to impose rolling blackouts and import supplies from neighbouring EU states.

Last week, the United States unveiled fresh sanctions against 300 targets in and outside Russia.

Zelensky, who is also due to address the German parliament, will join the heads of the G7 developed nations later this week in Italy.

Switzerland will stage a conference on Ukraine this coming weekend, with world leaders set to discuss how to reach an eventual peace process -- although Russia is not taking part.

Macron said he would offer Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky when the two meet for talks at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday that the pilots be trained from this summer.

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

Without an international police or armed force, the ICJ "depends on the will and cooperation of states to implement its decisions," says Raphaelle Nollez-Goldbach, a researcher at France's National Center for Scientific Research.