Ukraine-Russia struggle newest: Putin threatens Kyiv with new missile and praises Trump after vitality grid assault

Russia’s overnight aerial attack against Ukraine on Wednesday is “outrageous”, Joe Biden has said, calling it a reminder of the urgency and importance of supporting the Ukrainian people.

“Russia continues to underestimate the bravery, resilience, and determination of the Ukrainian people. The United States stands with more than 50 countries in support of Ukraine and its fight for freedom,” Mr Biden said in a statement released by the White House.

Russia unleashed its second big attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this month, triggering deep power cuts across the country yesterday.

President Vladimir Putin said Moscow had struck in response to Ukraine’s strikes on Russian territory with US medium-range ATACMS missiles. He said Russia’s future targets could include “decision-making centres” in Kyiv

Ukraine is asking its allies to speed up deliveries of military aid, saying quicker delivery of critical battlefield equipment was more important than drafting more men.

“We are now in the situation when we need more equipment to arm all the people that have already been mobilised, and we think the first priority is to send quicker, faster military aid,” Heorhii Tykhyi, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s foreign ministry, told reporters in Kyiv.

His statement echoed a comment from Ukrainian presidential adviser Dmytro Lytvyn, who criticised what he said was sluggish military aid. “Ukraine cannot be expected to compensate for delays in logistics or hesitation in support with the youth of our men on the frontline,” Mr Lytvyn wrote on X.

A senior US official said earlier that Ukraine was not mobilising enough new soldiers to replace those lost on the battlefield, and urged Kyiv to reduce the mobilisation age from 25 to 18.

Russian president Vladimir Putin praised Donald Trump as an experienced and intelligent politician and questioned whether he was safe after attempts on his life.

Speaking to reporters after a summit in Kazakhstan, Mr Putin said he had also been shocked by how Mr Trump’s family and children had been criticised by political opponents during the US election campaign.

“In my opinion, he is not safe now,” Mr Putin said. “Unfortunately, in the history of the United States, various incidents have happened. I think he [Trump] is intelligent and I hope he’s cautious and understands this,” he said.

Russian air defences downed 30 Ukrainian drones in the southern Rostov region early this morning, regional governor Yuri Slyusar said.

Some private homes in two villages had sustained some damage, but there were no casualties, Mr Slyusar said on his Telegram channel.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed into law Ukraine’s first wartime tax increases as the war against Russia reaches its 34th month.

Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenkko said that the bill was vital to ensure smooth funding for the Ukrainian defence sector next year. The changes will take effect from 1 December, he said.

The government is raising the war tax for residents to 5% from 1.5% paid currently on personal income and is introducing the war tax for tens of thousands of individual entrepreneurs and small businesses.

It also increases some rental payments, taxes commercial banks’ profits at 50%, and raises taxes on the profits of other financial institutions to 25%.

The tax increases would help raise about 140 billion hryvnias (£2.8 billion) in additional revenues next year to fund Ukraine’s defence efforts at a critical juncture of the war as Kyiv is battling with a much bigger and better-equipped enemy.

Russian forces have killed five Ukrainian prisoners of war in Zaporizhzhia region, according to the Ukrainian prosecutor general.

In a statement on Facebook, the prosecutor general said an investigation has been launched after Russian forces shot five out of six captured Ukrainian soldiers.

Investigators also received a video of the moment the shooting was recorded, the prosecutor said.

Russia and Ukraine have agreed to return to each other a total of nine children to be reunited with family members, according to a senior Russian official.

The transfers were agreed following mediation by Qatar, which has brokered several similar deals since the start of the full-scale war in February 2022.

Russia’s commissioner for children, Maria Lvova-Belova, said on Thursday that six boys and one girl, aged six to 16, were being returned to relatives in Ukraine.

Ms Lvova-Belova said on Wednesday that Qatari mediation had also enabled the repatriation of two young Russian boys, aged seven and nine, from Ukraine.

Ukraine says about 20,000 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied territory without the consent of family or guardians since the war began, calling the abductions a war crime that meets the UN treaty definition of genocide.

Moscow says it has protected vulnerable children from the war zone.