Ukraine said on Friday it had struck a Russian oil refinery and a microchip factory in a huge drone attack that caused fires at the refinery's production facilities and an oil pumping station. Russia said hours earlier that its forces had repelled an overnight drone attack,

Ukrainian officials are claiming responsibility for a drone attack on an oil refinery southeast of Moscow. This comes after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was ready to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end what he called the ‘ridiculous war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday echoed US President Donald Trump’s claim the conflict in Ukraine could have been prevented had he been in the White House in 2022. He also said Moscow is ready for talks with the US on a broad range of issues.

Tens of thousands of protesters thronged a central square in the Slovak capital on Friday, waving banners opposing Prime Minister Robert Fico's policy shift closer to Russia, after tensions between the government and the opposition rose.

Slovakia has seen growing political tensions in recent months, with divisions deepening between the government and opposition. The country’s direction on foreign policy, particularly its stance toward Russia and the European Union,

The latest wave of rallies was fuelled by Fico’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, a rare visit to the Kremlin by an EU leader since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. View on