Putin threatens to arm West’s enemies over Ukraine aid – latest updates

German chancellor Olaf Scholz has reiterated his stance that Ukraine could use weapons supplied by the West to defend itself against attacks launched from just inside Russia, such as those made against the Kharkiv region.

“In order to defend itself against such attacks, Ukraine can also use the weapons supplied by us and our allies – always in accordance with international legal obligations,” Mr Scholz told the Bundestag lower house of parliament.

Mr Scholz’s comments came after Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned that allowing Kyiv to strike Russia with ever more powerful weapons was a serious escalation that was drawing the West towards a war with Russia.

Vladimir Putin has rebuffed statements alleging Russia is planning to attack Nato, a repeated warning from Western leaders who have not ruled out the scenario.

Western leaders and Ukraine have played down Russia’s warnings about the risk of a broader war involving Russia but have repeatedly warned Putin might attack a member of Nato, the world’s most powerful military alliance.

Russia attacked European neighbour Ukraine in February 2022 after months of denying a buildup of troops near the border was a precursor to an invasion.

“They thought that Russia wanted to attack Nato. Have you gone completely crazy? That is as thick as this table. Who came up with this? It is just complete nonsense, you know? Total rubbish,” Putin said in St Petersburg yesterday.

“You should not make Russia out to be the enemy. You’re only hurting yourself with this, you know?” he said.

Both Putin and Biden have said that a direct conflict between Russia, the world’s biggest nuclear power, and US-led Nato would be a step towards a Third World War.

Russian forces have captured a Colombian national who was fighting alongside Ukrainian soldiers, the state-run TASS news agency reported today citing Russia’s defence ministry.

The ministry identified the man as Angel Cardenas Montilla and published a video of him urging other Colombians not to join the war.

The Independent has not been able to immediately verify the reports.

At least four people were injured at a civilian apartment block in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk after a Russian drone attack this morning, officials said.

The attack damaged an infrastructure facility, a nine-storey apartment block, and three houses in Nikopol, said Serhii Lysak, head of Dnipropetrovsk oblast military administration.

The four civilians passengers travelling in a bus were also hit by the drone, the official said.

“Russian artillery and kamikaze drones attacked the Nikopol district. [The city of Nikopol] was hit in the morning. An enemy drone hit a bus. It caught fire, and firefighters promptly extinguished the flames. Some of the people who were inside sustained injuries,” Mr Lysak said on his Telegram channel.

The Ukrainian air force shot down 17 out of 18 Shahed-type drones over four regions fired by Russia overnight, military officials said this morning.

Of these, Ukraine shot down eight drones over the southern region of Mykolaiv with no damages reported by the regional governor. Drones were also shot down over the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.

Russia’s attack caused a fire at an infrastructure facility in Khmelnytskyi region, where one drone was shot down, the regional governor said.

Russian forces also used two Iskander-M ballistic missiles to attack Dnipropetrovsk region, the military said. No details on damage from the missile attack were immediately available.

No casualties have been reported so far.

Vladimir Putin has sought to claim that Donald Trump’s hush money conviction is the result of America’s justice system being used “in an internal political struggle”.

Speaking in St Petersbury as Alexei Navalny ally Ilya Yashin lost an appeal against his bogus designation as a “foreign agent”, the Russian president claimed the United States was “burning themselves from the inside, their state, their political system”.

He added: “It is obvious all over the world that the prosecution of Trump, especially in court on charges that were formed on the basis of events that happened years ago, without direct proof, is simply using the judicial system in an internal political struggle.”

Vladimir Putin has claimed Russia could retaliate in kind against those permitting Ukraine to target Russia with their long-range missiles – by providing such weapons to countries within striking distance of Western nations.

In wide-ranging remarks at his annual economic forum in St Petersburg, the Russian president sought to insist that Moscow “does not care” about the upcoming US election, claimed candidate Donald Trump’s hush money conviction was “political”, and dismissed fears that Russia wants to attack Nato as “nonsense”.

Ukrainian soldiers can shift the difficult battlefield situation in the country’s east, where the fiercest fighting is underway, and turn it to their advantage by doing “everything possible,” top military official said.

Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi said his commanders of Ukrainian units are “fully aware of the situation” and are “skillfully” using all types of weapons, including attack drones. “Our task is to stop the enemy and force them to go on the defensive,” he said.

“Despite the difficult situation, we have a chance to change the situation in our favour. And the defence forces are doing everything possible to do so,” the top Ukrainian military official said in a daily update last night after visiting the eastern part of the frontline.

Russian forces are continuing to push on the Kurakhove, Pokrovsk, Kupiansk, and Kharkiv sectors.

Heavy fighting is also ongoing near the town of Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast, where Russian troops are trying to break through Ukraine’s defence from two directions, Syrskyi said.

“In Vovchansk, our main task at this stage is to hold back the enemy, inflict maximum losses and gradually move forward to liberate our territories,” the commander said.

The top military command’s task is now to provide the Kharkiv region troops with ample ammunition and combat-ready reserves.

France will aid Ukraine with loans and grants worth over $700m to help address Kyiv’s critical infrastructure targeted by Russian forces.

The agreement between Ukraine and France is expected to be finalised by tomorrow during Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to Paris, reported French media outlet 20 minutes.

It added that the first part of the agreement will give the war-hit nation around $435m in loans and $54m in grants to the French Development Agency (AFD), in order to “expand its activities in Ukraine” until the year 2027.

The second tranche will offer $217m to a critical infrastructure support fund.

Mr Zelensky is set to meet his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron tomorrow and both will hold joint press conference on 7 June announcing the aid package, among other agreements.