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Pope Francis Meets with Ukraine’s President at the Vatican

A handout picture provided by the Vatican Media shows Pope Francis (L) receiving Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky during their meeting at the Vatican, 13 May 2023. It is the first time Zelensky visits Italy since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. EPA/VATICAN MEDIA HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES
A handout picture provided by the Vatican Media shows Pope Francis (L) receiving Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky during their meeting at the Vatican, 13 May 2023. It is the first time Zelensky visits Italy since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. EPA/VATICAN MEDIA HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES
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Pope Francis Meets with Ukraine’s President at the Vatican

A handout picture provided by the Vatican Media shows Pope Francis (L) receiving Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky during their meeting at the Vatican, 13 May 2023. It is the first time Zelensky visits Italy since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. EPA/VATICAN MEDIA HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES
A handout picture provided by the Vatican Media shows Pope Francis (L) receiving Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky during their meeting at the Vatican, 13 May 2023. It is the first time Zelensky visits Italy since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. EPA/VATICAN MEDIA HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held talks with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday, saying it was a great honor to meet with the pontiff, who has previously offered to do what he can to try to end the war launched by Russia's invasion of Ukraine a year ago.

Zelenskyy held his hand of his heart as the pope, using a cane, came to greet him before ushering the Ukrainian into a papal studio near the Vatican's audience call. "Thank you for your visit,'' Francis said, as their 40-minute-long meeting began.

In a written statement, the Vatican said the two men spoke about Ukraine's "humanitarian and political situation provoked by the war going on.''

"The pope assured his constant prayer, paid witness to by his many public appeals and by his continued invoking of the Lord for peace, since February of last year,'' the Vatican said, a reference to the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, by Russia's military.

“Both agreed on the need to continue humanitarian efforts” to help the population. “The pope underlined in particular the urgent need for ‘humanitarian gestures’ toward the most fragile persons, innocent victims of the conflict," the statement said.

Last month, Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, met with Francis at the Vatican and said he asked the pontiff to help Ukraine get back children illegally taken to Russia during the invasion.

Saturday's communique from the Vatican made no mention of that, and there were no immediate details from Zelenskyy's side about his meeting with the pontiff.

Ahead of Zelenskyy's arrival in late afternoon, police moved tourists to one side of St. Peter's Square so the Ukrainian president's motorcade could speed across the vast cobblestone space.

Earlier in the day, Zelenskyy met with Italian officials after his morning flight to Rome. He received pledges of both open-ended military and financial support as well as stronger backing for Ukraine's cherished aim to join the European Union.

“The message is clear and simple,” Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, flanked by Zelenskyy as the two briefed reporters after their meeting at her office, which lasted more than an hour. "The future of Ukraine is a future of peace and freedom. And it's the future of Europe, a future of peace and freedom, for which there are no other possible solutions.''

Meloni, who had met with Zelenskyy in Ukraine in February, just ahead of the anniversary of the invasion, renewed her pledge to champion Ukraine's EU ambitions, saying Ukraine was moving ahead with required reforms despite the war.

According to The Associated Press, the premier, who staunchly backs military aid for Ukraine, said Italy would back the country “360 degrees for all the time necessary and beyond.”

Zelenskyy began his official meetings by calling on Italian President Sergio Mattarella at the presidential Quirinale Palace.

“We are fully at your side,″ Mattarella told Zelenskyy as he welcomed him. Later, after their meeting, presidential palace sources said Mattarella assured his guest that Italy would continue supporting Ukraine militarily and financially, as well as with reconstruction and humanitarian aid, in both the short and long term.

Since the war began, Italy has furnished about 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in military and financial aid, as well as humanitarian assistance.

Zelenskyy is heading to Berlin next for what would be his first visit to Germany since the war began.

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World

Pakistan Interior Minister in Iran to Discuss Regional Security

A handout photo made available by the Iranian Foreign Ministry Office shows Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) meeting with Pakistan's Minister of Interior Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on August 11, 2026. (Iran Foreign Ministry / AFP)
A handout photo made available by the Iranian Foreign Ministry Office shows Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) meeting with Pakistan's Minister of Interior Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on August 11, 2026. (Iran Foreign Ministry / AFP)
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Pakistan Interior Minister in Iran to Discuss Regional Security

A handout photo made available by the Iranian Foreign Ministry Office shows Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) meeting with Pakistan's Minister of Interior Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on August 11, 2026. (Iran Foreign Ministry / AFP)
A handout photo made available by the Iranian Foreign Ministry Office shows Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) meeting with Pakistan's Minister of Interior Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on August 11, 2026. (Iran Foreign Ministry / AFP)

Pakistan's interior minister is visiting Iran to discuss regional security, stability and other developments, the Pakistani foreign office said Wednesday, as Islamabad tries to mediate a resolution to the Middle East war.

Mohsin Naqvi, previously involved in mediation efforts between Iran and the US, is known to be close to the powerful head of the Pakistani army, Asim Munir.

Iranian state news agency IRNA reported late Tuesday that Naqvi met with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni.

"He is discussing bilateral relations, security, regional security and stability, and constructive engagement amongst the parties in the region and regional developments," Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad.

The Iranian government's website said Naqvi conveyed to Pezeshkian "a message from the Pakistani prime minister and the chief of the army", without specifying its content.

Tehran insists on retaining control of the Strait of Hormuz after the war and wants to charge fees for passage, repeatedly striking ships it accuses of attempting to circumvent its preferred route. The US has imposed a rival blockade on Iranian ports.

Attacks in the waterway, which was free to transit before the war, led to the collapse of an April ceasefire, and mediators have urged both sides to return to the terms of a subsequent June memorandum that set out a path for peace talks.

Last week Iran said it had agreed a route with neighboring Oman for ships transiting the strait and was finalizing arrangements for jointly managing the strategic waterway.

On Tuesday the US military announced that it had fired on a Panama-flagged cargo ship that attempted to break the American blockade of Iran's ports.

World

North Korea Fires Missile Ahead of Major US-South Korea Drills

People watch a news broadcast on a television screen showing a report on a missile launch, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, 12 August 2026. (EPA)
People watch a news broadcast on a television screen showing a report on a missile launch, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, 12 August 2026. (EPA)
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North Korea Fires Missile Ahead of Major US-South Korea Drills

People watch a news broadcast on a television screen showing a report on a missile launch, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, 12 August 2026. (EPA)
People watch a news broadcast on a television screen showing a report on a missile launch, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, 12 August 2026. (EPA)

North Korea fired a ballistic missile on Wednesday toward the sea off the Korean peninsula's east coast, South Korean and Japanese authorities said, days ahead of major joint military exercises by Seoul and Washington long denounced by Pyongyang.

The missile was launched from the North's Wonsan area at about 6 a.m. (2100 GMT Tuesday), South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, six days after North Korea fired another ballistic missile from the same area.

The launch came ahead of South Korean and US military drills, dubbed Ulchi Freedom Shield, set to run from August 17 to August 27, aimed at countering Pyongyang's evolving nuclear and weapons capabilities.

Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul, said the launch ‌was likely part of ‌North Korea's existing weapons development schedule, but the timing could also have been ‌selected ⁠to send a ⁠message ahead of the exercises.

"Even if it was a test of a weapon under development, choosing when to conduct it requires a political decision," Hong said.

There was no immediate statement from North Korea on the Wonsan launch, but Pyongyang on Wednesday afternoon criticized the nuclear ambitions of South Korea and Japan.

South Korea said North Korea also fired a ballistic missile from Wonsan on August 6, but Pyongyang did not report that launch in state media. Hong said that test may have failed to achieve its intended objective.

North Korea's series of tests this year has featured short-range ballistic missiles, artillery rockets and other tactical weapons.

Wednesday's ⁠launch was its 11th suspected ballistic missile test in 2026, according to South Korean ‌assessments.

South Korean and Japanese defense authorities said the missile flew about 700 ‌km (435 miles).

Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff did not identify it as a short-range ballistic missile, saying authorities would conduct a detailed ‌analysis.

The omission leaves open the question of what type of missile it was, analysts said. Ballistic missiles with ‌ranges of 300 km to 1,000 km (186 miles to 620 miles) are generally classified as short-range.

Hong said the range, trajectory and launch site suggested it may have been a type of hypersonic missile, though a submarine-launched missile was also possible.

CONDEMNATION AND HEIGHTENED TENSIONS

South Korea and Japan both condemned the launch.

"Japan lodged a strong protest with North Korea through diplomatic channels at the Japanese Embassy ‌in Beijing and strongly condemned the action," Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters.

South Korea's Office of National Security convened an emergency meeting and expressed concern over North Korea's continued ⁠ballistic-missile launches following the ⁠August 6 firing. It urged Pyongyang to halt provocations that violate UN Security Council resolutions.

South Korea's military said it was maintaining readiness to respond "overwhelmingly" to any provocation under its combined defense posture with the United States.

The US Indo-Pacific Command said it was consulting closely with allies and partners, adding that its initial assessment was that the launch posed no immediate threat to US personnel or territory, or to its allies.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Moscow used North Korean ballistic missiles during a Russian attack that killed seven workers at a steel plant in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia.

In a statement, a North Korean Foreign Ministry official responsible for South Korean affairs said Seoul's plans to develop nuclear-powered submarines would heighten instability in the region, for a "serious challenge" to the North's security.

Pyongyang needed the capability to counter its adversaries' military moves with retaliatory strikes that would make their "survival and recovery impossible", the statement added.

In a separate commentary state news agency KCNA accused Japan of seeking nuclear weapons under the guise of peaceful use of atomic energy, citing its nuclear power program and debate among Japanese politicians over nuclear armament.

World

Four Killed in Russia-Ukraine Strikes, Including 8-Year-Old

A handout picture made available by the press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces shows a civilian car in a crater on a bridge in the frontline city of Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 11 August 2026, amid the ongoing Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade/Handout)
A handout picture made available by the press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces shows a civilian car in a crater on a bridge in the frontline city of Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 11 August 2026, amid the ongoing Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade/Handout)
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Four Killed in Russia-Ukraine Strikes, Including 8-Year-Old

A handout picture made available by the press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces shows a civilian car in a crater on a bridge in the frontline city of Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 11 August 2026, amid the ongoing Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade/Handout)
A handout picture made available by the press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces shows a civilian car in a crater on a bridge in the frontline city of Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 11 August 2026, amid the ongoing Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade/Handout)

Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia's south killed two people, including an eight-year-old child, the regional governor said on Wednesday after the latest exchange of air attacks between the warring countries.

Russian overnight strikes on a frontline city in southern Ukraine also killed two.

Ukraine has increased its strikes on Russia in what it says is fair retribution for Moscow's own daily strikes on Ukrainian cities that force people into shelters and kill civilians across the country.

Russia's Krasnodar -- a southern region home to several tourist hotspots -- saw a barrage of "several hundred" Ukrainian drones, regional governor Venyamin Kondratyev said.

"An eight-year-old child died in Novorossiysk... Eight people, including one child, were also wounded and have been hospitalized," Kondratyev said on Telegram.

He added that debris from drones damaged 21 buildings in the port city, with unverified images on social media showing blocks of flats with blown-out windows and charred cars.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv had "carried out a unique operation targeting the naval base in Novorossiysk -- the last major stronghold of the Russian fleet in the Black Sea, more than 300 kilometers from the front line."

"Hits on air defense positions, piers, and seaport infrastructure have been confirmed," he said on social media.

He posted a video from Russian social media showing the attack unfolding -- streaks of orange flashes of air defense and blue counter-drone laser beams being shone into the sky -- and a thick grey cloud billowing over the city after dawn.

Another person was killed in the Krasnodar region when drone debris fell into the garden of a private house in the village of Volna.

Two people were also wounded in the resort town of Gelendzhik on the Black Sea coast.

Russia shot down 502 Ukrainian drones across its territory and the Black Sea overnight, its defense ministry said in a statement.

Ukraine's air force meanwhile reported Moscow attacked with missiles and 138 drones, 112 of which were shot down or intercepted, launched mostly at its southern Odesa region and Sumy in the northeast.

Russian drones killed two people in the frontline city of Kherson in southern Ukraine, the city chief said, including a woman whose house was hit.

Civilians are frequently killed in the city, with Russian troops based on the opposite side of the Dnipro River, which snakes through southern Ukraine.