Russia Says Ukraine Attacks Belgorod Region Again with Missiles and Drones 

This handout picture posted on January 2, 2024 on the official Telegram account of Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, shows aftermath of a missile strike on the region. (Photo by Handout / TELEGRAM / @VVGLADKOV / AFP)
This handout picture posted on January 2, 2024 on the official Telegram account of Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, shows aftermath of a missile strike on the region. (Photo by Handout / TELEGRAM / @VVGLADKOV / AFP)
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Russia Says Ukraine Attacks Belgorod Region Again with Missiles and Drones 

This handout picture posted on January 2, 2024 on the official Telegram account of Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, shows aftermath of a missile strike on the region. (Photo by Handout / TELEGRAM / @VVGLADKOV / AFP)
This handout picture posted on January 2, 2024 on the official Telegram account of Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, shows aftermath of a missile strike on the region. (Photo by Handout / TELEGRAM / @VVGLADKOV / AFP)

Ukraine launched 12 missiles and several drones in the early hours of Wednesday on Russia's southern region of Belgorod, Russia's defense ministry and local authorities said.

Regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said the situation "continues to remain tense" in Belgorod, where Russia says 25 civilians including five children were killed in Ukrainian attacks on Saturday.

There was no word of any casualties from the latest attacks. Gladkov said the extent of damage would be assessed throughout the day.

Ukraine's escalation of attacks on Belgorod over the New Year period has come as Russia launched some of its most intense strikes on Ukraine since the war began almost two years ago. Kyiv said on Tuesday that Russia had launched well over 300 attack drones and missiles of various kinds at cities across Ukraine since Friday.

Belgorod, like other Russian regions on the border with Ukraine, has seen frequent low-level attacks since the start of the war, but Saturday's was by far the deadliest. President Vladimir Putin said it would "not go unpunished".

One person was killed and seven more wounded in the region on Tuesday, Russian authorities said.

In Wednesday's attacks, Russia's defense ministry said Ukraine fired six Tochka-U ballistic missiles and six guided missiles launched from a Vilkha heavy multiple rocket launcher.

Gladkov said Ukraine also launched several drones on the region and the city of Belgorod, which is the administrative center of the region.

Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.



Kremlin Says Putin and Trump Agreed During Weekend Call to Talk Again in ‘Near Future’

 Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
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Kremlin Says Putin and Trump Agreed During Weekend Call to Talk Again in ‘Near Future’

 Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

The Kremlin said on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump had agreed in a weekend call that they would talk again "in the near future," suggesting they are likely to talk this week during or after the NATO summit.

Trump is planning to meet Ukrainian President ‌Volodymyr Zelenskiy on ‌Wednesday in Türkiye where ‌he ⁠will be attending ⁠the NATO summit, a senior US official said on Sunday. The idea, the official said, was to make a renewed push to end the war in Ukraine.

The same official said Trump would likely ⁠follow up with Putin after talking ‌to Zelenskiy. ‌

Asked on Monday if Trump would phone Putin after ‌meeting Zelenskiy, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov ‌told reporters: "Yes, indeed, both President Putin and President Trump have agreed that their contacts will continue in the near future."

Peskov said Trump ‌had held a pretty consistent position on the conflict in Ukraine.

"You ⁠know, ⁠President Trump, the US president, has a fairly consistent stance, and all these fabrications about him supposedly changing his views like a weather vane are, of course, untrue," said Peskov.

"He is consistent and confident in his understanding of what is happening, but, most importantly, he (Trump) is open to listening to the information that is conveyed to him by Putin."


Netanyahu Urges US Not to Sell F-35 Fighter Jets to Türkiye

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)
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Netanyahu Urges US Not to Sell F-35 Fighter Jets to Türkiye

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday urged the United States not to sell its F-35 fighter jets or components to Türkiye, arguing it would "upset the power balance" in the region.

US President Donald Trump travels later Monday to Ankara for a NATO summit, and his visit could be seen by the Turks as an opportunity to secure acquisition of dozens of jet engines and potential readmission to the F-35 fighter jet program.

The Israeli prime minister however warned that it would be a mistake for Washington to reward Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whom Netanyahu said "calls openly for the annihilation of Israel," with advanced military technology.

"I don't think they should be given F-35s or the engines for their fighter jets, because that'll upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority and also by, I think, by America's posture in the Middle East," Netanyahu told Fox News morning show "Fox & Friends."

Last month, Trump promised to make Erdogan "very happy" when asked about Türkiye looking to secure F110 jet engines and regaining access to the F-35 program.

Analysts say Türkiye wants to secure the new engines for use in its flagship KAAN stealth fighter project, as Ankara seeks to join the exclusive club of nations producing fifth-generation combat aircraft, notably the United States, China and Russia.

In 2017 however, Türkiye acquired a Russian S-400 missile defense system, a move that infuriated Washington, which expelled Türkiye from the F-35 program in 2019.

Netanyahu also reiterated that he remains a close ally to Trump, despite hiccups in their relationship in recent weeks over the Iran war.

"We are the best of allies," the Israeli leader said. "My relationship with the president is fine."


French Government Survives No-Confidence Vote Over Heatwave Handling

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)
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French Government Survives No-Confidence Vote Over Heatwave Handling

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)

The French government survived a vote of no-confidence in parliament on Monday over its handling of a severe heatwave in late June.

Backers of the motion said the government failed to do enough to blunt the effects of last month's ‌heatwave in a country ‌where 2,025 excess deaths ‌have ⁠been recorded so ⁠far. French health authorities warned the number would likely rise.

The motion, filed by France's Green Party, which needed 289 votes to pass, was backed by only 132 members of ⁠parliament.

"No one is fooled. This ‌motion will ‌not protect an isolated elderly person. It will ‌not cool down a hospital room. It ‌will not modernize a water supply network. On the contrary, it will add a political crisis to climate, healthcare and international ‌crises that the government already must deal with," French Prime Minister ⁠Sebastien ⁠Lecornu told lawmakers ahead of the vote.

The vote took place as firefighters battled a wildfire in southwestern France that has forced the evacuation of 10,000 people.

Early summer heatwaves in France and across western Europe have made the scorched land particularly vulnerable to wildfires this year, and temperatures are set to rise again.