Ukrainian Forces Are ‘Gradually Gaining Ground’, NATO Chief Says 

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine September 28, 2023. (Reuters)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine September 28, 2023. (Reuters)
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Ukrainian Forces Are ‘Gradually Gaining Ground’, NATO Chief Says 

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine September 28, 2023. (Reuters)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine September 28, 2023. (Reuters)

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, on an unannounced visit to Kyiv, said on Thursday that Ukrainian forces were "gradually gaining ground" in their counteroffensive against Russian forces.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Stoltenberg also said Russian troops were fighting for Moscow's "imperial delusions".

Stoltenberg announced that NATO now had over-arching framework contracts in place with arms companies worth 2.4 billion euros ($2.53 billion) for key ammunition, including 1 billion euros in firm orders.

He said such contracts would allow NATO members to replenish their depleted stockpiles while also continuing to provide Ukraine with ammunition, a key factor in the war.

Stoltenberg also condemned Russian strikes near Ukraine's border with NATO member Romania. He said there was no evidence such strikes were a deliberate attack on Romania but branded them "reckless" and "destabilizing".



Car Bombing Kills 13 Pakistani Soldiers Near Afghan Border

A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR
A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR
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Car Bombing Kills 13 Pakistani Soldiers Near Afghan Border

A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR
A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR

An explosive-laden car rammed into a Pakistani military convoy on Saturday in a town near the Afghan border, killing at least 13 soldiers, sources said.

Four Pakistani intelligence officials and a senior local administrator told Reuters that the convoy was attacked in Mir Ali area of North Waziristan district.

Around 10 other soldiers were wounded, some critically, and they were being airlifted to a military hospital, the sources said.

"It was huge, a big bang," said the local administrator, adding that residents of the town could see a large amount of smoke billowing from the scene from a great distance.

One resident said that the explosion rattled the windowpanes of nearby houses, and caused some roofs to collapse.

No one has so far claimed responsibility.

The Pakistani military did not respond to a Reuters request for a comment.

The lawless district which sits next to Afghanistan has long served as a safe haven for different militant groups, who operate on both sides of the border.

Islamabad says the militants run training camps in Afghanistan to launch attacks inside Pakistan, a charge Kabul denies, saying the militancy is Pakistan's domestic issue.

Pakistani Taliban also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella group of several militant groups, has long been waging a war against Pakistan in a bid to overthrow the government.

The Pakistani military, which has launched several offensives against the militants, has mostly been their prime target.