Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin still wanted a peaceful resolution to the war but reiterated that Russia’s conditions for a deal had not changed

Russia now controls more than two-thirds of Ukraine’s Donetsk region — the main theater of the ground war. Russian forces have carved out a 10-mile-deep pocket around the Ukrainian troops defending the crucial city of Kostiantynivka, partly surrounding them from the east, south and west.

US President Donald Trump’s 50-day pause ahead of possible secondary sanctions on Russia gifts the Kremlin a window to exploit the incremental gains of recent weeks in Ukraine’s east.

President Donald Trump’s ultimatum to Russia to accept a peace deal in Ukraine within 50 days or face bruising sanctions has given the Kremlin extra time to pursue its summer offensive.

By Yurii Kovalenko, Anastasiia Malenko and Vladyslav Smilianets KYIV (Reuters) -Several nights a week, Daria Slavytska packs a yoga mat, blankets and food into a stroller and descends with her two-year-old Emil into the Kyiv subway.

Putin’s refusal to compromise on Ukraine, say analysts, is a colossal error costing Russia regional influence, lucrative energy markets and its place in the world.

Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine overnight into Saturday with hundreds of drones, killing at least one person, part of a stepped-up bombing campaign that has dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the more than 3-year-old war.

Russia's drone attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure have begun to target military recruitment centers, according to a data analyst group. Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) said Russia began to hit enlistment centers in recent weeks in a concerted effort to disrupt Ukraine's mobilization.