Ukraine-Russia war latest: Anti-Putin protesters arrested in Moscow as Germany pledges €1bn in military aid to Kyiv

Moscow police detained around 60 people at an authorised Communist Party rally on Sunday after protesters began chanting anti-Kremlin slogans, according to the party and Russian rights group OVD-Info.

The rally marked the anniversary of Russia’s 1993 constitutional crisis, when a confrontation between then-president Boris Yeltsin and hardline lawmakers culminated in the military shelling of Moscow’s parliament building.

Authorities said 123 people were killed, although unofficial estimates put the death toll in the hundreds.

The Communist Party has held annual events to mark the anniversary as a symbol of resistance to reforms introduced during the Yeltsin era.

This year’s authorised gathering, however, took a more openly anti-Kremlin turn as demonstrators chanted slogans including “Freedom for political prisoners”, “For fair elections” and “Down with the Tsar”.

According to OVD-Info, protesters also chanted “No to political repression”, “Down with Roskomnadzor” and “Down with the party of crooks and thieves”.

Although Moscow authorities had approved the rally, detentions reportedly intensified towards the end of the gathering as participants began chanting more directly against the Kremlin.

Around 20 people were initially taken to Moscow’s Krasnopresnenskiy police station before the number of reported detainees rose to about 60, OVD-Info said.

Those detained were not all Communist Party supporters. They included 26 Communist Party participants, 30 members of the liberal Yabloko party and several other activists.

The Communist Party, Russia’s largest parliamentary opposition group, broadly aligns itself with the Kremlin on major national security and foreign policy issues, including Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

While it occasionally criticises the government over domestic policies, it does not directly challenge president Vladimir Putin’s rule.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday ​he believed Russia may have shared jet-drone technology with its longstanding ally North Korea.

In recent weeks, Russia has sharply increased its use of jet-drones against Ukraine, ⁠which so far has no effective means of countering them other than using combat aircraft.

Earlier in the war, North Korea supplied Russia with millions of artillery shells, and it has since provided ballistic ⁠missiles that Moscow regularly uses ​to ⁠attack Ukrainian cities.

Asked if Russia had shared with North Korea the technology behind its latest generation of jet-powered ⁠drones, Zelensky told journalists: “Yes, of course.”

“They (Russia) are sharing with North ​Korea ⁠all the technologies. I don’t ‌know about the ballistic and etc, but I think, yes, because North Korea helped them with missiles,” he added.

South Korea ‌and Western countries have previously voiced concerns ‌that Pyongyang may be getting help with weapons development from Moscow in return for its help in Ukraine.

Thousands of North Korean soldiers were ⁠sent to Russia to gain combat experience in the war.

Ukraine’s military ​has again used drones to deliver food and medicines to the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky in southern ⁠Ukraine, foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said on Sunday.

Oleshky, a frontline town on the Dnipro River, which separates Russian and ⁠Ukrainian forces, has ​been ⁠under Russian occupation since 2022.

“For months, Russia has been trying ⁠to isolate Ukrainians in Oleshky from ​the ⁠outside world, even ‌obstructing the delivery of food to people facing severe shortages,” Sybiha said ‌on X.

Ukraine used heavy-lift ‌drones to deliver food and medicines to Oleshky at the end of September.

Sybiha ⁠said that the latest delivery consisted of nearly 400 packages containing almost 4 metric tons of food and medicine.

Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets told Ukrainian media last month ‌that Russia had not agreed ​to Ukrainian proposals to allow ‌civilians to evacuate ⁠from Oleshky.

The Kremlin said ⁠that Oleshky had critical problems with food and ‌medicine supplies, ​but that Russia’s ‌military was working to ​resolve them.

German chancellor Friedrich Merz announced a new aid package for Ukraine worth more than €1.3bn (£1.1bn) during a visit to Kyiv on Sunday, as Russia escalated its attacks on Ukrainian cities.

About €1bn (£84m) of the package is military aid, including long-range strike weapons, combat drones and satellite technology, “so that Ukraine can also target Russian launch pads,” Merz said at a news conference.

Germany is also providing some €350m (£296m) in energy aid ahead of winter for generators, substations and repair work, he said.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said the two countries also signed 15 agreements worth more than €8.5bn (£7.2bn), mostly covering security cooperation, weapons production and procurement, as well as a deal to expand their joint counter-drone efforts.

“This is weaponry that will help right now,” Zelensky wrote on X, adding they also discussed the need for air defence, which he called “key” at this time.

A Russian ⁠air strike on ⁠Kharkiv, Ukraine’s ​second-biggest ⁠city, ⁠killed ​one ⁠person ‌and injured another ‌six, mayor ‌Ihor ⁠Terekhov said on Telegram late ‌on Sunday.

Terekhov said an administrative building and vehicles were burning following the attack.

At least 10 multi-story residential buildings were damaged in the attack, and search and rescue operations are ongoing.

Russia has reportedly launched Banderol missiles, part of its growing use of jet-powered loitering munitions that combine characteristics of cruise missiles and drones.

The Banderol’s speed, manoeuvrability and ability to fly at low altitudes can make it difficult for Ukrainian air defences to detect and intercept.

Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha has publicly thanked European Union Ambassador Katarína Mathernová and the EU Delegation on Sunday after European diplomats refused Russian demands to evacuate the capital.

Moscow had issued warnings advising foreign diplomats and international missions to leave Kyiv amid escalating air strikes.

Sybiha declared that the continued presence of EU missions “speaks louder than Russian threats” and demonstrates unwavering solidarity with Ukraine.

Ambassador Mathernová confirmed that all 25 EU member state embassies currently operating in Kyiv will remain open. She cautioned Moscow against violating international law, emphasising that Russia “would be wise not to test the limits” of the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations.

Ukrainian and German energy ministers have met to discuss importing liquefied natural gas through German terminal infrastructure.

The talks focused on routing LNG shipments to Ukraine while opening Ukraine’s vast underground storage facilities to European energy companies to help allies buffer against seasonal price shocks as the conflict is widely expected to intensify ahead of winter.

The energy discussions coincide with German chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit to Kyiv, where Berlin pledged €350 million specifically designated for emergency repair work on Ukraine’s strike-damaged energy grid.

Bosnians have now cast ballots in general elections overshadowed by threats from pro-Moscow Serb nationalist Milorad Dodik to dismantle the state.

Despite being legally barred from office, Dodik – who met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow just days before the vote – remains the central figure of the campaign.

Appearing alongside Russia’s ambassador at his final rally in Banja Luka, Dodik declared Bosnia “dead” and an “impossible country,” signalling continued Kremlin-backed pushback against the nation’s EU and NATO ambitions.

Russian alignment remains a flashpoint as Moscow seeks to maintain a strategic foothold in southeastern Europe through the Serb-majority Republika Srpska.

Turnout stood at just 27 percent by mid-afternoon amid voter disillusionment and technical delays, with Western officials watching closely for potential post-election instability.

Ukrainian president Zelensky has stated he believes Russia is transferring advanced jet-powered drone technology to North Korea in exchange for artillery, missiles, and troops.

Moscow has sharply escalated its use of high-speed jet drones against Ukrainian cities in recent weeks, leaving Kyiv struggling to counter the weapons without scrambling combat aircraft.

Asked if Moscow was sharing the underlying technology with Pyongyang, Zelensky confirmed that Russia is providing North Korea with military technologies across multiple domains as payback for its extensive wartime support.

The remarks come amid a growing diplomatic dispute between Kyiv and South Korea.

South Korean president Lee Jae-myung threatened retaliatory measures against Ukraine on Friday, demanding an apology after Zelensky publicly revealed that Ukraine transferred two captured North Korean prisoners of war to Seoul.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz unveiled a €1 billion military aid package and €350 million in energy repairs during a surprise visit to Kyiv, as Russian drone strikes rattled the Ukrainian capital on Sunday.

The unannounced visit saw air-raid sirens blare as Merz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy toured damaged sites, including the Northern Bridge across the Dnipro River.

German defence and energy executives accompanying Merz signed 16 deals worth €6.5 billion, including contracts for IRIS-T air defence missiles, radar systems, and Quantum Systems SPYS jet-powered drone interceptors.

Merz called on Vladimir Putin to end the “senseless war,” declaring that Germany “will not be intimidated” and framing Ukraine’s defence as vital to European security.