Ukraine-Russia war latest: Kyiv launches one of deepest drone strikes in Russia; US halts weapons shipments

A Ukrainian drone hit an industrial plant in Izhevsk, about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) east of Moscow on Tuesday, in one of the deepest strikes on Russian territory.

Three people were killed and 35 injured, said Alexander Brechalov, head of the Udmurtia region, said. The plant’s workers were evacuated, he added.

The drone struck the Kupol Electromechanical Plant, which produces air defense systems and drones for the Russian military, according to an official with Ukraine’s Security Service, the SBU.

At least two direct hits were recorded on the plant’s buildings, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

Ukraine has for months been using domestically produced long-range drones to strike plants, storage sites and logistical hubs deep inside Russian territory.

In May last year, a Ukrainian drone hit an early-warning radar in the Russian city of Orsk, some 1,800 kilometers (1,120 miles) from the Ukrainian border, Kyiv officials claimed.

Last night, news emerged that a hospital in Ukraine’s southern city of Kherson had been attacked, injuring eight people.

Local authorities said Russia attacked the facility late on Tuesday. “A healthcare facility has been damaged and five patients and three nurses have been injured in the enemy attack,” said the chief of Kherson’s military adminstration, Oleksandr Prokudin.

A 44-year-old worker in the hospital was hospitalised with a shrapnel wound to the chest, Mr Prokudin said.

“Two others, aged 54 and 44, are being treated on an outpatient basis,” he added.

“Four injured patients, two men aged 58 and 60 and two women aged 64 and 57, remain in the medical facility. They have blast injuries, concussion and various shrapnel wounds.

“Another injured person, a 69-year-old woman, received medical treatment but refused hospitalisation.”

German chancellor Friedrich Merz has said it remains an “option” for Berlin to send Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine – but stressed that Germany would “not become a party to the war”.

Speaking to Tagesschau, Mr Merz said: “It has always been clear that, if we supply Taurus missiles, the weapons will be used not by German soldiers but by Ukrainians. The same applies to the other cruise missiles supplied by the United Kingdom or France.”

Training Ukrainian troops on the missile system – which the chancellor said is “extraordinarily sophisticated” – would take at least six months.

He added: “I have also said that, in future, we will no longer discuss publicly what weapons we supply or what we are doing to support Ukrainian soldiers, because I want Putin to have a certain element of uncertainty about our military actions.”

“Only one thing is absolutely clear and I repeat it here: Germany will not become a party to the war.”

As the US halts the shipments of some weapons and munitions to Kyiv over concerns about stockpiles at home, let’s take a look at what the US has been arming Ukraine with over the course of the war.

The Kiel Institute, which runs a database tracking the level of military support to Ukraine since the war began, says Washington has provided more 64 billion euros (£55 billion) in military support.

Since November, the US-made ATACMS missiles have been used by Ukraine in crucial strikes on targets deep inside Russia, with a range of around 190 miles (300 kilometres).

The US has also provided hundreds of Howitzer artillery weapons, more than 20 tanks, alongside anti-aircraft surface-to-air missile systems and multiple rocket launch systems.

US aid has totaled 114.6 billion euros of financial, humanitarian and military donations to Ukraine since the war began. Of military aid, it has provided 64.5 per cent of the support Ukraine has received.

Vladimir Putin told Emmanuel Macron on a phone call yesterday that his decision to invade Ukraine was “a direct consequence of the West’s policy,” which he said had “ignored Russia’s security interests” over the course of years.

Any possible peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine should have a “comprehensive and long-term character” and be based on “new territorial realities,” the Kremlin quoted Putin as saying.

Putin has previously said Ukraine must accept Russia’s annexation of swathes of its territory as part of any peace deal. Macron has said Ukraine alone should decide on whether or not to accept territorial concessions.

During Tuesday’s two-hour call, Macron’s office said, “the president emphasised France’s unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”Macron and Putin aim to continue their discussions on Ukraine and Iran, the French president’s office said.

Macron and Putin held regular discussions around the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which was criticised by some European allies, with Macron also visiting Putin in Russia shortly before the invasion in February 2022. They last spoke on the phone in September of that year.

The halt of some weapons shipments from the US is a blow to Ukraine at a time when Russia has ramped up its attacks, launching its biggest aerial raids of the war so far in recent weeks.

Talks to try and agree a ceasefire between the two sides, efforts championed by US president Donald Trump, have ground to a halt.

To date, the US has provided Ukraine more than $66bn worth of weapons and military assistance since Russia invaded its neighbour in February 2022.

Over the course of the war, the US has routinely pressed for allies to provide air defence systems to Ukraine. But many are reluctant to give up the high-tech systems, particularly countries in Eastern Europe that also feel threatened by Russia.

The US Defense Department did not provide details on what specific weapons were being held back.

“America’s military has never been more ready and more capable,” spokesperson Sean Parnell said, adding that the major tax cut and spending package moving through Congress “ensures that our weapons and defence systems are modernised to protect against 21st century threats for generations to come”.

The pause in shipments of weapons to Ukraine reflects a new set of priorities under president Donald Trump and came after Defense Department officials scrutinised current US stockpiles and raised concerns.

The Pentagon review determined that stocks were too low on some weapons previously pledged, so pending shipments of some items won’t be sent, according to a US official who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide information that has not yet been made public.

“This decision was made to put America’s interests first following a review of our nation’s military support and assistance to other countries across the globe,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement.

“The strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned – just ask Iran.”That was a reference to Trump recently ordering US missile strikes against nuclear sites in Iran.

Russian president Vladimir Putin had a “substantial” phone call with French president Emmanuel Macron on the Iran-Israel conflict and Ukraine, the Kremlin said on Tuesday, the first such exchange between the two leaders since September 2022.

In Paris, Mr Macron’s office said the call lasted two hours and that the French leader had called for a ceasefire in Ukraine and the start of negotiations on ending the conflict.

A French diplomatic source said Mr Macron had talked to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky before and after his call with Putin to brief him on the talks. Macron also talked to US president Donald Trump about the exchange.

The Pentagon has halted some shipments of air defense missiles and other precision munitions to Ukraine over concerns that US stockpiles are too low, two people familiar with the decision said on Tuesday.

The slowing of some weapons shipments promised to Kyiv by former president Joe Biden’s administration came in recent days, they said, adding that air defense interceptors to help knock down Russian drones and projectiles are among the items delayed.

In an email, the Pentagon said it was providing president Donald Trump with options to continue military aid to Ukraine in line with the goal of ending Russia’s war there.

“At the same time, the department is rigorously examining and adapting its approach to achieving this objective while also preserving US forces’ readiness for administration defense priorities,” said Elbridge Colby, the undersecretary for policy.