Trump has engaged Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem as an additional mediator in the peace efforts between Russia and Ukraine. According to sources cited by Ynet, the patriarch will meet with Putin by the end of June. Trump and Theophilos met at the White House on Thursday. Patriarch Theophilos, originally from the Peloponnese region of Greece, is a cousin of former CIA Director George Tenet and previously met with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Theophilos studied theology at the University of Athens and later earned a master’s degree in London.
On the European side, according to the Kiel Institute, European aid to Ukraine is increasingly oriented toward military support, with drones becoming a top priority. Meanwhile, financial and humanitarian aid is declining. In March and April, Germany allocated approximately €4.2 billion in military aid, the United Kingdom €1.3 billion, and Norway approximately €600 million. Japan contributed another €1.1 billion under the ERA mechanism.
The United Kingdom donated approximately 120,000 drones to Ukraine, while Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands allocated hundreds of millions of euros for drone purchases. Overall, aid in this sector reached approximately €1.6 billion in the first months of 2026.
Speaking after an informal meeting of EU defense ministers in Lefkosia, Cyprus, Kaja Kallas noted that EU leaders and ministers are discussing what should be Europe’s main interests in a possible future peace process. Kallas stated in a statement: “Russia is not ready for real peace talks. The EU is preparing the 21st sanctions package.” EU High Representative Kallas said that Europe must continue to apply pressure on Russia, as Moscow is not yet ready for genuine negotiations on a lasting and sustainable peace.
A French Air Force Rafale fighter jet shot down a Ukrainian drone over Latvia for the first time today.
The European Commission is proposing a ban on entry to the EU for all Russian military personnel who participated in the Russian special operation. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made this statement during the presentation of the 21st package of sanctions against Russia. The new sanctions package must be approved by member states in the Council of the EU.
The Netherlands is withdrawing from the British Interflex training program for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, according to a statement from the Netherlands’ Ministry of Defense. The reasons for this decision were not specified. It was noted that the current phase of the operation “has come to an end.” Representatives of the armed forces of 14 countries, including the Netherlands, participated.
Ukraine has learned that 60% of Ukrainians who entered Germany in the last 16 months were men of military age: Berlin is discussing a revision of the rules for granting temporary protection, source: n-tv.
According to German authorities, there are 1.348 million refugees from Ukraine in Germany, including 356,000 men between the ages of 18 and 63. On March 8, 2025, this number was 1.254 million, including 298,000 men. Europe is currently discussing extending the Ukrainian protection program, but excluding men subject to compulsory military service.
On June 8, a Ukrainian Air Force An-26 military transport plane, tail number 45, callsign 09238, took off from Istanbul bound for Lviv. The transfer of Buk-M1 air defense systems from Finland to Ukraine has begun using Ukrainian An-124-100 transport aircraft. On the night of June 5–6, a Kalitta Air Boeing 747-4B5F cargo aircraft, callsign CMB416, tail number N716CK, flew from MacDill (KMCF) to Rzeszow (EPRZ) under a contract with the U.S. Air Mobility Command (AMC) USTRANSCOM. The shipment is being carried out under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) program. An urgent delivery of Phoenix Ghost family attack drones, one of the Pentagon’s most classified defense contracts, is underway for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Ukrainians are concerned about Belarus’ possible entry into the war: “Lukashenko is preparing for war,” former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba is certain, stating that several factors point to it, without specifying which ones. Kuleba said: “All this talk about a turning point in the war and Ukraine now ‘going to the Kremlin’ is nonsense, and this winter we will return to the ‘how to survive the winter’ narrative.”
According to the deputy or the Rada Bezugla: “Russian forces will capture Kostyantynivka this summer if there are no changes in frontline command.” A Ukrainian military officer with the call sign “Muchnoy” also warns that the city’s defenses “could begin to crumble.” According to him, Russian groups are already operating along virtually the entire perimeter of Kostyantynivka, digging into basements, ruins, and abandoned buildings. He emphasizes the infantry shortage and believes the battle for the city is gradually turning into a war of attrition. Currently, according to Ukrainian sources, the city is almost completely encircled.
“If Russia were to declare mobilization, it would be a turning point in the war, and certainly not in our favor. Another turning point would be if Russia used tactical nuclear weapons. This is a realistic possibility,” says Kostenko, Secretary of the Ukrainian Rada’s National Security Commission.
ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, known for issuing an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin, has been temporarily suspended from his post. The decision was made by the Office of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC, based on an investigation conducted by the Office of the United Nations Internal Audience. Allegations of sexual harassment against Khan may have been the basis for the suspension.
The FSB and the FSIN foiled a terrorist attack at a penitentiary in the Ulyanovsk region. Officers identified a convicted supporter of a terrorist organization who “planned to commit murders of penal colony employees during the Muslim holiday.” The FSB clarified that the terrorist attack was planned during the Eid al-Adha celebrations. The statement specified that the man is currently isolated from other inmates and held in a different facility.
And now a look at the frontline, updated at 3:30 PM on June 9. Overnight, Ukrainian forces launched a drone strike on Sevastopol and Crimea, targeting the peninsula’s energy and logistics infrastructure. Ukrainian forces are releasing footage of the new Begemot attack drone, used for strikes on the peninsula (with a declared range of up to 300 km, a speed of up to 200 km/h, and a payload of up to 75 kg). Several drones headed for Moscow and Sochi were shot down. A total of 140 drones were destroyed overnight in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga, Kursk, Oryol, and Tula regions, the Moscow region, Crimea, the Sea of Azov, and the Black Sea.
Russian forces attacked targets in Kharkiv and Chuhuiv. In Kharkiv, the city administration confirmed that a dozen “administrative and industrial buildings” were hit. Ukrainian sources report increased firepower on the Kharkiv-Sumy logistics network.
In the Sumy sector, Shostka District, attack aircraft from the Northern Group of Forces are engaged in an attack against Ukrainian forces with light weapons in Bachivsk. In the Sumy District, Russian forces are advancing in Ivolzhans’ke, Pysarivka, the village of Nova Sich, and surrounding areas.
Images of a powerful air strike have been circulating in the Belgorod Region. Nine people were injured in several Ukrainian drone strikes in the region.
In Kupyansk, Russian forces are infiltrating the southeast of the city in small groups. The Ukrainians are deploying reserves and actively using tactical drones.
In Liman, Russian troops are fighting in the city center and near the Liman train station, with small infantry groups infiltrating throughout the city.
Northeast of Kostyantynivka, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the capture of the village of Molocharka. On the western outskirts of the city, fierce fighting is ongoing for control of multi-story buildings. The clashes are high-intensity.
In the southern area of Dobropillya, Ukrainian counterattacks have been reported near Hryshyne.
In the northern sector of the Dnipropetrovsk region, the Vostok Forces are penetrating deep into Ukrainian defenses northwest of the village of Oleksandrohrad, conducting offensive operations in the wooded area beyond the Vovcha River.
In Zaporizhia Oblast, a significant number of small settlements in frontline areas are experiencing prolonged power outages, as infrastructure is under constant attack by Ukrainian forces.
The Chonhar bridge to Crimea was attacked almost immediately after the governors of Zaporizhia and Kherson oblasts announced the resumption of incoming traffic for passenger vehicles. Ukrainian forces managed to break through the fire of mobile forces. As a result, the bridge from Kherson Oblast was damaged again.
In Kherson Oblast, Ukrainian forces attacked a gas station, resulting in one death.
Graziella Giangiulio
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