Ukraine-Russia war latest: Row breaks out between Kyiv and key ally over captured North Korean soldiers

Ukraine strikes two ships linked to Russia in Black Sea, Zelensky saysSouth Korea has vowed to escalate its row with Ukraine over the announcement of two North Korean POWs’ transfer to Seoul, saying the country’s “dignity” is at stake. Ukraine has sought to play down the row as a “diplomatic misunderstanding”, but on Friday South Korean president Lee Jae Myung said his country would take “further action” if Kyiv does not apologise and continues to deny the existence of a confidentiality agreement related to the POWs. Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky revealed at the UN General Assembly last week that the prisoners had been sent to South Korea, angering Seoul which expected the transfer to remain secret. They were the first two North Koreans captured alive from a contingent sent to join Vladimir Putin’s invasion forces. Earlier, Putin said Russia will use all the weapons at their disposal if the country is attacked by Europe in his latest sabre-rattling threat. The Russian president reiterated Moscow's long-held position that Russia is not planning to attack European countries, but said it would respond to any attacks with all its arsenal.Ukraine wants to heal 'misunderstanding' with South KoreaUkraine is working to heal a spat with South Korea over Kyiv's publicly announced transfer of two North Korean servicemen taken prisoner in the war against Russia.Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky revealed while he was addressing the UN General Assembly last week that the prisoners had been sent to South Korea, angering Seoul which expected the transfer to remain secret.Ukrainian Foreign minister Andrii Sybiha told journalists late on Thursday: "I would not like to call this an incident. Let's say, it's a diplomatic misunderstanding," according to a report run by the news website nv.ua and other media."I really hope that this situation ​will ⁠be resolved in the very ‌near future and we are working on it. For us, South Korea is an important country. And I really ‌hope for momentum, continuation, and concrete results that ‌we are truly achieving with them."Ukraine captured the two North Koreans in January 2025, the first to be captured alive since Pyongyang entered the war in 2024 assisting Russia. North Korea ‌has signed a strategic partnership ⁠agreement with Russia, including a mutual defence pact, and ⁠dispatched an estimated 14,000 troops to help Moscow evict Ukrainian troops from its Kursk ‌region.Zelensky this week said more than 8,000 North Korean troops remained in Russia and 10,000 were being trained for a future deployment.Adam Withnall2 October 2026 07:00Ukraine attacks industrial facilities in Russia's Volgograd with drones, governor saysUkraine has attacked the Russian city of Volgograd, home to a large oil refinery, with drones targeting industrial facilities, governor Andrei Bocharov said on Telegram on Friday. The drone ‌attack sparked a ⁠fire in an apartment building, injuring one, and was later extinguished, ‌he ​said, without naming ‌the ⁠industrial facilities.Adam Withnall2 October 2026 06:00South Korea threatens to escalate row with Ukraine over POWsSouth Korean president Lee Jae Myung says Seoul will take additional measures if Ukraine continues to deny the existence of a confidentiality agreement related to the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war, and called on Kyiv to acknowledge the agreement and apologise. In a post ‌on X, Lee also expressed grave ⁠regret over Ukraine's response, accusing Kyiv of undermining South Korea's head of state and warning that remarks about ‌an imminent military clash ​between North and ‌South ⁠Korea amounted to invoking ⁠the risk of war ‌on ​the Korean ‌Peninsula.Adam Withnall2 October 2026 05:00Russian air strikes hit Southern Bridge in Kyiv again, says mayorRussian air strikes have again hit the Southern Bridge in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram on Friday. On Thursday, ‌Russian drones smashed into ‌a school in ‌Kyiv and into the ⁠Southern Bridge over the Dnipro River, triggering fires in the capital, as ‌Moscow continues ​its ‌near-daily around-the-clock ⁠strikes on ⁠Ukraine.Adam Withnall2 October 2026 04:00Kanye West’s Russia concerts cancelled after weeks of uncertaintyWriting on the messaging platform Telegram, Moscow-based promoter Say Agency announced that the dates had been scrapped."Friends, it is with sincere regret that we inform you that the Ye concerts in Saint Petersburg on the scheduled dates will not be able to take place," the agency posted.Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 October 2026 03:00Watch: Ukraine strikes two ships linked to Russia in Black Sea, Zelensky saysUkraine strikes two ships linked to Russia in Black Sea, Zelensky saysMaryam Zakir-Hussain2 October 2026 01:00Russia intensifies airstrikes Russia has intensified airstrikes as its overall ‌frontline advances have slowed this year.One person was wounded on Thursday in a Russian attack on a business centre in the Black Sea port city of Odesa, regional officials said. City administration chief Serhiy Lysak said ‌infrastructure had been damaged but gave no further details. Odesa and the surrounding region have been a frequent target of attacks aimed partly at choking Kyiv's export revenues. Russia, ⁠which says it strikes only military targets, reported that it had attacked a data centre in Odesa and a cargo vessel in the nearby port of ‌Chornomorsk. Ukraine has also stepped up attacks on Russia, striking oil refineries and major online retailers to try to undermine Moscow's war effort.One man was killed ​when a Ukrainian drone exploded in the town of Graivoron in Russia's Belgorod region, local authorities said on Thursday.Maryam Zakir-Hussain2 October 2026 00:00Merz warns of more Russian hybrid attacks as he reaffirms support for UkraineChancellor Friedrich Merz warned on Thursday that Germany faced more hybrid attacks from Russia as he pledged to continue support for Ukraine ahead of what is likely to be its harshest winter since the start of Russia's invasion in 2022. German authorities have warned repeatedly that ⁠Russia is conducting a hybrid campaign of drone and cyber attacks, accusing Moscow of being behind an attempted drone attack at Leipzig airport in August."We are preparing for further hybrid attacks, including serious ones," Merz said in a speech marking the award of the 2026 Westphalian Peace Prize to the NATO alliance.Moscow ​has ⁠rejected the accusations from Western governments and intelligence services.Speaking to a forum of Russia experts on Thursday, President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was not about to attack foreign factories that produce weapons for Ukraine but that this was something Russian intelligence services needed to track closely. Merz and his conservatives have been badly weakened by elections in two eastern German states last month in which the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) ‌triumphed.Maryam Zakir-Hussain1 October 2026 23:00Putin says he will use ‘all Russia’s weapons’ against Europe if attacked in chilling threatVladimir Putin has said Russia will use all the weapons at their disposal in response to European aggression. The Russian president reiterated Moscow's long-held position that Russia is not planning to attack European countries, but would respond to any attacks with all its arsenal. “If it comes to a direct attack on the Russian Federation — in this case we mean Kaliningrad, or maybe some other territories — of course, inevitably and immediately the question of Russian Federation using all weapons at the disposal of our country will appear on the agenda,” Putin said.It comes as several Russian embassies in Europe this week issued statements that said Moscow has “information that NATO is preparing (an) air and naval blockade of Kaliningrad and (the) Kaliningrad region.” They accused European leaders of “playing a dangerous game” by saying Russia might attack another country or ramp up a campaign of destabilising attacks with drones and sabotage. Moscow has called the allegations absurd.Maryam Zakir-Hussain1 October 2026 21:23Watch: Ukraine strikes two ships linked to Russia in Black Sea, Zelensky saysUkraine strikes two ships linked to Russia in Black Sea, Zelensky saysDaniel Keane1 October 2026 21:00