Ukraine-Russia war latest: UK breaks with Trump by refusing to invite Putin to G20 summit

British prime minister Andy Burnham has said that Russian president Vladimir Putin will not be invited to next year’s G20 summit, according to comments reported in The Economist. Mr Burnham said: “No” when asked if the Russian leader would be invited to the event. It marks a break with president Donald Trump, whose secretary of state Marco Rubio said in September that Washington had invited Putin to a G20 meeting in Miami in December. Russia remains a member of the Group of Twenty despite largely becoming a pariah on the world stage following the invasion of Ukraine. It comes as Melania Trump is set to ​host ​representatives from Russia ⁠and ​Ukraine at ​the White House on Thursday. “This achievement marks an unprecedented diplomatic initiative by an American first lady,” the White House said, saying that Trump would deliver remarks on a six-day local ceasefire around the Russian-held town of Oleshky, which she helped mediate. Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the deadly Russian bombing that killed at least 40 people at a school in southeastern Ukraine and said search-and-rescue operations were continuing three days after Moscow dropped nine aerial bombs on the settlement of Komyshuvakha, in Zaporizhzhia region.UK breaks with Trump by refusing to invite Putin to G20 summitBritish prime minister Andy Burnham has said that Russian president Vladimir Putin will not be invited to next year’s G20 summit, according to comments reported in The Economist. Mr Burnham said: “No” when asked if the Russian leader would be invited to the event. It marks a break with president Donald Trump, whose secretary of state Marco Rubio said in September that Washington had invited Putin to a G20 meeting in Miami in December. Russia remains a member of the Group of Twenty despite largely becoming a pariah on the world stage following the invasion of Ukraine. Maira Butt5 November 2026 15:30Canada refuses to play Russian ice hockey teams in protest against Moscow’s war in UkraineCanada has joined a growing group of countries refusing to play Russian ice hockey teams in protest against Moscow’s war in Ukraine.Canadian prime minister Mark Carney said Russian players would not be allowed to compete at next month’s world junior championship in Canada. He said: “While Russia and Belarus are supporting this illegal, unjustified, horrific war in Ukraine, as long as that’s going on, there will be none of those athletes competing for their countries in Canada.”The move follows a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) decision to lift the ban on Russian participation in International Ice Hockey Federation events, arguing that safety concerns “were not supported by sufficient evidence”.The ban had been in place since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Latvia and the Czech Republic have also opposed playing Russian teams.Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha thanked European countries for “refusing to share the ice with Russia”, adding: “If CAS lacks a moral compass, let’s show that hockey still has values”.“Refuse to play against Russia and deny visas to its players. Keep Russia off the ice! A war of aggression and hockey are incompatible,” he said. Maroosha Muzaffar5 November 2026 15:00Zelensky hopes US election outcome will generate more help for UkraineUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in an interview on Wednesday, said he hoped gains by Democrats in the US midterm elections would generate more help for Ukraine in its 4-1/2-year-long war with Russia. Zelensky told Germany's ZDF television he hoped the changes caused by Democrats taking control of both chambers of ⁠Congress next year would be to Kyiv's advantage.Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky (C) arrives for a meeting between German and Ukraine delegations at the presidential residence on November 3, 2026 (Getty)"I am also grateful to the Republicans, but the Democrats speak very clearly about supporting Ukraine and providing assistance to Ukraine," Zelenskiy said in comments provided in German by ZDF before the interview was broadcast. "They speak about renewing the connection ⁠between the United States and Europe... Therefore, there ​is ⁠hope that a balance of power will emerge and that we will receive more support."Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 14:30Zelensky in Spain for Ibero-American summitUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Spain for talks on boosting Kyiv's air defences and top-level meetings during ⁠the Ibero-American summit, the Ukrainian president said on the Telegram messaging app.Zelensky, shown online being greeted as he stepped off his aircraft, also said he planned to speak with US officials in the run-up to planned three-way talks in Abu Dhabi next week, which will include Russia. "Over these coming ​days, ⁠contacts with the American ‌side are also planned," Zelensky wrote. "We're coordinating with our partners to achieve concrete results on ‌security issues and the next steps ‌toward peace."(AFP/Getty)Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 14:00British volunteers cite donor fatigue as they say financial support for Ukraine is decliningPublic willingness to financially support Ukraine is declining after nearly four years of war, with British volunteers citing donor fatigue and other global crises. Graeme Reavley, a 69-year-old from Northumberland has made 21 trips to Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion, delivering 50 vehicles through his independent aid organisation, which has raised around £150,000. “It’s now dragged on for four years, the war. There are a lot of other issues in the world requiring people’s support,” he told the BBC. While he says raising money has become increasingly difficult, donations of humanitarian supplies such as clothing, sleeping bags and fire extinguishers have increased. British paramedic science lecturer Kate Snowdon who recently delivered a vehicle and medical supplies to Lviv warned that ordinary Ukrainians risk being forgotten as public attention shifts elsewhere, urging people to continue supporting the country. “There’s a real concern that everyday people are going to be forgotten in all of this,” she said. Maroosha Muzaffar5 November 2026 13:30Drone attacks in Black Sea pose new challenges to Bulgarian border policeBulgarian border police crews are responding to drone attacks on commercial ships as Russia’s war in Ukraine brings growing danger to shipping off the Black Sea coasts of NATO members Bulgaria and Romania.Over 24 days in October, nine cargo ships and tankers were struck by aerial or naval drones near the Bulgarian and Romanian coastlines. At least 30 sailors on commercial ships were confirmed dead or reported missing.A border police officer guards the shipping tank container stranded on rocks after being washed ashore by rough seas at the rock formation known as The Ships on November 3, 2026 near Sinemorets, Bulgaria (Getty)The attacks have added dangerous rescue missions to the duties of Bulgarian border police, who also combat unauthorized migration and cross-border crime.During one recent operation, a border police patrol helped the crew of the Chelsea 3, a Ukraine-operated cargo ship sailing under a Maltese flag, after it was hit by three drones.All 15 crew members were rescued from the damaged vessel despite strong winds and high waves, said Nikolay Monev, who commands the border police base in Sozopol on Bulgaria’s southern Black Sea coast.“We are capable of an immediate response. Our vessels serve as the first line of response to such situations, including incidents involving drones,” Monev said.The Sozopol base, established in 2013 with EU funding, keeps between two and five vessels on active duty at all times. (AFP/Getty)Patrol operations are supported by coastal surveillance stations equipped with radar, thermal imaging and daylight cameras.Throughout the war, Russia has repeatedly bombarded Ukraine’s Black Sea and Danube River ports.Some NATO members wonder if Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking escalation to test their support for Ukraine.Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 13:00Ukrainian drone attack kills three in Russia's border Belgorod regionA Ukrainian drone attack killed three members of the same family, including a child, on Wednesday in Russia's border Belgorod region, officials said. The region's general headquarters ‌said the ‌drone struck a minibus ⁠in which the three people, including an eight-year-old child, were traveling.Belgorod ‌region ​is ‌a frequent ⁠target of ⁠Ukrainian forces.Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 12:30Death toll from Russian strike on Ukrainian aid centre reaches 42The death toll from a Russian bombing of an aid distribution point in Ukraine's southeastern Zaporizhzhia region on Monday has risen to 42, police said on Thursday, making it one of the deadliest strikes on civilians this year. Zaporizhzhia police said on the Telegram ⁠messaging app that up ​to ⁠33 people remained buried beneath the rubble in the village of ⁠Komyshuvakha, and that rescue work and ​efforts ⁠to identify the bodies ‌were continuing.(Reuters)On Wednesday, Ivan Fedorov, co-head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Defense Council, had said 59 people were missing. Bodycam ‌footage from one of the police officers killed, which Reuters verified, showed the moments before ⁠a second Russian strike hit, destroying a shelter where residents were hiding after a radio warning.Ukraine's national police said the strikes included a 3-ton FAB glide bomb, a weapon that defence intelligence websites say carries around 1.4 tons of explosives. Russia's Defence Ministry said the ‌attack targeted Ukrainian military ⁠units around Komyshuvakha and two other ⁠settlements, and that up to 25 Ukrainian servicemen ‌were killed.Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 12:00Putin will not be invited to next year's ⁠G20 summit in Britain, Burnham saysBritish prime minister Andy Burnham said Russian president Vladimir Putin would not be invited to next year's ⁠G20 summit in Britain, The Economist newspaper reported on Thursday.When asked by The Economist if Putin would be invited, Burnham said: "No." Burnham's office ⁠did not immediately respond to a request for comment.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in September that Washington had invited Putin to a G20 meeting in Miami in December, saying it would provide an opportunity for him to engage with President Donald Trump and other world leaders. Russia remains a member of the G20 despite Western efforts to isolate it following its invasion of Ukraine. Leaders of host nations traditionally invite all members of ‌the bloc to attend its ​annual summit.Next year's annual G20 summit will be held in November in the city of Manchester, the centre of a region in northwestern England where Burnham was mayor.Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 11:52Seven killed in attacks on buses in Ukraine's Luhansk regionSeven people were killed in Russian-controlled Ukraine's Luhansk region after two separate attacks on buses, Russian-installed governor Leonid Pasechnik said on MAX messenger on Thursday. Fourteen people were injured, including two boys, ‌aged ​15 and ‌17, ⁠he added.Rituparna Chatterjee5 November 2026 11:44