Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky says Putin preparing to bring 30,000 more North Korean troops into battle

Firefighters tackle blaze after Russian troops strike petrol station in Ukraine's Sumy regionVladimir Putin is looking to bring an additional 30,000 North Korean troops in Russia’s war on Ukraine, claimed Volodymyr Zelensky."Since June, preparations have been under way in Russia’s Voronezh region to receive them,” the Ukrainian president said in a nightly address on Saturday without offering evidence.This comes as Kyiv came under attack on Sunday. According to Ukraine’s Air Force, Russia is targeting the city with ballistic missiles.Kazakhstan's president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine might be reached if ⁠the sides froze the conflict and resumed negotiations.Speaking alongside Russian president Vladimir Putin at a Russia-Kazakhstan forum in the Siberian city of Omsk, Tokayev praised Putin's "utmost diplomatic flexibility”.Earlier, twelve people were killed, including five children, in an overnight drone attack ⁠on a holiday camp in a Russian-held part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, Russian-installed local authorities said on Saturday, accusing Ukraine of deliberately attacking civilians. Fire reported overnight at Russia's Engels air base – reportA fire was from reported Russia's Engels-2 military airfield in Saratov Oblast overnight, according to the Kyiv Independent.Eyewitnesses reported a large fire at the air base and published footage of smoke and flames at the site, which is home to Russia's strategic aircraft, including the Tu-95 long-range bomber, the news outlet said. Namita Singh26 July 2026 07:00Putin preparing to send more Russians to war, says ZelenskyVolodymyr Zelensky warned, citing intelligence reports, Vladimir Putin is "preparing the conditions for expanding mobilisation" as Russian losses mount on the battlefield.The Ukrainian president said in his evening address Moscow enlisted 221,000 people into the Russian military thus far in 2026, while sustaining nearly 225,500 losses among Russian soldiers, including 131,000 killed and almost 93,000 wounded this year alone, the Kyiv Independent reported.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy looks on during the G7 Leaders' Summit in Kananaskis, in Alberta, Canada, 17 June 2025 (Reuters)"A significant share of those wounds are severe, as frontline medical care in Russia is catastrophically poor," Zelensky said. Namita Singh26 July 2026 06:3012 dead in drone ‌attack on holiday camp in Ukraine's ZaporizhzhiaTwelve people were killed, including five children, in an overnight drone ‌attack on a holiday camp in a Russian-held part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, Russian-installed local authorities said on Saturday, accusing Ukraine of deliberately attacking civilians.Kyiv did ​not immediately respond to a request for comment.Both Russia ​and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in the war launched ⁠by Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.Firefighters work at the site of the postal distribution centre of Nova Post company, hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, 25 July 2026 (Reuters)Nineteen people were wounded ​in the attack on the resort area of Kyrylivka, located on ​the coast of the Sea of Azov near the town of Melitopol, said Russian-appointed governor Yevgeny Balitsky.Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Ukrainian drones carried out ​the attack on "sleeping people" at the camp. She denounced "inhuman crimes", ​also referring to an attack on a factory in Russia's Kirov region on ‌Thursday ⁠which killed six people.A video posted online of the holiday camp showed shattered buildings, burned-out cars and a pile of rubble next to a swimming pool.Balitsky said crews from Russia's Emergencies Ministry ​had extracted two ​survivors, including a ⁠child, and recovered another body from the rubble. He added that rescue operations had been completed."The ​enemy saw and understood who it was targeting," ​he said ⁠on the Telegram messaging app. Namita Singh26 July 2026 06:00Tehran summons Ukraine diplomats over Caspian Sea attackIran's foreign ministry condemned on Saturday a Ukrainian attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the ​Caspian Sea, saying it resulted in an explosion that killed ‌one sailor and injured another.Throughout the war, Kyiv has had to counter Iranian-designed drones deployed by Moscow. Kyiv has offered its drone interception expertise to countries in ​the Middle East that have suffered strikes from Iran.Tehran described the ​attack on its vessel as an act of aggression and ⁠said it would defend its national interests and security, while accusing Kyiv ​of seeking to expand the war in Ukraine.The Iranian foreign ministry summoned ​Ukraine's chargé d'affaires in Tehran to convey its protest over what it described as a "hostile and criminal" attack, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported.The Iranian denunciation coincided with comments ​by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Kyiv had noted Russia was passing ​on its satellite observations in the Middle East to Iran to enable it to direct ‌strikes ⁠in the region. Namita Singh26 July 2026 05:26Recap: Eleven people killed in attacks on holiday campsEleven people have been killed in attacks on holiday camps in the partly Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region, the Russian-installed ​local authorities said on Saturday.The strikes followed a major Russian attack on Friday near Kyiv that killed at least 10 people and wounded around 100 others.Four children were among 11 people killed in the attack on the resorts in Zaporizhzhia, Yevgeny Balitsky, the Kremlin-installed regional head, said, adding that 16 others were wounded.Rebecca Whittaker26 July 2026 03:00Romania shoots down suspected Shahed drone in its airspace for first timeRomania shot down a foreign drone in its airspace on Friday in the first interception of its kind, amid growing concern over UAVs straying into Nato territory.An F-16 fighter jet shot down the drone near the town of Padina, in the east, at around 11am after it entered the country’s airspace, officials said, adding that an investigation was underway.Read more here: Rebecca Whittaker26 July 2026 02:00Watch: Wildberries: Huge fires as Zelensky launches new attacks on Russian warehousesWildberries: Huge fires as Zelensky launches new attacks on Russian warehousesRebecca Whittaker26 July 2026 01:00Ukraine’s petrol stations are the latest target for Putin’s drones: ‘When I see something... I run for my life’With Ukraine’s petrol stations a key target for Russian drones, customers are advised to spend no more than 10 minutes filling up. Those working on these deadly forecourts tell Harry Stourton in Pavlohrad, eastern Ukraine, how they take their lives in their hands every day they go to work.Read more here:Ukraine’s petrol stations are the latest target for Putin’s dronesWith Ukraine’s petrol stations a key target for Russian drones, customers are advised to spend no more than 10 minutes filling up. Those working on these deadly forecourts tell Harry Stourton in Pavlohrad, eastern Ukraine, how they take their lives in their hands every day they go to workRebecca Whittaker26 July 2026 00:00Recap: Romania shoots down second drone in two daysRomania’s defense ministry said its forces had “safely shot down” a drone that breached its airspace in an “unpopulated area” near the Ukrainian border.The drone was “shot down by a Romanian pilot from an F-16 aircraft,” President Nicușor Dan said in a post on Facebook.It came after a drone was shot down around Padina, northeast of the Romanian capital, Bucharest, on Friday.Rebecca Whittaker25 July 2026 23:00Watch: Firefighters tackle blaze after Russian troops strike petrol station in Ukraine's Sumy regionFirefighters tackle blaze after Russian troops strike petrol station in Ukraine's Sumy regionRebecca Whittaker25 July 2026 22:00