South Korean intelligence suggests that North Korea could deploy more troops to Russia to fight in the war against Ukraine in July or August while Pyongyang continues to supply arms to Moscow.
The head of the Ukrainian army, Oleksander Sirski, stated that Ukraine halted Russian advances in the northern region of Sumy after weeks of Russian troop advancements and ordered the acceleration of fortification construction in the region.
In the Ukrainian region of Kherson, Russian attacks resulted in one fatality and two injuries.
Russia claimed to have destroyed 50 Ukrainian drones overnight, with nearly half over the Kursk region on the border with Ukraine, three over Moscow, and three over Bryansk.
European Union heads of state and government are discussing sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine at their summit in Brussels, among other topics. Slovakia and Hungary oppose new sanctions on Russia.
The war in Ukraine has been ongoing for over three years with no signs of a peace agreement.
Slovakia and Hungary oppose new sanctions on Russia
Slovakia will not support a new package of European Union sanctions on Russia and will demand a postponement of the vote until Slovak concerns about gas supply after 2027 are addressed, Prime Minister Robert Fico stated on Thursday, as reported by Reuters.
The European Commission proposed on June 10 a new round of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine over three years ago, targeting Moscow's energy revenues, banks, and military industry.
Slovakia and Hungary have opposed the sanctions due to their disagreement with the Commission's proposals to end Russian energy imports by late 2027, which would force the two countries to seek alternatives.
European Union heads of state and government will address sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, among other topics, at their summit in Brussels.
ISW: Russia is preparing for a future conflict with NATO
U.S. President Donald Trump stated that Russia may have territorial ambitions beyond Ukraine, aligning with long-held assessments by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) that Russia is preparing for a future conflict with NATO and setting conditions to justify future aggression against non-NATO states in the former Soviet Union, according to the latest update on the state of the war in Ukraine from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
Erdogan says Trump would join peace talks in Turkey if Putin attends
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, told him he would attend potential peace talks between the leaders of Ukraine and Russia in Turkey if Russian President Vladimir Putin also agreed to participate.
On his return flight from the NATO summit, where he met with Trump for the first time since returning to office, Erdogan said he told the U.S. President that Ankara intends to bring together the leaders of Russia and Ukraine in Turkey for peace talks.
"He (Trump) said, 'if Russian President Vladimir Putin comes to Istanbul or Ankara to seek a solution, then I will also come,'" Erdogan's office told reporters on Thursday. "We will maintain the necessary contacts and, God willing, hold this meeting as soon as possible."
Ukrainian army chief orders acceleration of fortifications near Sumy
Ukrainian army commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky ordered on Thursday to accelerate the construction of fortifications in the Sumy region (northeast), the target of a Russian offensive.
"These are evident tasks that are being carried out, but their execution must be significantly accelerated," Syrsky stated on social media after personally inspecting the works.
Russian troops have been nibbling at the Sumy region for months, whose capital is about twenty kilometers from the Russian border. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated in June that he did not rule out taking the city of Sumy at a time when peace negotiations between the two belligerents are at a standstill.
Zelensky hopes Putin will be brought to justice
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed an agreement with the Council of Europe on Wednesday to establish a special court to prosecute those responsible for the "crime of aggression against Ukraine," while hoping to see his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin brought to justice.
"It will take strong political and judicial courage to ensure that all Russian war criminals are brought to justice, including Putin," Zelensky stated, as reported by AFP.
This is the first time a special court is being created under the auspices of the Council of Europe, which monitors human rights in the continent and to which Ukraine belongs.
Russia was expelled from the Council after its large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A special court aims to prosecute those responsible for serious human rights violations in the context of a specific conflict, as was done for crimes in the former Yugoslav republics or for the genocide of the Tutsis in Rwanda in 1994.