Notes and Essays -- John Brown

  President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to London to meet with the leaders of Britain, Germany and France, whom he said could be negotiators in talks with Russia. Listen · 5:21 min Share full article Volodymyr Zelensky, in a black shirt stands behind a white lectern with two microphones. A blue and yellow flag and text are on the podium. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine this month in Kyiv, the country’s capital.Credit...Tetiana Dzhafarova/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Constant Méheut By Constant Méheut June 7, 2026, 11:20 a.m. ET President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine arrived on Sunday afternoon in London for talks with the leaders of Britain, Germany and France as Europe considers taking a more active role in peace talks with Russia after more than a year of unsuccessful U.S. mediation. Ukraine and its European allies see a new opening to revive talks that have stalled as Moscow made uncompromising territorial demands and Washington shifted its focus to the war...

Ukraine’s deadly strikes are bringing the war home to Russians, and discontent is bubbling up By Zahra Ullah and Ana Archen, CNN World Zelenograd and Khimki, Russia — When Elena Vladimirovna woke up around 4 a.m. to the sound of loud buzzing over her Moscow region apartment, she looked out of the window to see multiple drones overhead.   The noise quickly faded, and she thought the danger had passed. But then came a loud bang from close by. “Below us, under the balcony, there is a canopy like a ledge. The drone fell on this canopy, and then it burst into flames, black smoke started coming,” she recalled. A room in her fifth-floor apartment caught fire. The 56-year-old mother-of-two, who preferred not to give CNN her full name, said that she and one of her sons rushed towards the blaze with buckets and basins of water. But when they heard an explosion, they realized they should grab the dog and flee. Her building in Zelenograd was just one of many hit in a mass wave of Ukrainian ...

The Kyiv Independent   Sunday, June 7  Ukrainian soldiers and civilians take part in a Dragon Boat Veterans racing competition in Kyiv on June 6, 2026. Dragon Boat racing, which traces its origins to ancient China, is conducted to help injured service members and military veterans regain physical fitness, mental well-being, and a sense of community. (Tetiana Dzhafarova/ AFP via Getty Images)  Crimea oil depot reportedly struck in Ukrainian attack. An oil depot was struck in an aerial attack on the town of Yedi Quyu in Russian-occupied Crimea early on June 7, social media channels reported. Ukraine's drones take aerial control over part of land route to Russian-occupied Crimea, military says. Ukraine's 3rd Special Operations Forces Regiment said its drones are capable of targeting Russian equipment and logistics along the Melitopol — Chonhar route in Ukraine's south. Pro-Ukrainian partisans sabotage railway infrastructure in Russian city of Voronezh, Atesh group clai...

It was the second such attack in days and came just hours after President Vladimir V. Putin spoke at an economic forum in the city. President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia spoke Friday at a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Credit... Anastasia Barashkova/Reuters By Neil MacFarquhar The New York Times ,  June 6, 2026, 6:01 p.m. ET see also Ukraine hit a Russian military base and other targets near St. Petersburg with a barrage of long-range drones early Saturday, just hours after President Vladimir V. Putin, addressing an important annual economic forum in the city, rejected a peace overture by his Ukrainian counterpart. The Russian authorities called the attack “unprecedented,” with Gov. Aleksandr Drozdenko of the Leningrad region around the city announcing that more than 140 drones had been shot down. The attack ignited a fire at an unspecified military facility, causing “insignificant” damage and the evacuation of some residents, he said. In an unusual mo...

The attacks came hours after a speech by Putin in the city rejecting Ukraine’s calls for peace By James Marson Follow June 6, 2026 5:14 am ET; original article contains links The Wall Street Journal Smoke rises over St. Petersburg following a previous wave of Ukrainian drone strikes earlier this week.   Reuters Quick Summary --Ukraine launched a mass drone attack on St. Petersburg after Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected peace talks. --The attacks hit Russian naval arsenals and a naval base in Kronstadt, causing infrastructure damage and injuries. --Russia claimed it downed 376 Ukrainian drones, while Ukraine said it downed 249 of 272 Russian drones. --This summary was generated with AI and reviewed by an editor. Ukraine launched a mass drone attack on St. Petersburg a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a speech there rejecting a call for peace from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The attacks hit Russian naval arsenals and a naval base in the town of Kr...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Uppsala, Sweden, May 28, 2026.  Christine Olsson/TT News Agency/Reuters By experts and staff Published June 5, 2026 1:56 p.m. https://www.cfr.org/articles/a-turning-point-in-ukraine Michael Froman CFR Expert President, Council on Foreign Relations Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Uppsala, Sweden, May 28, 2026.  Michael Froman CFR Expert President, Council on Foreign Relations   This week, the U.S. House of Representatives acted contrary to the wishes of its leadership and President Donald Trump to pass legislation providing support for Ukraine. And yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy published an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin calling for a meeting between the two leaders and a full ceasefire during subsequent peace negotiati...