Ukraine-Russia war latest: Russia could be ready to attack NATO in three years, Norway warns (2024)

Ukraine's use of Western-supplied weapons to strike targets in Russia will not "contribute to escalation", German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said.

Germany has long opposed lifting the ban on Ukraine's use of Western weapons to target Russia, but changed course last month.

A German government spokesperson told Deutsche Welle on 31 May that Ukraine could use German-supplied weapons to hit legitimate targets in Russia.

Berlin's defence minister Boris Pistorius later clarified that the decision applied to the area around Kharkiv, which has recently become the target of a heavy Russian offensive.

"We are certain that it will not contribute to an escalation because, as Joe Biden has also described, it is only a matter of being able to defend a large city like Kharkiv," Mr Scholz said.

In the past, Chancellor Scholz has cited a fear of escalation as among the principal reasons for limiting Germany's support for Ukraine.

"I think it is clear to everyone that this must be possible. Under international law, this has always been possible anyway," he added.

NATO only has two to three years to prepare before Russia regains its ability to launch a conventional attack on the alliance, Norway's top general has said.

General Eirik Kristoffersen's comments are the latest in a series of warnings from Western leaders and defence officials about the threat from Moscow and the alliance's current lack of preparedness.

"At one point someone said it'll take 10 years, but I think we're back to less than 10 years because of the industrial base that is now running in Russia," General Kristoffersen said.

"It will take some time, which gives us a window now for the next two to three years to rebuild our forces, to rebuild our stocks at the same time as we are supporting Ukraine."

Norway has been a member of NATO since its foundation in 1949.

The Scandinavian nation has increased its defence spending since the beginning of the war in Ukraine and aims to meet the 2% of GDP threshold in 2024, with a further increase of 2.7% of GDP targeted by 2030.

Last week, the US partially lifted restrictions on Ukraine's use of some Western-supplied weapons.

It now means Ukraine can strike inside Russia with US-supplied weapons - but only if the targets are aimed at slowing Moscow's advance in the Kharkiv region.

Ukrainian foreign minister said the move was "not 100% clearance" and came with "some rules that need to be followed".

Speaking at a news conference with his Estonian counterpart, he said Ukraine was hoping to gain more freedom on the use of Western weapons inside Russia.

Ukraine "will continue to work with our allies" on "expanding the scope" of weapon use.

Some of Kyiv's allies have been reluctant to allow Ukraine to strike over the border as they fear this could drag them into a more direct conflict with Russia.

Authorities in Kyiv have denied permission for this year's Kyiv Pride march to be held in the Ukrainian capital's metro system.

It was hoped up to 500 people would attend the event on 16 June.

"In order not to endanger the participants and passengers, and to avoid possible provocations, the city authorities cannot allow the Equality March to take place in the metro," Kyiv's City Hall said.

The metro system doubles as an air raid shelter during Russian attacks.

Authorities said the metro is a "dual-use facility and part of the city's critical infrastructure" and is "always a high-risk area due to limited space, train schedule and high passenger traffic".

Kyiv has not hosted a Pride event since the full-scale invasion began in 2022.

Last year's event was held in Liverpool instead.

Russian officials have claimed they intercepted 20 Ukrainian drones in the southern Kursk region, which borders Ukraine.

Regional governor Alexei Smirnov said Ukrainian forces reportedly targeted four villages in the region using attack drones and helicopters.

No injuries were reported.

The governor of the neighbouring Belgorod region said air defence units had downed "several airborne targets", resulting in some damage to the roofs of several buildings.

Ukrainian authorities have not commented.

Russia's border regions have repeatedly come under attack since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Belgorod borders Ukraine's Kharkiv region, where Russia has launched a spring offensive.

Seven people have been injured in a Russian missile attack on the city of Dnipro.

A one-month-old baby and a 17-year-old boy were among the wounded, governor Serhii Lysak said.

He added that air defence systems had successfully intercepted and downed two drones over the city.

However the debris from the missiles caused damage to civilian infrastructure, with more than a dozen vehicles affected and windows shattered in several houses.

Emergency crews are at the scene.

The city of Nikopol was also attacked with kamikaze drones, Mr Lysak said.

No casualties were reported there.

Air raid alerts were activated in a number of regions overnight, including Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk.

Welcome back to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine.

Before we begin, here is a recap of the key events over the last 24 hours.

• Italy said it will send a second SAMP/T air defence system to Ukraine - the only European-made system that can intercept ballistic missiles;
  
• French police arrested three people after five empty coffins wrapped in French flags with the words "French soldiers from Ukraine" were found near the Eiffel Tower;
• А group of Russian women staged a small but rare protest outside the Russian defence ministry, asking for the return of their relatives from the frontline;
• Russia added several British "establishment figures", journalists and experts to the list of people barred from entering the country;
• Ukraine's grid operator imposed daily energy restrictions across the country after infrastructure was damaged in a series of Russian drone and missile attacks.

Here is how the situation looks on the ground...

Images taken by Reuters photographers on the ground in Russian-occupied Donetsk show houses destroyed by shelling.

Chickens can be seen walking among the ruins of a wooden structure in the village of Rozivka.

Resident Valentina Chernaya, 90, was pictured with her head in her hands near her damaged house and destroyed outbuildings.

Italy will send a second SAMP/Tair defence system to Ukraine - the only European-made system that can intercept ballistic missiles.

Also known as MAMBA, it is a Franco-Italian batterythat can track dozens of targets and intercept 10 at once.

Rome and Paris jointly delivered the first system in 2023, but Ukraine has repeatedly called on partners toprovide more help with air defence as it faces an increasingbarrage of Russian attacks on cities and energy infrastructure.

Italy hasapproved eight support packages to Ukraine since the invasion began.

Its foreign minister said the SAMP/T will be part of aninth package under preparation, but did not give a time framefor delivery.

All shipments have so far been covered by official secrecyand the government has never made public the exact list ofweapons it has sent to Ukraine.