Authorities in Russian-annexed Crimea have declared an emergency situation to mitigate the fallout from escalating Ukrainian aerial attacks on the peninsula. The announcement on Friday came amid fuel shortages and power cuts triggered by Ukrainian strikes on logistics chains and oil facilities across Crimea, occupied Ukraine, and southern Russia.
Zelenskyy: Crimea at center of justice policy
Kyiv describes its stepped-up air attacks as fair retribution for Russia's near-daily barrages on Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on social media: "We are doing everything to force Russia to end the war and restore justice. And it is Crimea that is at the centre of this policy of ensuring justice."
Restrictions on fuel and electricity
The Russia-installed governor of Sevastopol said emergency crews worked to ease power cuts but urged residents to use appliances sparingly to avoid overloads. Crimea has suspended fuel sales to private motorists, and Sevastopol introduced restrictions on operating hours for public transport, shops, cafes, and street lights.
Russian air defenses shot down 660 Ukrainian drones overnight, including over Moscow and Crimea, the defense ministry said on Friday—one of the highest figures since the war began. Zelenskyy added: "Today, Ukraine is depriving Russia of this launchpad and drawing a line under its attempts to normalise war."
NATO warns of possible Russian provocation
Two countries on NATO's eastern flank warned that Russia is preparing a possible provocation in the Baltic states or Poland to test the alliance's cohesion, according to Dan Sabbagh. Western sources also fear danger ahead as the Kremlin faces pressure from Ukraine's long-range attacks on targets near Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Russian drone strikes kill three in Ukraine
A Russian drone strike on Friday killed two passengers aboard a minibus in Dnipropetrovsk region and one person in Sumy region, officials said. Dnipropetrovsk's governor reported two dead and 12 injured, including two children, in Nikopol. Sumy's governor said a drone strike killed a man in a village outside the regional center.
France seizes oil tanker from Russia's shadow fleet
An oil tanker suspected of being part of Russia's shadow fleet was taken to waters near Marseille on Friday, a day after France's navy seized it near Sicily. The vessel, the Deliver, is one of nine ships seized across Europe since 2026, all thought to have been used by Russia to evade western sanctions. The Russian embassy in France called the seizure "piracy."
Ukraine to build domestic AI computing capacity
Ukraine plans to build domestic computing capacity for artificial intelligence with Kyivstar, the company said on Friday. Kyivstar signed a memorandum of understanding with the economy ministry at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdansk. Parent company VEON will provide financial backing for a first phase needing at least 3-5 megawatts of capacity and tens of millions of dollars. CEO Oleksandr Komarov told Reuters: "The biggest consumer of Ukrainian AI right now is the military. You cannot run military computing somewhere outside. It is a matter of national security."
Prisoner swap: 160 soldiers exchanged
Ukraine and Russia swapped 160 captured soldiers on Friday, the latest prisoner exchange. Zelenskyy said the Ukrainians had been held since 2022 and posted pictures of them wrapped in Ukraine's flags, smiling and embracing. After the release, Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova said she and Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Lubinets agreed to jointly visit prisoners of war and exchanged lists of soldiers held by both countries, according to Russia's RIA news agency.
Former Russian defense minister Sergei Ivanov dies at 73
Former Russian defense minister Sergei Ivanov, once seen as a possible successor to President Vladimir Putin, has died at 73. Ivanov was a key member of the "siloviki"—strongmen who rose through the KGB ranks and wielded influence after Putin took power. The Kremlin said Putin "expressed his deepest condolences" to Ivanov's family. Ivanov helped shape Russia's post-Soviet security state and framed NATO's expansion as a strategic concern.
