Indonesia jails four military officers for acid attack on rights activist

Just nowNathan WilliamsEPAVolodymyr Zelensky speaking earlier this weekUkraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived in the UK for talks with top European allies.The talks - hosted by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in Downing Street - also involve French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.The three Western powers constitute the so-called E3 group and are some of Kyiv's strongest allies. The UK and France lead the "coalition of the willing" initiative to provide security guarantees for Ukraine as part of any future peace process.Sunday's meeting in London comes as US President Donald Trump's focus has shifted to the war with Iran. Back in December, the US pushed Russia and Ukraine to sign up quickly to a plan to end the war - now in its fifth year. Announcing his arrival in the UK on Sunday afternoon in a post on X, Zelensky said the main focus of the leaders' talks would be "our defence in the war, greater co-operation for the security of all of Europe in the area of air defence, and our shared view of diplomatic prospects". "Europe must be part of the negotiations and must be strong," he added. Getty ImagesZelensky, Starmer, Macron and Merz also met in London for talks on the Ukraine war in December last yearEarlier, the Ukrainian leader accused Russia of a "vile" attack after Kyiv officials said a drone had struck a storage facility for spent nuclear fuel near the Chornobyl nuclear plant.There were no injuries and a fire was put out with radiation levels remaining stable.Separately, at least three people were killed in a Russian strike in a village outside Zaporizhzhia in the south of the country, authorities said.Zaporizhzhia has come under relentless Russian attacks recently, with at least two people killed there on Saturday.The Russian strike on Chornobyl "partially destroyed" a spent nuclear fuel storage building, according to Ukraine's state-owned nuclear operator, Enerhoatom.The operator said there were no injuries, and a fire in the building was put out, adding that radiation remained at a normal level.The body also criticised Moscow for what it called a deliberate threat to nuclear safety, in words echoed by Zelensky."Russia deliberately struck this particular nuclear infrastructure facility," Zelensky said in a post on X, describing the building as an "as extremely critical infrastructure facility" and the attack as "vile".Chornobyl - known during the Soviet era as Chernobyl - is the world's worst non-military nuclear disaster. A catastrophic explosion in 1986 sent a plume of radioactive material into the air, triggering a public health emergency across Europe.Last year, a Russian drone hit the protective shelter over its damaged nuclear reactor.ReutersUkraine's Energoatom released an image it said showed damage to a spent nuclear fuel storage facilityOn Saturday, Ukraine targeted St Petersburg and the surrounding area as the city hosted the final day of a major economic forum, in a drone attack described as "unprecedented" by Russian authorities. Days earlier, Kyiv had attacked the outskirts of the same city - some 1,000km (620 miles) from Ukraine - as Russian President Vladimir Putin's flagship forum was getting started, sending a large plume of black smoke over the city's skyline.In the four years since Moscow's invasion began, Ukraine has developed its defence sector, with Kyiv now able to regularly hit targets within Russia.On Friday, Putin rejected a proposal by Zelensky for face-to-face talks on ending the war, saying he did not see any point in meeting the Ukrainian leader.Zelensky sent an open letter calling for a direct negotiations, writing it would be "wrong to simply wait" for the conflict to once again become the focus of US attention.Speaking at the economic forum on Friday, Putin refused the request for a meeting with Zelensky and reiterated his position that a truce would only allow Ukraine to regroup.He said he would end the war only when Russia's goals had bee

A provision in the 2027 draft US defence bill could bind the two countries’ weapons industries closer than ever.A provision in a bill before the United States Congress could tie the American and Israeli militaries far more closely together, deepening their cooperation on weapons research, production and technology.The proposal, titled the “United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative,” appears as Section 224 of the House Armed Services Committee’s version of the fiscal year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the annual US defence policy bill.Recommended Stories list of 2 itemslist 1 of 2Israeli soldiers reach Nabatieh, one of southern Lebanon’s biggest citieslist 2 of 2Two killed, including Palestinian doctor, in Israeli attacks on Gazaend of listThe measure is still at an early stage. The NDAA is passed by Congress each year to set US military policy and authorise defence programmes and spending levels.If enacted, the provision could mark a major change in one of the world’s closest military relationships, shifting the two countries from a partnership centred largely on American military aid towards one in which their defence industries are more deeply intertwined.Section 224 would require the US defence secretary to appoint an “executive agent”: a single official to coordinate military cooperation between the US and Israel.That work would cover joint research and development, the shared production of weapons, and the linking of military systems and data.“What Congress is trying to do now is find different ways of entrenching the relationship so deep in America’s own defence industrial base that it’s impossible to root it out,” Josh Paul, a former US State Department official and founder of the advocacy group A New Policy, said about the controversial provision.“A new section of law in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) would give Israel unprecedented access to American technology and would force the United States military to integrate Israeli defence technologies into our own critical military supply chain, giving Israel incredible leverage over America’s own defence priorities,” he added in a video posted on social media on Friday.The two countries already build missile defence systems together, such as the Iron Dome.The bill would extend their joint work into many more areas of modern warfare, from artificial intelligence (AI) to drones and cyber operations.The provision comes amid turmoil in the Middle East following the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran earlier this year.In February, US and Israeli forces attacked Iran together, triggering five weeks of war; Iran struck back at Israel and at US bases in the Gulf before a ceasefire took hold in April.Israel is also facing genocide allegations in a case brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice, the UN’s top court, over its war on Gaza.Decades of supportThe bill must first clear the House Armed Services Committee, which is due to take it up in early June, and then pass the full House and the Senate.It was proposed by the committee’s Republican chairman, Mike Rogers, and its most senior Democrat, Adam Smith, giving it support from both main parties, even as opinion polls suggest growing opposition among American Democrats and some Republicans to further military support for Israel.The US has supported Israel’s military for decades.Since 2008, US law has required Washington to protect Israel’s “qualitative military edge”, keeping its forces stronger and more advanced than those of any rival in the region, on the grounds that a small country must rely on better weapons rather than greater numbers.Under the current aid deal signed during the administration of former President Barack Obama, Washington provides Israel with about $3.8bn a year in military assistance. The 10-year agreement runs through 2028.Israel is the largest recipient of US foreign aid since 1948, almost all of it now military and worth well over $300

Published On 20 May 2026