Russia’s Defense Ministry claims that Russian troops have fought their way into the center of a strategically important eastern Ukraine town and raised the Russian flag there after a monthslong battle.

With Russia wearing down Ukraine’s stretched forces and U.S. President Donald Trump pressuring the two sides to end their nearly 3-year-old war, Kyiv and some of its European allies are discussing how that might be achieved in a way that would guarantee Ukraine’s future security.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in remarks published on Friday that he saw no objective signs that Ukraine or the West were ready for peace talks despite all their increasingly loud statements about the need for such talks.

A Bulgarian woman charged with being part of a Russian spy cell operating in the UK has denied knowing that information she gathered would be sent to Russia. Katrin Ivanova, 33, is accused of spying for Russia in a series of elaborate operations in the UK and Europe.

North Korea is likely preparing to send additional troops to Russia after suffering heavy losses in battles against Ukrainian forces, South Korea's military said Friday.

Britain's defense ministry said about 1,000 North Korean soldiers had been killed and about 3,000 more had been wounded fighting against Ukraine.

The Russian Embassy in London said that Russia posed no threat to undersea cables in Britain and other NATO countries, after UK defence minister John Healey accused Moscow of "malign activity" at sea.

Russia says it's withstanding the impact of sanctions. Sweden's finance minister says satellite images show a different story.

A collection of four pictures, allegedly showing former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, has gone viral on social media, claiming to be real images.

Trump in his first days in office has leaned in on the idea that OPEC+, the alliance of oil producing nations, holds the key to ending the war by reducing oil prices.