Ukraine is edging ahead in its battle with Russia as the war moves into its fifth summer.
In money, men, drones and diplomacy, Ukraine is capitalising on the momentum as cracks appear in the Russian war effort, on and off the battlefield.
With money and equipment pouring in, including a loan of €90bn (£78bn) from the EU ratified last week, an agreement for Britain to supply 120,000 drones, successful strikes on Russian energy sites deep inside the country, and Ukraine ploughing ahead in its world-leading drone warfare capabilities, Kyiv is driving Vladimir Putin’s forces to fight on its terms.
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CRIME
Jeffrey Donaldson sex offences trial continues
Jeffrey Donaldson stepped down as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) earlier this year (Photo: Lorraine O’Sullivan/Reuters)
A woman has described the moment she alleges she was raped as a child by former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson.
What the court heard
The complainant said she heard Donaldson’s “heavy breathing” during the alleged sexual assault.
A police interview with the second alleged victim in Donaldson’s sexual offences trial was played at Newry Crown Court.
The complainant said he had put his hands down her underwear, pulled her legs apart and then sexually assaulted her. She said a second incident occurred when she was slightly older when Donaldson touched her breasts.
NEWS
1 min read
What has Donaldson said?
The ex-MP, 63, has pleaded not guilty to 18 alleged offences.
The charges span a time period between 1985 and 2008 involving two alleged victims. The trial continues.
Sir Tony Blair urged DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson to return to power sharing at the Northern Ireland Assembly (Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire)
NEWS
3 min read
What the alleged victim said
I remember I couldn’t tell anybody, I remember telling my imaginary friend.
Asked by a police officer if there were other incidents, the alleged victim said she remembered “his hands down my pants a lot”. She said she was in primary school when the first incident occurred.
Caption: Sir Jeffrey Donaldson arrives at Newry Crown Court, where he and his wife Lady Eleanor Donaldson are accused of historical sexual offences. Picture date: Tuesday May 26, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Liam McBurney/PA Wire
Photographer: Liam McBurney
Provider: Liam McBurney/PA Wire
Source: PA
Copyright: PA Wire
The complainant said that his wife, Eleanor Donaldson, had witnessed part of the incident and walked away. Mrs Donaldson, from Dublinhill Road, Dromore, Co Down, denies several charges of aiding and abetting her husband’s alleged offending.
MONEY
How a new prime minister could affect your mortgage
A change in prime minister could affect mortgage rates, but probably not in the direct way many borrowers might assume, an expert has said.
How a prime minister could affect mortgages
Nick Mendes, of mortgage broker John Charcol, said politics only really matters for mortgages when it changes what markets think about borrowing, inflation or the credibility of the Government’s economic plan. These can change swap rates and, therefore, lender funding costs.
Money Clinic
3 min read
PROPERTY AND MORTGAGES
4 min read
The expert view
A prime minister can change, but if markets believe the broad fiscal direction is the same, the impact on mortgage pricing may be limited. If investors start to think a new government would borrow more, loosen fiscal policy, or make inflation harder to control, gilt yields can move higher. Swap rates can then follow.
NICK MENDES
Caption: Greater Manchester Mayor and Labour candidate Andy Burnham looks on as he meets residents impacted by flooding in the Makerfield constituency, where he is a candidate in the by-election, at the Platt Bridge Community Centre in Wigan, Britain, June 2, 2026 REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja
Photographer: Temilade Adelaja
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Source: REUTERS
SPORT
Southampton boss posts apology video after ‘Spygate’ scandal
Caption: SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – MAY 12: Head Coach Tonda Eckert of Southampton during the Sky Bet Championship Play Off Semi Final Second Leg match between Southampton and Middlesbrough at St Mary’s Stadium on May 12, 2026 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Robin Jones/Getty Images)
Photographer: Robin Jones
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe
Copyright: 2026 Robin Jones
Southampton head coach Tonda Eckert has posted an apology video after the club’s “Spygate” scandal.
The club was thrown out of the play-off final last month after admitting to sending a young intern to spy on a Middlesbrough training session.
What he said
For everything that has happened, I do want to apologise and I hold my hand up because as head coach I am responsible. I am responsible for everything that has happened at this football club.
He said he wanted to provide “context” by explaining that spying was common in other countries, though it did not “excuse anything that we have done”.
What happened to the club?
The scandal cost the club a shot at Premier League promotion and the near £200m windfall that brings. The EFL said the club was found guilty of a “deplorable” act of putting pressure on the junior member of staff to spy on Boro. The governing body said Eckert authorised the spying.
FOOTBALL
3 min read
FOOTBALL
2 min read
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SCIENCE
Paralympian could become first disabled person to live in space
Caption: Britain’s John McFall poses after being appointed the first astronaut recruit with a physical disability, during a ceremony to unveil the European Space Agency new class of career astronauts in Paris on November 23, 2022. – McFall works as a trauma and orthopaedic specialist in the south of England, and will join a separate “parastronaut” programme. His leg was amputated after a motorcycle accident at the age of 18 and he went on to represent the UK as a Paralympic sprinter. (Photo by Jo??l SAGET / AFP) (Photo by JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: JOEL SAGET
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Paralympian and NHS surgeon John McFall could become the first physically disabled astronaut to reach orbit.
How McFall could end up in space
McFall, who lost his leg in a motorcycle accident when he was 19, was chosen by the European Space Agency in 2022 for a study on physically disabled astronauts. The UK Space Agency will be able to secure sponsorships to fund a spaceflight for him thanks to an agreement between the Government and US space firm Vast.
FILM
7 min read
Analysis
4 min read
What McFall says
My kids are only excited because, apparently, I promised if I go to space, they get a dog. I can’t renege on it now. It’s a little bit difficult.
Caption: Undated handout photo issued by the European Space Agency (ESA) of John McFall who will travel to Germany later this week to begin feasibility studies at the European Astronaut Centre. Issue date: Monday June 19, 2023. PA Photo. The former NHS surgeon joined the latest European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut cohort last year after a rigorous selection process and record UK Space Agency investment into the ESA. He told the PA news agency: “I’m excited about learning and I’m excited about exploring all the science around what we’re going to do”. See PA story SCIENCE Parastronaut. Photo credit should read: ESA/PA Wire
NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: ESA
Provider: PA
Source: PA
Copyright: PA
PENSIONS
What to know about inheritance tax changes for pensions
Caption: House Model on Top of Stack of Coins
Photographer: seng kui Lim / 500px
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Source: 500px
The way inheritance tax applies to pensions is changing from next year.
Here is what we know so far about the rules coming in from April 2027.
What’s changing?
From 6 April 2027, most unused pension funds and pension death benefits will be brought within the value of the estate of someone who has died for inheritance tax purposes.
Current legislation does not consider most pension funds for the tax.
Personal representatives will be responsible for taking “reasonable steps” to identify the deceased person’s pension savings, work out their value and pay tax on them.
Personal representatives are those appointed to settle the affairs of someone who has died.
Potential headache for families
Personal representatives will need to scan through the person’s records and bank accounts, but may also need to contact pension companies and insurance schemes to notify them of the death and request information, Sky News reported. HMRC has not said what “reasonable steps” would be, and solicitors have warned that families often face fragmented records, historic workplace schemes, multiple providers, and online accounts that are password-protected.
Big Read
6 min read
LIFESTYLE
5 min read
HEALTH
How yoga can reduce anxiety in cancer patients
Woman plus size practicing yoga at home in living room – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Yoga can lower emotional distress, anxiety, fatigue and insomnia in people living with cancer, a clinical trial has found.
Up to 95 per cent of cancer survivors struggle with sleep disturbances or insomnia at some point during or after their treatment, and more than half experience mood disturbances, anxiety or fatigue.
What did the study find?
The first clinical trial of its kind has shown that regular gentle hatha and restorative yoga can help improve those side-effects, without medication, The Guardian reported.
204 participants were randomly assigned to receive standard survivorship care, which includes maintenance therapy, follow-up visits and monitoring for side-effects.
The other 206 participants received standard survivorship care and took part in Yoga for Cancer Survivors, a four-week programme using 18 gentle hatha and restorative yoga poses, breathing exercises and mindfulness.
Compared with the standard care participants, yoga participants experienced less overall mood disturbance, anxiety and fatigue, the study by the University of Rochester found.
It’s an important advance because it offers survivors, who are likely already managing multiple medications, a non-pharmaceutical solution for reducing four different side-effects at once.
Fumiko Chino, cancer researcher
Senior woman doing yoga in living room – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
FOOD AND DRINK
The UPFs the
health experts eat
In the UK, 50 per cent of our daily energy comes from ultra-processed sources, rather than fresh, minimally processed food.
This has been blamed as one of the reasons for the nation’s poor health and high rates of obesity. While all UPFs get a bad reputation, there are some that are better than others.
We asked the health experts which UPFs they include in their diets.
The UPFs the health experts buy
Sausages
Dietitian Aisling Pigott has sausages once a week, choosing the vegan or high-meat versions.
Orange squash
Priya Tew buys no-added sugar squash to help her children drink more water.
Lentil crisps
Nutritionist Jenna Hope has these as an alternative to regular crisps.
The UPFs the health experts buy
Baked beans
Dr Linia Patel, a dietitian and performance nutritionist, enjoys baked beans. She eats them on a jacket potato with cheese and a side salad as a quick, filling and nutrient dense meal.
Squirts of ketchup up the sugar in his diet (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Caption: Homemade Barbecue Baked Beans in a Black Skillet
Photographer: Dragos Rusu / 500px
Provider: Getty Images/500px
Source: 500px
Ketchup
Gut health nutritionist Yalda Alaoui, who follows a mostly anti-inflammatory diet, has ketchup as small amounts do not impact her blood glucose levels.
Other UPFs that health experts put in their shopping basket
Some people can be concerned about a sugar rush (Photo: Elizabeth Perez Holowaty/Getty)
Haribo sweets for their children
so they can learn to self-regulate with food.
It’s estimated ultra processed foods make up at least half of the average UK diet (Photo: Getty)
Emergency cereal bars when homemade flapjacks run out.
Sriracha chilli sauce on the production line (David McNew/Getty Images)
Hot sauce and mayonnaise
Caption: Oakland, CA – December 02, 2016: Grocery store shelf with jars of Marmite brand Yeast Extract. A by-product of beer brewing, enjoyed at any time on toast for breakfast, in sandwiches at lunchtime; Shutterstock ID 545767972; Purchase Order: –
Photographer: Sheila Fitzgerald
Provider: Shutterstock / Sheila Fitzgerald
Source: Shutterstock
Marmite as a source of vitamin
B12 and potassium.
Photographer: Aleksandr Zubkov
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment RF
Almond milk in morning drinks, fortified with vitamin D.
How to find balance
My mantra with UPFs is ‘reduce but not restrict’. I don’t think we need to cut them out but it’s a good idea to assess how much you eat. If some are [things] you especially love, then cutting them out can lead to you craving them more.
Priya Tew, registered dietitian specialising in eating disorders
What Lebanon’s Beaufort Castle is – and why Israel captured it
Israel announced the seizure of the medieval fortress yesterday, in the latest sign of its continued ceasefire breaches in the country.
Caption: An Israeli flag and a flag of the Golani Brigade fly on Beaufort Castle, as seen from Marjayoun, southern Lebanon, June 1, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer
Photographer: Stringer
Provider: REUTERS
Source: REUTERS
Defence minister announces capture
Caption: Members of Israeli troops at the 900-year-old Beaufort Castle in Nabatieh Governorate, southern Lebanon, in this screengrab from a handout video released on May 31, 2026. Israeli troops seized the Beaufort Castle and a strategic ridge in southern Lebanon, the military said, despite a ceasefire announced more than six weeks ago. Israeli Military/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. OVERLAY FROM SOURCE.
Photographer: ISRAELI MILITARY
Provider: via REUTERS
Source: Handout
Israel Katz said the Israeli flag was flying over the castle yesterday.
The fort in southern Lebanon represents a strategic gain.
Israeli Defence Forces have carried out strikes in the surrounding area.
WORLD
4 min read
What is Beaufort Castle?
Known as Qalaat al-Shaqif in Arabic, the castle was built by French crusaders in the 12th century. It is near Nabatieh and its position is 700m (2,300ft) above sea level and affords whoever controls it a view over southern Lebanon and northern Israel.
Caption: Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 31, 2026. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to push deeper into Lebanon after his military took over the medieval castle of Beaufort on May 31, calling it a “dramatic shift” in the campaign against Hezbollah. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: JALAA MAREY
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
Caption: TOPSHOT – This picture taken from a position in the Upper Galilee region in northern Israel shows an Israeli tank taking position amid destroyed buildings in southern Lebanon on May 31, 2026. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to push deeper into Lebanon after his military took over the medieval castle of Beaufort on May 31, calling it a “dramatic shift” in the campaign against Hezbollah. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: JALAA MAREY
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
It has changed hands several times over the centuries, with Palestinian fighters using it as a base before Israel captured it in 1982. Israel then occupied it until withdrawing from southern Lebanon in 2000.
What is Israel doing in Lebanon?
Despite agreeing to a ceasefire on 16 April, Israel has continued to strike Lebanon with the aim of destroying the armed group Hezbollah, which mainly operates in the south of the country.
Beirut has been struck on two occasions and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered further strikes on the capital today.
Caption: FILE PHOTO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a memorial service held for Ran Gvili, an off-duty police officer who was killed fighting militants that had infiltrated Israel during the deadly October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, and the last hostage recovered from Gaza, in Meitar, Israel, January 28, 2026. REUTERS/Amir Cohen TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY/File Photo
Photographer: Amir Cohen
Provider: REUTERS
Source: REUTERS
OPINION
4 min read
Watch more from The i Paper
Flames engulfed a warehouse in Khan Younis after it was hit by an Israeli strike on Thursday night, as civil defence workers struggled to put out the fire. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday he had directed Israel’s military to take more of Gaza, initially by seizing 70% of the Palestinian territory, where the population is already penned into a tiny strip of land along the coast. Israel effectively controls an estimated 64% of the tiny coastal Strip, bombarded to ruins by Israel’s two-year military assault that followed the 2023 Hamas attack on southern Israel.
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However, the shifting tides are not down solely to Ukrainian military and diplomatic ingenuity.
One pivotal moment came earlier this year from a surprising source close to the heart of US President Donald Trump’s Maga movement: Elon Musk.
The SpaceX chief’s decision in February to block Russian access to Starlink satellites has had dramatic results on the front lines.
A Starlink terminal stands at the entrance to a trench at an artillery position manned by Ukraine’s 59th Brigade around 8km the Avdiivka front line, in the Donetsk region (Photos: Ed Ram/For The Washington Post via Getty)
Starlink provides high-speed internet used for communications between troops and for directing drones.
Access to Starlink has never been officially supplied to Russian forces, unlike the deal with Kyiv that has allowed it to use the system since the start of the war. However, terminals have reached the front lines via a network of Russian importers and subscriber accounts in third countries, allowing troops to co-ordinate movements and drone strikes in areas where radios were susceptible to jamming.
Starlink loss has huge consequences for Russia
Musk’s decision to prevent access to Starlink satellites for any users in Ukraine not on a “whitelist” approved by the Ukrainian defence ministry has left the Russian army struggling to communicate with each other in huge areas – and it’s having enormous consequences on the battlefield.
Musk said on X following the cut-off: “Looks like the steps we took to stop the unauthorised use of Starlink by Russia have worked.”
Russia’s ability to capture territory has drastically dropped and Ukraine is beginning to gain ground for the first time in years. Meanwhile, the Russian casualty rate has escalated to the point where Putin’s military is now losing men faster than it can replace them, according to recent analysis.
This success on the battlefield owed much to the disruption caused by Russia’s loss of Starlink services, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think-tank in Washington, DC. Short and mid-range strikes by Russia’s elite Rubicon drone unit – which was using Starlink terminals to extend the ranges of its drones – were reportedly disrupted immediately, with Ukrainian officials reporting a sharp drop in Russian bombardments on frontline positions straight away.
In the first five days following the Starlink cut-off, Ukrainian forces reportedly liberated more than 200 square kilometers of territory, roughly equivalent to the Russian army’s gains for the whole of December, the ISW reported.
“These Ukrainian counter-attacks are likely leveraging the recent block on Russian forces’ access to Starlink, which Russian milbloggers have claimed is causing communications and command and control issues on the battlefield,” the think-tank said.
Pro-war Russian military bloggers embedded with frontline units have vented their fury over the move, because Moscow has no alternative that works as well as Starlink.
Elon Musk has blocked unauthorised use of Starlink terminals in Russia (Photo: Tom Brenner/The Washington Post via Getty)
The loss of Starlink was compounded by decisions from the Kremlin to reduce other key communication tools such as Telegram and WhatsApp in an attempt to reduce security breaches.
“Russia has been going through this process of replacing messaging systems, pushing to internal messaging systems, and that’s a massive shift to try and roll out to the thousands and thousands of people that they have on the front,” said Melanie Garson, adjunct fellow at the Council on Geostrategy and associate professor in international security and conflict resolution at University College London.
“To do that kind of roll-out in the middle of active combat is extraordinarily difficult, and in May they were losing 1,000 soldiers a day. It’s extraordinary and it’s not sustainable.”
How Ukraine capitalises on Starlink
For the Ukrainians, Russia’s communications struggles have been further exploited by their own use of Starlink and other technologies.
“Where Starlink is most important is communication and bandwidth for long-range drones”, said Marc DeVore, senior lecturer at the University of St Andrews’s school of international relations and associate fellow at Chatham House’s Russia and Eurasia programme.
“The longer the range of the drone the more important Starlink is. Ukrainian long-range strike strategy depends on hitting high-value Russian targets at a distance and being able to communicate with your drone is vital,” he told The i Paper.
The importance of Starlink to Ukraine’s tactics is highlighted by the fact that some key Ukrainian weapons have a terminal built into them. But it is one thing having the tech, and another to use it effectively. And that is where the Ukrainian military has been so effective.
“I think that’s more a show of good intelligence on the side of Ukraine”, Katherine Spencer, programme assistant at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, told The i Paper.
“It’s intelligence-gathering, targeting and having the drone technology. If Ukraine were to lose Starlink of course that would be very, very difficult, but it’s not just Starlink that is guiding these long-range attacks”, she said.
The Ukrainians are not just redesigning technology and tactics, but potentially defining what war will look like in the future. “Ukraine is integrating platforms, autonomous systems, and data to defend itself and also to strike Russia deep inside in its territory,” she said.
Orysia Lutsevych, head of the Ukraine Forum at Chatham House, described Ukraine’s successful innovation as “inventing a new way of fighting”.
“Strategically Ukraine’s internal innovation ecosystem is more important because it underpins battlefield success. If this didn’t exist, the fact that they’ve disconnected Starlink for the Russians would not help Ukraine much because it wouldn’t have capabilities to exploit that opportunity”, she explained.
A drone designed and produced in Ukraine used for reconnaissance of Russian positions in undisclosed location near town of Donetsk. Some key Ukrainian weapons now have a Starlink terminal built into them (Photo: Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty)
Ukraine is seizing global opportunities
Furthermore, Lutsevych said President Volodymyr Zelensky’s refusal to accept a weak peace bargain that would undermine Ukrainian security, as well as his work developing alliances with countries in the Middle East based on sharing tactics learnt in battle, were other important factors in recent Ukrainian successes.
Garson agrees that Zelensky’s skilled diplomacy was contributing to tactical victories. “Zelensky seized the opportunity to make new contacts with the Gulf states who were looking to increase their defences,” she said
“These drone deals, will give another injection of cash into the Ukrainian military ecosystem which helps strengthen their approach as a whole.”
These incremental technical and diplomatic wins for Zelensky are adding up to a much bigger strategic advantage against a Kremlin war plan that is beginning to unravel, experts say, especially at a time when President Putin is facing mounting problems at home and increasing pressure to end the war.
“We are in the middle of what was supposed to be the Russian spring offensive,” said DeVore. “According to the Russian plan it was going to be the Ukrainians who were going to be struggling because of a lack of American support, their morale would be down due to the sheer length of the war and Russia was going to be able to hammer them and make significant gains which would then force the Ukrainians to capitulate on key issues.
“That was the Russian theory of victory, and as we can see right now every element of that has failed.”
However, George Barros, director of innovation and open source tradecraft at the ISW, warns it is inevitable the tide of the conflict will turn again as Russia learns from past mistakes.
“Given what we’ve seen from previous innovation cycles I think an optimistic assumption would be, the Ukrainians will have this advantage for a maximum of six months. The Russians will adapt”, he said.
Whether the momentum remains with Ukraine, or whether Russia seizes back the initiative, will depend on what European allies and the US do next, said Spencer and Lutsevych.
“The EU loan is a huge step in the right direction”, said Spencer. “But Ukraine still desperately needs stronger air defence and these are the kinds of technologies that they need from the US like Patriot missiles.”
“The joint ventures that are set up in Germany, in the UK, in Baltic states, in Finland, there give strategic depth to Ukraine with these production facilities protected on Nato territory, but they will be working for Ukraine” said Lutsevych.