VLADIMIR Putin has blasted the G7 as "disgusting" after world leaders MOCKED the Russian tyrant for his shirtless horse-riding images.
The G7 leaders met on Sunday to discuss their response to Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine and gathered for photos in front of media.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson then used the warm weather as an opportunity to mock President Putin for previously showing off his physique.
“Jackets on? Jackets off? Shall we take our clothes off?” Mr Johnson said, before Canadian PM Justin Trudeau chimed in: “We're going to get the bare-chested horseback riding display,” in reference to a picture of President Putin riding shirtless on a horse in 2009.
But Russian leader Putin today hit back at the group – mocking them for their physical appearances and lifestyle choices.
“I don’t know if they wanted to undress to the waist or even lower but anyway it would have been a disgusting sight,” he said.
“Everything must be harmonically developed in a man both the body and soul but for everything to be harmonious it’s necessary to stop abusing alcohol and other bad habits do physical exercise and take part in sports.
“All the colleagues you just mentioned, I know them personally we are currently not in the best period of our relationship but nevertheless they are leaders meaning they have character and if they want they can surely achieve the desired success.”
Read our Ukraine war live blog below for the latest up-to-date news…
- Joseph Gamp
Germany condemns 'inhuman' attacks on Odessa apartment block as 'cruel'
Germany on Friday condemned Moscow's missile attack of an apartment building and recreation centre in southern Ukraine's Odessa region, saying it was time the Russian population too faced up to the truth of their government's "cruel" actions.
"The cruel manner in which the Russian aggressor takes the deaths of civilians in its stride and is again speaking of collateral damages is inhuman and cynical," said German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit.
- Joseph Gamp
Putin says pressure from West accelerating Belarus integration with Russia
President Vladimir Putin on Friday said political pressure from the West was accelerating Belarus's integration with neighbouring Russia, which has been proceeding on and off for more than two decades.
"Unprecedented political and social pressure from the so-called collective West is pushing us to speed up the unification process: together to minimise the damage from the illegal sanctions, to make it simpler to master the output of required products, to develop new competencies, to expand cooperation with friendly countries," Putin told a bilateral forum.
The two Slavic neighbours signed a Union Treaty in 1997 that was intended to restore some of the close ties broken by the collapse of the Soviet Union.
But the enthusiasm of Belarus's autocratic president, Alexander Lukashenko, for closer political integration has waxed and waned, as has Belarus's economic dependence on its far bigger and wealthier cousin.
Lukashenko became more beholden to Moscow in late 2020, when Putin provided political and financial backing as he crushed a wave of anti-government protests triggered by a presidential election that the opposition said had been rigged.
In February, Lukashenko allowed Moscow to use Belarus as a launchpad for some of the Russian armoured columns that invaded Belarus's southern neighbour, Ukraine.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu last week said the two countries must take urgent joint measures to improve their defence capabilities and troops' combat-readiness.
- Joseph Gamp
Putin tells Modi Russia still reliable supplier of grain, fertiliser & energy
Russian President Vladimir Putin told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Russia is still a reliable producer and supplier of grains, fertilisers and energy, the Kremlin said in a readout of a phone call between the two leaders on Friday.
In detailed discussions on the global food market, Putin "drew attention to the systemic mistakes made by a number of countries that have disrupted free trade architecture in food goods and triggered significant rises in their prices", the Kremlin said.
- Joseph Gamp
President Zelenskyy hails EU-Ukraine ties
Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday that Ukraine and the European Union were starting a new chapter of their history after Brussels formally accepted Ukraine's candidacy to join the 27-nation bloc.
"A new (chapter) of history for the European Union and Ukraine has started. Now we're not close. Now we are together," Zelensky said addressing Ukraine's parliament.
He said it was a "big honour and big responsibility" to work towards realising the "aspirations of our country".
"We made a journey of 115 days to candidate status and our journey to membership shouldn't take decades. We should make it down this road quickly," Zelensky said.
"Ukraine is fighting to choose its values, to be in the European family," he said.
- Joseph Gamp
Ukraine says Russia ramped up missile strikes during 2nd half of June
Oleksii Hromov, a brigadier general in Ukraine’s armed forces, said on Thursday that Russia had ramped up missile strikes in the second half of June.
Hromov told a news conference that more than half of the missiles were from Soviet reserves and less precise, adding that was why Russia was hitting residential buildings.
Russia has denied targeting civilians since invading Ukraine in late February. Reuters was not immediately able to verify Hromov’s remarks.
- Joseph Gamp
Strikes kill 18 people in Ukraine's Odesa region
Missile strikes killed 18 people and wounded dozens in Ukraine's Odesa region Friday, a day after Russian troops abandoned positions on a strategic island in a major setback to the Kremlin's invasion.
The news came after NATO leaders wrapped up a summit in Madrid, with US President Joe Biden announcing $800 million in new weapons for Ukraine.
"We are going to stick with Ukraine, and all of the alliance are going to stick with Ukraine, as long as it takes to make sure they are not defeated by Russia," he said.
The missiles were fired early Friday, hitting an apartment building and recreation centre about 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of the Black Sea port of Odessa, which has become a strategic flashpoint in the conflict.
Ukrainian emergency services initially said 17 people were killed and 30 wounded in both attacks. Kyrylo Tymoshenko, a senior official at the Ukrainian presidency, later wrote on Telegram that the death toll had risen to 18, including two children.
- Joseph Gamp
EU's Von der Leyen urges Ukraine to speed anti-corruption reform
The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen told Ukraine's parliament on Friday that EU membership was "within reach" but urged them to press forward with anti-corruption reforms.
"You have created an impressive anti-corruption machine," she told the lawmakers by videolink. "But now these institutions need teeth, and the right people in senior posts."
- Joseph Gamp
Russia’s Medvedev says sanctions could be justification for war
Russia’s Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that in certain circumstances, sanctions against Moscow may be seen as an act of aggression and a justification for war.
“I would like to point out once again that under certain circumstances such hostile measures can also qualify as an act of international aggression. And even as a casus belli (justification for war),” Medvedev said, adding that Russia has the right to defend itself.
Russia has faced a barrage of crippling economic sanctions from Western countries in response to its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a “special military operation”.
Medvedev, a former Russian president who was once seen as a liberal, has emerged as one of the most hawkish proponents of the war, delivering a series of scathing denunciations of the West.
- Joseph Gamp
‘Big disaster’ for Putin
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has said Russia had lost 25,000 troops in 120 days and added: “They’re grinding at First World War levels of advancement, a few metres a day.
“It’s a pretty big disaster and they haven’t even begun to occupy.”
It comes as Britain handed Ukraine a £1billion arms boost yesterday — as the West built its own Iron Curtain against Russia.
Sweden and Finland were cleared to join Nato, Britain put thousands more troops on stand-by in Estonia, and US President Joe Biden agreed to more planes at UK bases.
- Louis Allwood
Boris says he would rather have a smaller army with the top-of-the-range kit
In Madrid the PM also batted away questions about why the size of Britain's armed forces has shrunk.
Mr Johnson said he'd rather have a smaller army with the top-of-the-range kit they deserve.
Alongside defence spending at home, in Spain world leaders discussed what more they can do to band together and help out hero President Zelensky abroad.
Today the UK pledged an extra billion pounds in funding to aid the Ukrainian war effort.
- Louis Allwood
Boris Johnson says Putin has pushed the West closer together
The UK's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has just defended the "robust health" of Nato during his conference speech in Madrid.
He once again stated that Russia's invasion has brought Nato closer to its doorstep, adding Putin's actions had made the alliance "stronger".
- Louis Allwood
Boris Johnson vows to hike defence spending by billions
Boris Johnson has pledged a whopping 20 per cent hike in UK military spending by 2030.
Speaking from Madrid where he is attending the NATO summit, the Prime Minister said the government will aim to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence in the next eight years.
The massive increase will be welcomed by Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, who called on the PM to make the important commitment to our forces this week.
Mr Johnson said: "We need to invest for the long term in vital capabilities like future combat air, while simultaneously adapting to a more dangerous and more competitive world.
"The logical conclusion of the investments we propose to embark, of these decisions, is 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence by the end of the decade."
The PM's major funding pledge follows huge pressure from cabinet ministers Liz Truss and Mr Wallace, who over the past few months have begged him to hike spending.
- Louis Allwood
Ukraine says Russia ramped up missile strikes during 2nd half of June
Oleksii Hromov, a brigadier general in Ukraine's armed forces, said on Thursday that Russia had ramped up missile strikes in the second half of June.
Hromov told a news conference that more than half of the missiles were from Soviet reserves and less precise, adding that was why Russia was hitting residential buildings.
Russia has denied targeting civilians since invading Ukraine in late February. Reuters was not immediately able to verify Hromov's remarks.
- Louis Allwood
Russia's Medvedev says sanctions could be justification for war
Russia's Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that in certain circumstances, sanctions against Moscow may be seen as an act of aggression and a justification for war.
"I would like to point out once again that under certain circumstances such hostile measures can also qualify as an act of international aggression. And even as a casus belli (justification for war)," Medvedev said, adding that Russia has the right to defend itself.
Russia has faced a barrage of crippling economic sanctions from Western countries in response to its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a "special military operation".
Medvedev, a former Russian president who was once seen as a liberal, has emerged as one of the most hawkish proponents of the war, delivering a series of scathing denunciations of the West.
- Louis Allwood
Bernie Ecclestone condemned over comments on Putin
Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone drew condemnation on Thursday after the 91-year-old defended Russian President Vladimir Putin in a television interview as a "first class person" he would "take a bullet" for.
The Briton, who is no longer involved in Formula One, also told ITV's Good Morning Britain that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy could have ended the Russian invasion of his country by talking to Putin.
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said the comments were "absolutely extraordinary".
Formula One said in a statement they were "his personal views and are in very stark contrast to the position of the modern values of our sport".
Ecclestone had warm relations with Putin, establishing the now-cancelled Russian Grand Prix.
"He's a first-class person and what he's doing is something that he believes is the right thing he was doing for Russia," said Ecclestone, who has a history of controversial statements.
"Unfortunately he's like a lot of business people, certainly like me, that we make mistakes from time to time and when you've made the mistake you have to do the best you can to get out of it."
- Louis Allwood
Captured Azov fighters will face trial, Putin ally says
Captured members of Ukraine's armed forces who served in the Azov battalion will face trial, the speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament said on Thursday.
"These nationalists, who hands are covered in blood, are not humans.
"They are awaiting trial," said Vyacheslav Volodin, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, in a post on Telegram.
- Louis Allwood
Russia says forces have destroyed command centre near Dnipro
Russia's Defence Ministry said on Thursday its forces had destroyed a Ukrainian military control centre near the city of Dnipro in a missile strike on Tuesday.
Alongside other regions of Ukraine, the central city of Dnipro and the surrounding Dnipropetrovsk region has seen an increase in Russian shelling in recent days.
- Louis Allwood
Russia claims over 6,000 Ukrainian servicemen captured or surrendered
Russia says over 6,000 Ukrainian servicemen have been captured or surrendered, RIA news agency cited the defence ministry as saying on Thursday.
The ministry said the exchange of 144 prisoners of war with Ukraine, announced on Wednesday by Ukrainian intelligence, was organised by direct order of President Vladimir Putin, RIA cited the ministry as saying.
- Louis Allwood
Putin: Russia is open to dialogue on nuclear non-proliferation
Despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine, both Moscow and Washington have stressed the importance of maintaining communication on the issue of nuclear arms.
The two countries are by far the world's largest nuclear powers with an estimated 11,000 nuclear warheads between them.
"Russia is open to dialogue on ensuring strategic stability, preserving non-proliferation regimes for weapons of mass destruction and improving the situation in the field of arms control," Putin said in remarks to a legal forum in his home city of St. Petersburg.
He said the efforts would require "painstaking joint work" and would go towards preventing a repeat of "what is happening today in the Donbas".
The Russian leader says Moscow invaded Ukraine to protect ethnic Russians and Russian-speakers in the eastern Donbas region from persecution from Kyiv. He repeated those claims on Thursday, accusing Ukraine of "crimes against humanity."
Ukraine and the West say Russia's invasion of its neighbour was an unprovoked act of aggression, aimed at seizing Ukrainian territory and toppling President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
- Louis Allwood
Russian Duma passes law on retaliation against foreign media
Russia's top prosecutor will be empowered to shut down media from countries that ban or restrict Russian news organisations under a law passed by the lower house of parliament on Thursday.
The bill – following bans by some Western governments on Russian media they regard as mouthpieces for President Vladimir Putin and cheerleaders for his war in Ukraine – creates a legal basis for Moscow to retaliate against the media of any country that restricts the activity of Russian journalists.
Under the bill, such media will lose their accreditation and be banned from operating in Russia or distributing content there. These measures would only be lifted when the country in question allows Russian media to work without restrictions.
"This law is very important. We are creating an instrument for symmetrical response measures in the event of liquidation of our media abroad," said lawmaker Sergei Boyarsky, the bill's co-author.
The move by the lower house, the State Duma, follows threats by Russia to strip U.S. news organisations of their accreditation in retaliation for alleged harassment of Russian reporters in the United States and the withdrawal of broadcasting licences for Russian channels there.
- Louis Allwood
Why is it called Snake Island?
Prior to being known as Snake Island, the land was named "White Island" by the Greeks.
The writings of Greek poet Arctinus of Miletus insinuate that the remains of Achilles and Patroclus were brought to the island by the sea nymph Thetis, and ancient inscriptions eventually led to the Greeks renaming the island Fidonisi, which stands for Snake Island, during the Ottoman Empire, according to Ukraine.com.
The Soviets claimed the land in 1948, but following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, ownership was granted to Ukraine by the Court of Justice in February 2009.
- Louis Allwood
Why did Russia withdraw its forces from Snake Island?
It was announced on June 30, 2022, that Russia would be withdrawing its forces from Snake Island.
The decision came over four months after the country took control of the land.
Russian military spokesman, Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said the decision was a "goodwill gesture" to show that Russia is not interfering with the United Nation's attempts to find space for Ukraine so they can export agricultural products, according to USA Today.
- Louis Allwood
Where is Snake Island?
Snake Island, also known as Serpent Island or Zmiinyi Island, belongs to Ukraine.
It is located in the Black Sea, near the Danube Delta, just 30 miles from the coast.
The 46 acres of land are typically covered with rocks and grass, but following Russia's invasion of the island, it was left "covered in fire," according to The New York Times.
Prior to the invasion, it was known for its igneous rock formations and was home to an Odessa National University research facility, which students and scientists used to study flora, fauna, meteorology, geology, hydrobiology, and atmospheric chemistry, according to Ukraine.com.
It was also home to a popular lighthouse, which was built by the Russian Empire's Black Sea Fleet in the fall of 1842.
At this time, it is unclear if Ukraine will restore the island.
- Louis Allwood
Biden pledges to beef up military
Speaking at a Nato summit last night in Madrid, US president Joe Biden pledged to beef up US military might in Europe amid the growing threat of all-out war with Russia.
The US will also send two extra squadrons of F-35 jets to the UK, base two more destroyers in Spain and establish a permanent 5th Army headquarters in Poland.
- Louis Allwood
Putin promises Russia will respond if NATO deploys troops in Finland & Sweden
VLADIMIR Putin has promised Russia will respond if NATO deploys troops in Finland & Sweden after they joined the military alliance.
"With Sweden and Finland, we don't have the problems that we have with Ukraine. They want to join NATO, go ahead," Putin told Russian state television yesterday amid the war in Ukraine.
"But they must understand there was no threat before, while now, if military contingents and infrastructure are deployed there, we will have to respond in kind and create the same threats for the territories from which threats towards us are created."
The evil despot said it was "inevitable" that Moscow's relations with Helsinki and Stockholm would sour over their NATO membership.
He warned: "Everything was fine between us, but now there might be some tensions, there certainly will. It's inevitable if there is a threat to us."
Putin made his comment a day after NATO member Turkey lifted its veto over the bid by Finland and Sweden to join the alliance after the three nations agreed to protect each other's security. read more
The move means Helsinki and Stockholm can proceed with their application to join NATO, marking the biggest shift in European security in decades.
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