Putin faces bloodiest month for a year and half, as tens of thousands fall | Russia-Ukraine war news

Is Russia entering its bloodiest month on the battlefield in over a year? Today, as Ukraine strikes a plant belonging to Russia’s largest steel producer, we assess Moscow’s increasing use of ballistic missiles as the fighting on the frontline heads towards Russia’s bloodiest month in a year and a half. We also report on the man expected to replace Kyiv’s Commander-in-Chief, before a special interview with one of the founding members of Pussy Riot about the group’s origins and the protest performance that led to members being sent to a Russian penal colony. Contributors: Francis Dearnley (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @FrancisDearnley on X. With thanks to Nadya Tolokonnikova of Pussy Riot. Producer: Phil Atkins Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett Video Producer: Sophie O’Sullivan Social Producer: Tom Steed Studio Director: Meghan Searle Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley Created by David Knowles NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD FOOTAGE: Every episode is now available on our YouTube channel shortly after the release of the audio version. You will find it here:    / @ukrainethelatest   CONTENT REFERENCED: The Pavilion of dis(Sense) – conceived and curated by the Russian dissident artist Katia Margolis – is in the former Church of San Leonardo, Venice, until August 7. Learn more:   / pavilionofdissense   Francis’s Dispatches from La Biennale in Venice – Part I:    • '500,000 Russians killed,' says UK spy chi...   Part II (featuring the first section of Francis’s interview with Nadya of Pussy Riot):    • ‘Major escalation’ on NATO soil as Russian...   Nadja’s Strasbourg exhibition, ‘Resistance Imprisoned’: https://www.ritschfisch.com/exhibitio... Russian warship opens fire off Devon (The Telegraph): https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026... White House concerned over Miliband as Foreign Secretary (The Telegraph): https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/... Mykhailo Drapatyi, the man some protesters want to replace Syrskyi (Kyiv Independent): https://kyivindependent.com/mykhailo-... Zelensky’s crisis deepens as ex-defence minister rejects offer to return (Financial Times): https://www.ft.com/content/51dad580-4... EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.