Russians flee sinking warship after Ukrainian attack & Kyiv strikes ‘volcanic’ oil refinery for fifth time

Day 1,553.

Today, in the aftermath of one of the most intense aerial assaults on Ukraine of the entire war, we report on fresh strikes against Russia’s Tuapse oil refinery – the site of the extraordinary “manmade volcano” that has become symbolic of Kyiv’s campaign against Moscow’s energy infrastructure. Antonia Langford joins us live from Kyiv after witnessing ballistic missile attacks on the capital firsthand. We also examine the shrinking number of countries contributing to the Czech-led ammunition initiative, which now supplies around half of Ukraine’s artillery ammunition, and assess Britain’s attempt to regain control of the political narrative after last week’s easing of sanctions on Russia by unveiling new measures targeting cryptocurrency networks accused of financing Putin’s war machine.

Contributors:

Francis Dearnley (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @FrancisDearnley on X.

Dominic Nicholls (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @DomNicholls on X.

Antonia Langford (Freelance Journalist in Kyiv). @Antonialford on X.

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: https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineTheLatest

CONTENT REFERENCED:

Learn more about ‘Ukraine Focus’:

https://ukrainefocus.org/

How a bombed-out café became a symbol of hope in Kyiv (Antonia Langford for The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/25/how-a-bombed-out-cafe-became-a-symbol-of-hope-in-kyiv/

UK sanctions crypto networks funding Putin’s war machine (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/05/26/uk-sanctions-crypto-networks-funding-putins-war-machine/

Does the "White Tiger" scene pose a new terrorist threat? (Der Speigel):

https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/web/white-tiger-droht-aus-der-szene-eine-neue-terrorgefahr-a-2a91696d-9746-40c1-8c30-a189f1fa7c01

Donald Trump’s Board of Peace fund is empty (Financial Times):

https://www.ft.com/content/5ba3bd2c-0e0e-4306-84be-99d6d89b0d49?syn-25a6b1a6=1

Nine countries pull out of Ukraine ammunition coalition (Financial Times):

https://www.ft.com/content/f5dd7bd9-6da8-438b-bf80-1f942b91333d?syn-25a6b1a6=1

Zelensky’s top negotiator flies to Berlin for talks with Germany, France, UK (POLITICO):

https://www.politico.eu/article/volodymyr-zelenskyy-top-negotiator-rustem-umerov-in-berlin-for-ukraine-peace-talks/

Exclusive: Zelensky sends Trump urgent letter warning of Ukraine's critical missile defense shortages (Kyiv Independent):

https://kyivindependent.com/zelensky-sends-trump-urgent-letter-warning-of-critical-missile-defense-shortages/

EMAIL US:

Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk . We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many on air and in our newsletter as possible.

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Fresh strikes against Russia’s Tuapse oil refinery • Antonia Langford joins us live from Kyiv

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