Ukraine kills senior Russian General with HIMARS strike

A senior Russian general was killed in a HIMARS strike near the border with Ukraine, according to Russian officials. Mikhail Yevgenyevich Gudkov, deputy commander of the Russian Navy, was killed on Wednesday, in what the Defence Ministry described as "combat work" in the Kursk Region near Ukraine.

Gudkov's death marks one of the highest-profile losses for Moscow since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russian Telegram channels have suggested that the strike was carried out using US-made HIMARS, just one day before talks took place between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The loss will be a huge blow to the Russian leader, who appointed Gudkov to the post in March.

During today's call, Trump and Putin discussed Iran, Ukraine, and other issues in what the Kremlin described as a "frank and constructive" discussion. It was their sixth publicly disclosed chat since Trump returned to the White House.

While discussing the situation around Iran and in the broader Middle East, Putin emphasised the need to resolve all differences "exclusively by political and diplomatic means," said Yuri Ushakov, his foreign affairs adviser. The leaders agreed that Russian and US officials will maintain contacts on the issue, he added.

On the conflict in Ukraine, Ushakov said Trump emphasised his push for a quick halt to the fighting, and Putin voiced Moscow's readiness to pursue talks with Kyiv, noting the previous rounds in Turkey yielded humanitarian results.

At the same time, the Russian leader emphasised that Moscow will seek to achieve its goals in Ukraine and remove the "root causes" of the conflict, Ushakov said.

"Russia will not back down from these goals," Ushakov told reporters after the call.

Putin has argued he sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022 to fend off a threat to Russia posed by Ukraine's push to join NATO and protect Russian speakers in Ukraine -- arguments rejected by Kyiv and its allies. He insisted that any prospective peace deal must see Ukraine abandon its NATO bid and recognise Russia's territorial gains.

Thursday's call follows the Pentagon's confirmation that it's pausing shipment of some weapons to Ukraine as it reviews U.S. military stockpiles. The weapons being held up for Ukraine include air defence missiles, precision-guided artillery and other equipment.