Footage from today showing the return of 1,200 Ukrainian soldiers' bodies to Kiev.

Update on today's return of dead servicemen.

Ukraine has once again failed to hand over the bodies of any fallen Russian servicemen to Russia.

The exchange ratio since the Istanbul talks still stands at 4,800 to 27.

Adding: 

Telegraph: Europe Must Fight Russia Alone as U.S. Withdraws Support

According to The Telegraph columnist Owen Matthews, the burden of confronting Russia is now falling on Europe, as "America is about to exit the stage."

Matthews argues that Washington is winding down military support for Ukraine. He points to recent Senate testimony by the U.S. Secretary of Defense, who indicated that America has “other priorities.” Given that the hearing focused on the 2026 U.S. defense budget, Matthews says the message could not be clearer: fighting Russia is now Europe’s problem.

He adds that the bitter truth for Kiev is that it has been abandoned by its wealthiest and most powerful ally.

➡️Ukraine’s Three Options

Matthews outlines three remaining paths for Ukraine:

1. Rely on European countries to supply the weapons and equipment it needs.

2. Use European funds to buy U.S.-made arms, as proposed by Zelensky earlier this month.

3. Begin manufacturing arms in Ukraine using European financing.

➡️European Aid Is Unreliable

But Matthews warns that Europe’s support is inconsistent. He highlights a deeper irony: while Europe pledges to help Kiev, it's still expected to spend over €20 billion on Russian oil, gas, coal, and uranium in 2025—funding that effectively supports Russia’s war machine.

➡️Russia’s Resilience

Narratives of Russia’s looming collapse make for comforting reading, Matthews writes, but they’re contradicted by the scale and intensity of Russia’s air and ground offensives. In 2025, Moscow plans to spend $160 billion on defense. Thanks to lower costs, every dollar goes much further in Russia: a T-90 tank costs around $4.5 million, while an American M1 Abrams can cost up to $9.6 million.

➡️Europe’s Hollow Promises

Matthews concludes that as long as Europe spends more money buying Russian energy than it does supporting Ukraine, promises to back Kiev “for as long as it takes” ring hollow.

Meanwhile, Ukraine faces a deeper, more immediate crisis: a severe shortage of frontline personnel. Videos of military recruitment officers (TCC) manhandling civilians continue to provoke widespread outrage on Ukrainian social media.