A major Russian drone attack on Ukraine killed a 12-year-old child this morning and wounded three others just hours after Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a fresh 72-hour ceasefire next weekend.
The girl was killed after one of 100 drones fired by Russia overnight hit a residential building in Samarivskyi district in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukraine’s emergency service said.
Shortly before the attack, Volodymyr Zelensky accused Mr Putin of “another attempt at manipulation” with his latest offer of a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine.
The Kremlin announced Russia would observe a 72-hour ceasefire next weekend, starting from 8 May and lasting until the close of 10 May, as Moscow wants to mark the 80th anniversary of victory in the Second World War.
“For some reason everyone is supposed to wait until 8 May before ceasing fire – just to provide Putin with silence for his parade,” Mr Zelensky said on X last night. "If Russia truly wants peace, it must cease fire immediately," Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said.
The Institute for the Study of War said Mr Putin was leveraging unilateral ceasefires for informational and battlefield advantages in Ukraine.
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Key Points
- Russia's drone kills 12-year-old girl in Dnipropetrovsk region
- Zelensky accuses Putin of 'manipulation' over latest ceasefire offer
- Trump says he believes he is ‘saving’ Ukraine
- Why Crimea matters so much to Putin – and now Trump
- Russia threatens new Nato members with nuclear weapons
Why Putin’s latest ceasefire raises immediate suspicion
12:30
,
Arpan Rai
Less than two days after US president Donald Trump lashed out at Vladimir Putin for “tapping me along” over a peace deal, the Russian president has announced another temporary ceasefire – this one scheduled to last three days.
His grand declaration raised immediate suspicion over whether this was yet another stalling tactic from the most conniving of dictators. One designed to keep an increasingly frustrated White House happy: Mr Trump’s top diplomat has even talked this week of pulling out of the entire negotiating process.
The news was met in Ukraine with a large dose of scepticism. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky even accused Mr Putin of “yet another round of Russian manipulation” to appease Mr Trump.
Kyiv, which has previously agreed to Trump’s proposal of a 30-day full ceasefire, accused Moscow of violating a similar temporary truce during Easter.
Mr Zelensky charged Russia with cynically using that pause to advance, saying Russian assaults persisted on multiple fronts, artillery fire did not subside, and attacks on energy infrastructure were relentless.
Ukraine won't win the war against Russia, says JD Vance
12:18
,
Arpan Rai
US vice president JD Vance has said Ukraine will not win the war against Russia as he claimed that a peace deal between Moscow and Kyiv is not “necessarily guaranteed”.
"Sometimes you're incredibly frustrated with the Ukrainians, sometimes you're incredibly frustrated with the Russians," Mr Vance said on the Charlie Kirk Show podcast.
"I can't say with 100 per cent certainty, Charlie, that we're going to be able to do it," he said, referring to a peace deal.
Mr Vance said that the US is "making progress" in the negotiations but a peace deal is not necessarily guaranteed.
“If this doesn’t stop, the Ukrainians aren’t winning the war,” the US vice president said.
“I think there’s this weird idea among the mainstream media that if this thing goes on for just another few years, the Russians will collapse, the Ukrainians will take their territory back, and everything will go back to the way that it was before the war. That is not the reality that we live in,” he said.
Russia claims its forces capture village in Ukraine's Kharkiv region
11:59
,
Arpan Rai
Russia’s troops have captured the village of Doroshivka in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, the Russian defence ministry announced today.
In a daily update shared on its Telegram channel, the Russian defence ministry said: “As a result of active actions, units of the ‘West’ military group liberated the village of Doroshovka in the Kharkiv region.”
Ukraine has not issued a comment on the Russian claim over its territory.
According to the latest battlefield update shared by The Institute for the Study of War, a Ukrainian commander had reported more activity in the Kharkiv region from Russian forces in the past 24 hours.
“The commander reported that Russian forces are more actively conducting artillery strikes and assaults, including with mopeds, and that Russian forces have rotated troops in this direction, increasing the number of Russian forces and reserves,” the ISW said in its latest assessment.
Russia threatens new Nato members with nuclear weapons
11:42
,
Arpan Rai
A senior Russian security official has said Russia could strike the newest members of Nato with nuclear weapons.
Nato’s newest members – Finland and Sweden joined the bloc in 2023 and 2024 respectively – could be struck with revenge strikes using nuclear weapons in the event of a conflict, said Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s former prime minister and current deputy of its security council.
“The non-aligned status gave them (Finland and Sweden) certain international perks, given their geopolitical position and many other factors,” the close aide of Mr Putin said.
“And now they are part of a bloc hostile to us which means they automatically became a target for our armed forces, including potential retaliatory strikes and even the nuclear component or preventive measures within the framework of a military doctrine,” Mr Medvedev said this morning.
Child killed in Russian drone attack in central Ukraine
11:09
,
Arpan Rai
A 12-year-old girl has died in a Russian drone attack in central Ukraine, according to officials in the war-torn country.
The drone hit a residential building in Samarivskyi district in the Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukraine’s emergency service said.
Locals pulled the girl from the rubble of the building, but she died en route to hospital, the service said.
It posted photos of emergency workers sifting through the wreckage of the building.
Ukraine evacuates families from Dnipropetrovsk oblast as Russian troops advance
10:45
,
Arpan Rai
Ukrainian officials have started evacuating families from Dnipropetrovsk Oblast as Russian forces are reportedly closing in on the region’s border.
Residents will be evacuated by vehicles and were asked to pack documents, money, medicine, water, and food for a few days, along with other necessities, reported The Kyiv Independent.
The evacuation will be carried out from the villages of Kolona Mezhova, Novopidhorodne, Raipole, and Sukhareva Balka in the Mezhova community, according to a mandatory order issued by governor Serhii Lysak.
Russian forces are reportedly at a distance between five to 15 km from the settlements near the administrative border between Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk oblast.
Nato's newer members now potential targets for Moscow, says Putin's aide
10:15
,
Arpan Rai
Nato’s newer members are now potential targets for Moscow, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said today.
The new entrants to the Atlantic alliance are also at risk of possible revenge strikes using nuclear weapons in the event of a conflict, Mr Medvedev said, reported Tass state news agency.
Sweden and Finland are the latest two counties to have joined the Western military alliance in March last year.
Russia had said it would adopt unspecified military-technical and other counter measures to protect itself against Sweden joining Nato.
Additionally, Poland has also been routinely threatened by Russia of potential attacks and has had to activate F-16 warplanes upon repeated breaches of its airspace by Russian aircraft. Poland became a member of Nato in 1999.
Russia's drone kills 12-year-old girl in Dnipropetrovsk region
09:50
,
Arpan Rai
Russia's overnight drone attack killed a 12-year-old girl in the Dnipropetrovsk region and injured her parents, Ukraine's emergency service said this morning.
Another child was rescued from underneath the rubble, the emergency service said in a post on social media.
An unspecified number of drones from Russia have targeted Ukrainian cities this morning.
Kremlin says Russia is waiting for Ukraine to start direct talks
09:47
,
Arpan Rai
The Kremlin has falsely claimed that Ukraine had not responded to many offers by Russia president Vladimir Putin to start direct peace negotiations, Russian news agencies reported this morning.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia could not respond to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky's proposal for a 30-day ceasefire without settling all "nuances", the agencies reported.
The deflecting statements from the Kremlin come just hours after Mr Putin announced a three-day temporary ceasefire in the Ukraine war to mark the 80th anniversary of victory in the Second World War.
Mr Zelensky responded within hours and said Ukraine has never wanted a single day of this war.
“We made our own proposal to Russia – bilaterally – to halt strikes at least on civilian targets. We also proposed making the Easter ceasefire full and extending it for 30 days,” he said.
Mr Peskov’s statements did not acknowledge the Ukrainian president’s repeated offers of a truce.
The Russian news agencies claimed that starting this process of direct peace negotiations was Moscow’s primary focus.
Why Crimea matters so much to Putin – and now Trump
09:40
,
Arpan Rai
Crimea is footnoted in British history for the Earl of Cardigan and his disastrous leading of the Charge of the Light Brigade. To Vladimir Putin it’s where history itself must turn.
Donald Trump, taking an 18th-century might-is-right approach, has said that the peninsula was captured without a fight by Russia from Ukraine in 2014 and therefore should stay in Putin’s fist.
Of all the 20 per cent of Ukraine’s territory taken after Russia invaded Crimea 11 years ago and launched its wider Anschluss in 2022, Crimea is the greatest Russian prize.
Whoever controls Sevastopol is likely to dominate the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. Outside of Tartus, in Syria, which Russia lost recently, it is – or was – Russia’s only warm-weather port.
Russia attacked Ukraine with 100 drones overnight
09:30
,
Arpan Rai
Russia launched 100 drones in overnight attacks targeting Ukraine, Ukraine's air force said this morning.
Ukraine's air force said it shot down 37 drones, while 47 others disappeared from radars without reaching their targets – usually a result of being jammed by electronic warfare systems
The attacks caused damage in the Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv regions, it said in a Telegram post.
Two killed as Ukrainian drones slam into car on Russian highway
08:54
,
Arpan Rai
At least two people were killed in a Ukrainian drone attack in Russia’s Belgorod region, officials said.
The attack saw a Ukrainian drone slam into a moving car on a highway in Belgorod, local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said this morning.
Three others were injured, he said. The identities of those targeted in the incident remains unclear.
Child killed in Russian drone attack overnight in central Ukraine
08:40
,
Arpan Rai
A 12-year-old child was killed and three others were wounded in central Ukraine overnight amid Russia’s drone attack, Ukrainian officials said.
One of the 100 drones fired by Russia hit a residential building in Samarivskyi district in the central Dnipropetrovsk region and killed a girl, Ukraine’s emergency service said.
The residents pulled the girl out of the rubble but she died on the way to the hospital, the service said.
"The Russian army again massively deployed drones to the region," Dnipropetrovsk region governor Serhiy Lysak said on Telegram, adding that a six-year-old girl and two adults were hurt in the attack.
The air force downed seven drones over the region, he added.
Another 47-year-old woman was hurt in the city of Nikopol, also in the Dnipropetrovsk region, a local official said.
Trump looking for excuses to pull out of Ukraine peace talks – report
08:18
,
Arpan Rai
US president Donald Trump is likely preparing to walk away from Ukraine talks and might use minor excuses to shelve his plans to end the war, European sources have said.
Mr Trump was “setting up a situation where he gives himself excuses to walk away and leave it to Ukraine and us [Europe] to fix,” a European official told the Financial Times.
The report, citing four FT sources, said that there is a belief in Europe and Ukraine that the US president is ready to lock any “breakthrough” in peace talks in Ukraine this week as he marks 100 days of his presidency.
There are fears in Kyiv as well that Mr Trump will pull out from peace talks, some Ukrainian officials told the FT.
There have been intense efforts from Mr Trump’s secretary of state Marco Rubio who urged Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday to end the war in Ukraine “now”.
Why Putin’s latest ceasefire raises immediate suspicion
08:04
,
Arpan Rai
Less than two days after US president Donald Trump lashed out at Vladimir Putin for “tapping me along” over a peace deal, the Russian president has announced another temporary ceasefire – this one scheduled to last three days.
His grand declaration raised immediate suspicion over whether this was yet another stalling tactic from the most conniving of dictators.
The Kremlin said the truce would take place from 8 to 10 May, to coincide with Russia’s Victory Day celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany – likely not a coincidence, given Putin’s repeated, completely baseless claims that a “neo-Nazi regime” in Ukraine justified his full-scale invasion.
Ukraine has yet to officially respond, but will no doubt greet the news with a large dose of scepticism.
Chief international correspondent Bel Trew writes:
Zelensky accuses Putin of 'manipulation' over latest ceasefire offer
08:00
,
Arpan Rai
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has accused the Russian president Vladimir Putin of manipulating the world and deceiving the US with his latest temporary ceasefire offer made yesterday.
Mr Putin announced a temporary ceasefire along the war frontline in Ukraine next weekend to mark the 80th anniversary of victory in the Second World War, the Kremlin has said.
“Russia has consistently rejected everything and continues to manipulate the world, trying to deceive the United States. Now, yet again, another attempt at manipulation: for some reason everyone is supposed to wait until 8 May before ceasing fire — just to provide Putin with silence for his parade,” Mr Zelensky said in his nightly address yesterday.
He said: “We in Ukraine never wanted a single second of this war. Back on 11 March, we responded positively to the American proposal for a full ceasefire.”
“We made our own proposal to Russia – bilaterally – to halt strikes at least on civilian targets. We also proposed making the Easter ceasefire full and extending it for thirty days,” Mr Zelensky said, highlighting numerous ceasefire proposals made by Kyiv that have not been acknowledged by Moscow so far.
The 72-hour ceasefire is the second announced by Moscow in recent weeks, after it declared a 30-hour Easter Sunday truce - which Kyiv and its European allies accused it of breaching.
The Kremlin said the truce will last from the beginning of 8 May and last until the close of 10 May, adding that Russia give an “adequate and effective response” to any Ukrainian violations.
Moscow remains ready for peace talks without any preconditions, the statement added.
Mr Zelensky has called for a "full and unconditional cease fire for at least 30 days" to provide "a basis for real diplomacy".
UN responds to Putin's three-day ceasefire: 'It needs to be sustainable'
07:50
,
Arpan Rai
The UN has reacted to Russian president Vladimir Putin’s announcement of a temporary ceasefire along the war frontlines in Ukraine.
A top UN official has said that the agency wants to see an end to Russia’s war based on international law and the organisation’s charter.
“We’ve taken note of the various statements. Our position remains the same, that we want to see an end to the war, but we need to see an end to the war that remains principled and consistent and firmly grounded in the UN Charter, in international law, in line with all the relevant resolutions. It needs to be sustainable and recognise the sovereignty and [territorial] integrity of Ukraine,” said Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary general Antonio Guterres.
The Russian president yesterday declared a new three-day ceasefire in May to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Soviet Union and its allies in the Second World War.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky reacted to the Russian leader's announcement and said the world did not want to wait until 8 May for a ceasefire that will only be in effect for a few days.
Trump suggests Zelensky will let Putin take Crimea. Russia’s top diplomat calls it a ‘done deal’
07:30
,
Arpan Rai
Donald Trump has said he “thinks” Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is ready to give up Crimea to Russia as part of a peace deal.
Asked whether Kyiv was prepared to lose Crimea to Moscow, which Zelensky ruled out just last week in comments which sparked a renewed war of words, the US president said: “I think so.”
Moscow, which has occupied Crimea since a ground invasion in 2014, has said it does not see the southern peninsula as being part of any negotiations.
“This is a done deal,” Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said of Crimea in an interview with CBS News’ Face The Nation program. “Russia do[es] not negotiate its own territory.”
Mr Trump has ramped up pressure on Kyiv over Crimea, saying in no uncertain terms that “Crimea will stay with Russia” in an interview with Time published on Friday. “Zelensky understands that and everybody understands that it’s been with them for a long time,” he added.
Asked whether he “liked” the comments by the US president, Mr Lavrov said: “It's not about liking or disliking. It's about the fact that he said the truth.”
Zelensky offers Spain assistance after massive power cuts
07:19
,
Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky has offered emergency assistance to Spain after the country was hit by a sudden power outage yesterday.
The Ukrainian president also cited dozens of Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy system and said that the war-hit nation has experience in handling energy challenges.
“I spoke with the Prime Minister of Spain @SanchezCastejon about the emergency situation in the energy system. No matter what happens, we are always ready to assist and support our friends,” Mr Zelensky said.
He added: “Over the years of war and Russian attacks on our energy system, Ukraine has gained significant experience in overcoming any energy challenges, including blackouts. Our specialists can join recovery efforts. I offered such assistance to Spain. I instructed Ukraine’s Minister of Energy to act as swiftly as possible. Our technical experts are ready to help.”
I spoke with the Prime Minister of Spain @SanchezCastejon about the emergency situation in the energy system. No matter what happens, we are always ready to assist and support our friends.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 28, 2025
Over the years of war and Russian attacks on our energy system, Ukraine has gained…
Russia attacked Ukraine with 100 drones overnight
07:04
,
Arpan Rai
Russia launched 100 drones in overnight attacks targeting Ukraine, Ukraine's air force said this morning.
Ukraine's air force said it shot down 37 drones, while 47 others disappeared from radars without reaching their targets – usually a result of being jammed by electronic warfare systems
The attacks caused damage in the Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv regions, it said in a Telegram post.
Rubio speaks to Russia's Lavrov on 'need to end Ukraine war now'
06:56
,
Arpan Rai
US secretary of state Marco Rubio has urged Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov to end the war in Ukraine now, a spokesperson said.
"After Special Envoy Witkoff’s 25 April visit to Moscow, the Secretary underscored to his Russian counterpart the next steps in Russia-Ukraine peace talks and the need to end the war now," US state department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
The “United States is serious about faciliating an end to this senseless war”, according to the spokesperson who said that Mr Rubio and Mr Lavrov spoke on Sunday at the Russian official’s request.
In what appears to be a final push from Washington, the Trump administration is making intense efforts to broker a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.
Mr Rubio has threatened that the US might abandon the process and walk away if there are no signs of cooperation and that the upcoming week will be crucial for determining the US’s involvement in the peace talks.
Why Crimea matters so much to Putin – and now Trump
06:46
,
Arpan Rai
Crimea is footnoted in British history for the Earl of Cardigan and his disastrous leading of the Charge of the Light Brigade. To Vladimir Putin it’s where history itself must turn.
Donald Trump, taking an 18th-century might-is-right approach, has said that the peninsula was captured without a fight by Russia from Ukraine in 2014 and therefore should stay in Putin’s fist.
Of all the 20 per cent of Ukraine’s territory taken after Russia invaded Crimea 11 years ago and launched its wider Anschluss in 2022, Crimea is the greatest Russian prize.
Whoever controls Sevastopol is likely to dominate the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. Outside of Tartus, in Syria, which Russia lost recently, it is – or was – Russia’s only warm-weather port.
Trump says he believes he is ‘saving’ Ukraine
06:34
,
Arpan Rai
US president Donald Trump said he believes he is “saving” the war-hit Ukraine and that he is doing a “great service” to the country.
Talking to the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief in a sit-down interview on his first 100 days in office, Mr Trump said: “I think I’m saving that nation.”
“I think that nation will be crushed very shortly. It’s a big war machine… I think I’m doing a great service to Ukraine. I believe that,” the US president said.
Mr Trump blamed his predecessor Joe Biden for the war he does not want to be “saddled with” in an interview with the news outlet.
"And again, this is (former US president Joe) Biden's war. I'm not gonna get saddled – I don't wanna be saddled with it. It's a terrible war. Should have never happened. It would've never happened, as sure as you’re sitting there,” Mr Trump said.
Repeating the US’s threats to abandon the peace talks as his team hits a dead end on a ceasefire, Mr Trump said: “We’ll have to see what happens over the next period of pretty much a week. We’re down to final strokes.”
While claiming that he was “on Ukraine’s side”, the US president said he “had a hard time with Zelensky”.
Mapped: Territory Ukraine could lose as details of US peace deal proposal revealed
06:25
,
Arpan Rai
The US has laid out its “final” proposals for peace in Ukraine, making clear the territory which it says Kyiv must cede to Moscow in order to achieve peace.
A Washington team has been engaging in intense shuttle diplomacy, looking to force through a deal between Ukraine and Russia as progress towards peace appeared to be slowing.
Washington also proposed de facto US recognition of Russian control of the occupied eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk and parts of Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Kherson, all of which lie on the frontline.
It is unclear where the lines of demarcation would be, and whether Washington is demanding that Ukraine cede all of the land currently occupied by Russia in the regions of Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Kherson.
Russia's drone kills 12-year-old girl in Dnipropetrovsk region
06:15
,
Arpan Rai
Russia's overnight drone attack killed a 12-year-old girl in the Dnipropetrovsk region and injured her parents, Ukraine's emergency service said this morning.
Another child was rescued from underneath the rubble, the emergency service said in a post on social media.
An unspecified number of drones from Russia have targeted Ukrainian cities this morning.
Russia says it downs 91 Ukrainian drones overnight
06:03
,
Arpan Rai
Russia said its air defence units destroyed at least 91 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 40 of them downed over the Kursk region bordering Ukraine.
Of these, two of the drones were downed over the Moscow region, while the rest were destroyed over Russia's western and southern regions as well as the Crimean Peninsula, the Russian defence ministry said in a statement this morning.
Russia does not report the damage from Ukraine’s drone attacks and how many drones were launched in total.
The latest drone attack comes just a day after Russian president Vladimir Putin said that his troops had ejected Ukrainian forces from the Kursk region more than eight months after Kyiv staged a mass cross-border incursion.
Putin leveraging his ceasefires for battlefield advantages, says ISW
05:55
,
Arpan Rai
Russian president Vladimir Putin is leveraging unilateral ceasefires for informational and battlefield advantages in Ukraine, a US-based think tank has said.
The strategic ceasefires announced by Mr Putin go against Donald Trump’s goal of using a general ceasefire as a stepping stone towards an enduring and sustainable peace agreement in Ukraine, the Institute for the Study of War said.
“Putin appears to be opportunistically declaring ceasefires during major religious and military holidays in order to force Ukraine to accept the ceasefire or risk appearing intransigent to the West,” the ISW said in its latest assessment.
It added that the Russian president “likely views the Victory Day ceasefire as a chance for Russian forces to rest ahead of future frontline activity in Ukraine and as a way to ensure that Ukraine does not conduct any significant long-range strikes against Russia during Victory Day celebrations”.
“Putin likely does not view the Victory Day ceasefire as a serious step towards lasting peace in Ukraine,” the ISW said.
Macron says Ukraine's allies will 'increase pressure on Russia' in coming days
05:52
,
Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s allies will mount pressure on Russia in the coming days to force Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire, French president Emmanuel Macron said.
“In the next eight to 10 days, we will increase pressure on Russia. I remain cautious (of a ceasefire) because part of the equation depends on Moscow,” Mr Macron told French outlet Paris March yesterday.
Crediting the progress European leaders and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky made at Pope Francis’s funeral over the weekend, Mr Macron said: "We must be united and dissuasive. I believe that we have succeeded, thanks to this meeting at the Vatican, in putting pressure back on Russia.”
The French leader said the intended goal of peace deal was to make heavy concessions for Ukraine “because it was not right for the pressure to be exerted solely on Ukraine”.
"We must be prepared, with the Americans, to toughen our stance on Russia to obtain this ceasefire," Mr Macron said.
One injured in Russian night drone attack on Kyiv
05:30
,
Arpan Rai
A woman has been injured after Russia launched an overnight drone attack on Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said today.
The attack burned a recreation centre in the Ukrainain capital’s northeastern part.
Emergency services were called to Kyiv's sprawling Desnianskyi district where debris from a destroyed drone sparked a fire at the recreation building and injured the woman, mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Head of Kyiv's military administration, Timur Tkachenko, said that air defence systems were deployed just before 1am local time (2200 GMT yesterday) to try to repel the attack.
The scale of the attack is not immediately known.
The attack comes just days after Russia pounded the Ukrainian capital with missiles and drones, killing at least 12 people and drawing a rare rebuke from US president Donald Trump who said his administration was pressuring Russia to stop the war.
North Korea makes first public admission it sent troops to fight for Russia
05:25
,
Arpan Rai
North Korea confirmed for the first time on Monday that it has
