Putin declares ‘all of Ukraine is ours’ in latest blow to peace talks

Vladimir Putin has declared that “all of Ukraine is ours” in one of his most hardline comments on the country since Donald Trump took power.

In recent months, the Russian president has danced around involvement in peace talks – without making any firm commitments – and even suggested he would be prepared to meet with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zekelensky.

But during a Q&A session at an investment event in St Petersburg, Putin was asked about his goal in the protracted war in Ukraine, which is nearing the three-and-a-half-year mark.

“I have said many times that I consider the Russian and Ukrainian people to be one nation. In this sense, all of Ukraine is ours,” Putin said, according to Sky News.

“There is an old rule: ‘Where a Russian soldier sets foot, that is ours.’” An audience of Russian politicians and business figures responded to the president’s words with applause.

Russian troops continue to push forward in eastern areas of Ukraine, concentrating the bulk of their attacks in the Donetsk region. On Saturday, the Russian defence ministry said it had captured another village, the settlement of Zaporizhzhia.

Putin appeared to later threaten the use of nuclear weapons on Ukraine, and promised “catastrophic” consequences for his enemy if they were to use the dirty bomb in their defence against Russia. Kyiv has always denied it would use a dirty bomb, a device containing radioactive material alongside explosives.

“This would be a colossal mistake on the part of those whom we call neo-Nazis on the territory of today’s Ukraine. It could be their last mistake,” Putin said.

“We always respond and respond in kind. Therefore, our response will be very tough.”

During nearly three years of war while the Biden administration was in power, Moscow’s sabre-rattling about the use of nuclear weapons was a regular occurrence.

The US president has now appeared to take a back seat in the Ukraine crisis and shifted his attention to the Middle East instead, where Iran and Israel are embroiled in a bloody air conflict.

Earlier this week, Washington disbanded a working group tasked with finding ways to pressure Russia into having peace talks with Ukraine, according to a report.

Efforts from the inter-agency working group came to a screeching halt when members realised Mr Trump was not interested in taking a tougher stance with Moscow, three US officials told Reuters.

Air India warned over ‘serious violations’ of pilot oversight

India’s aviation safety watchdog has criticised Air India for “repeated and serious violations” of pilot duty time regulations and has ordered the removal of three senior officials involved in crew scheduling.

In an order given on 20 June, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) told the Tata Group-owned airline to immediately strip a divisional vice-president, a chief manager of crew scheduling, and a planning executive of all responsibilities related to rostering.

It also instructed the airline to begin disciplinary proceedings against them without delay.

The order raised concerns over “repeated and serious violations voluntarily disclosed by Air India concerning flight crew being scheduled and operated despite lapses in licensing, rest, and recency requirements”.

“Of particular concern is the absence of strict disciplinary measures against key officials directly responsible,” it said.

These breaches came to light during a post-transition review of the airline’s switch between two different software systems for managing its crew scheduling, according to the Press Trust of India.

Two specific instances of non-compliance, on flights from Bengaluru to London on 16 May and 17, exceeded the 10-hour maximum flight duty limit for pilots, Reuters reported.

The airline has been instructed to move the three officials to non-operational roles until corrective reforms in scheduling practices are completed, and to ensure that they do not hold any position with direct influence over flight safety or crew compliance until further notice.

Air India confirmed in a statement that it had implemented the regulator’s order.

“In the interim, the company’s chief operations officer will provide direct oversight to the Integrated Operations Control Centre (IOCC). Air India is committed to ensuring that there is total adherence to safety protocols and standard practices,” the airline said.

Earlier this week, Reuters reported that regulators had warned Air India for flying three Airbus aircraft without conducting timely checks on emergency escape slide equipment.

The airline is facing heightened scrutiny following the 12 June crash of a London-bound flight shortly after take-off in Ahmedabad, killing 241 people on board at least 29 on the ground. Experts from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau are investigating the crash with assistance from US and UK authorities, as well as officials from Boeing.

Over the last week, dozens of Air India flights were delayed, diverted, or cancelled amid heightened safety checks ordered by the DGCA.

As part of efforts to stabilise operations in the wake of the Ahmedabad crash, Air India on Thursday announced a temporary reduction in its international flight schedule. Between 21 June and 15 July, the airline will suspend flights to three overseas destinations and cut services on 16 international routes.

The move, according to the airline, is aimed at restoring schedule reliability and minimising last-minute disruption for passengers. This follows an earlier statement that wide-body flight operations would be reduced by 15 per cent over the same period.

Air India was taken over by Tata Sons in 2022, returning the airline to private hands nearly 70 years after it was nationalised. The $2.4bn deal to offload the debt-laden public carrier represented a full-circle moment for the airline, which began as Tata Air Services in 1932.

Since the acquisition, the airline has placed orders for hundreds of new aircraft worth over $70bn, unveiled new livery, absorbed Tata’s other airline ventures and committed millions to upgrading older planes and digital systems.

Keir Starmer accidentally admits his first year has been a failure

It is the sort of thing a backbencher who is trying to be loyal would say. Which is damning, and particularly so given it came from the prime minister himself, because a core part of his job is communicating the government’s “story”.

He was asked in Canada on Wednesday what his biggest mistake had been during his first year in government. “We haven’t always told our story as well as we should,” he said.

Most politicians would have bristled at the obvious trap laid by Beth Rigby of Sky News, but Keir Starmer is a surprisingly low-ego politician. No other British prime minister would have bent down to pick up the trade deal papers that Donald Trump dropped.

Most other prime ministers would have ignored Rigby’s invitation to criticise themselves, especially as it was the second half of a two-part question, but Starmer came back to it willingly after answering the first part (“What are you most proud of?” “Three million extra appointments in the NHS”).

He is not self-important, which I admire about him, but he is ruthless and confident. Confident enough not to notice or care that the photographers are recording him scrabbling at the president’s feet, and confident enough to give a serious answer to an obviously silly question.

Unfortunately for him, it was a bad answer. Communication is not an optional add-on to democratic politics; it is the essence of it. Poor communication is usually an excuse, not an explanation. It is the code to be used when a government becomes unpopular but people do not want to imply that the leader is the problem. Poor communication and bad advisers get the blame.

It was ever thus: when parliament criticised Charles I’s advisers; when Margaret Thatcher was told to get rid of Alan Walters, her economic adviser. Charles I was urged to get his message across better to MPs by denouncing popery; Thatcher was advised to sell the poll tax better by calling it the community charge. In each of these cases, it wasn’t the advisers or the communications that were the problem.

So it is with Starmer. MPs grumble about Morgan McSweeney, the prime minister’s chief of staff. They blame him for the “right-wing” policies that they don’t like. They have all read Get In, the book about how Labour won the election by Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund, which portrays McSweeney as the mastermind and strategic genius behind a campaign in which Starmer was often the passive figurehead.

This is sometimes developed, by MPs who “didn’t come into politics to cut support for the disabled”, into a fairytale in which Starmer, a proper socialist who (like them) shares Ed Miliband’s politics, has been taken prisoner by his Blairite chief of staff. If that is an attempt to avoid direct criticism of their leader, it fails, because it makes him look weak and dishonest.

But it is also wrong. In the end, the leader always takes responsibility for decisions. Nor is Starmer simply McSweeney’s puppet. A telling report in the Financial Times on Wednesday revealed that the plan to treat Nigel Farage even more publicly as the real leader of the opposition came from Starmer himself, and not McSweeney: it was the prime minister’s idea to travel to St Helens to deliver a speech as a direct response to Farage’s pitch for Labour votes.

Farage is the main threat to Labour at the next election, but it may be that McSweeney has doubts about the prime minister himself saying so in public.

The “poor communications” line is just as bad – and it is a defence that Starmer deploys himself. What does he mean when he says “we” could have “explained our decisions in the way that might in retrospect have been better”? Could he have said to pensioners on modest incomes, “We’re going to take away your winter fuel payment, but don’t worry, next year we will pretend that the economy is getting better and give it back to you”?

The reason his government’s decisions have not been explained better is that they were bad decisions. In retrospect, as he put it, he should have stopped Rachel Reeves from cutting the winter fuel payment. Looking back, he shouldn’t have promised to “smash the gangs” with no idea how to do it. Looking further back, he should have put someone who had his full authority in charge of preparing for government.

These are not examples of failing to tell the government’s story “as well as we should”: they reveal a government with no story to tell, or even, quite often, with the wrong story to tell.

Starmer has shown that he can learn, and he seems to have no fear of U-turning from the wrong policy to the right one. So maybe he can recover from the false start of his first year – but it will be achieved by making better decisions, not by “telling a better story”.

British tycoon Mike Lynch’s superyacht seen on surface for first time since tragedy killed 7

Water is being pumped from a superyacht that belonged to the late British tycoon Mike Lynch, after it was seen upright for the first time since sinking off the coast of Sicily last summer.

The 56-metre (184ft) vessel, named Bayesian, was spotted in an upright position near the fishing town of Porticello on Saturday morning, held by one of Europe’s most powerful sea cranes.

The sinking on 19 August led to the deaths of seven people, including billionaire Mr Lynch, 59, and his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah.

The boat’s manufacturers, Italian prosecutors, British marine investigators and survivors have all made different claims about why the boat sank so suddenly.

A project insider said this week: “The vessel is on [the] surface, but not clear of the sea as yet. Pumping out of water will continue, and it will be lunchtime – following a series of lifting and resting procedures – before she will finally be fully and finally out of the water.”

Salvage workers could be seen on the vessel, which is covered in mud and algae, while the canopy and guard rails are mangled. They disclosed that there were 18,000 litres of fuel on board.

Investigators in the UK and Italy say raising the vessel is crucial to fully understanding what happened after it sank in just 16 minutes.

The yacht’s 72-metre (236ft) mast was cut off on Tuesday using a remote-controlled tool and rested on the seabed to be picked up later.

Over the last few days, salvage teams have worked to ease the hull into an upright position and give access to the yacht’s right side, which had previously been lying flat on the seabed 50 metres below the surface.

The vessel is expected to be brought to Termini Imerese – where Italian prosecutors investigating the sinking are based, and on Monday it will be lifted onto a specially made steel cradle on the quayside.

It was originally expected to be raised last month, but salvage efforts were delayed after a diver died during underwater work on 9 May, prompting greater use of remote-controlled equipment.

About 70 specialist personnel had been mobilised to Porticello from across Europe to work on the multi-million pound recovery operation, which began last month after the Bayesian had sat on the seafloor for 10 months.

Sicilian prosecutors have opened an inquiry into suspected manslaughter and have placed the captain James Cutfield, from New Zealand, and two British crew members, Tim Parker Eaton and Matthew Griffiths, under investigation.

But a Marine Accident Investigation Branch investigators found in an interim report that the vessel’s design, particularly its raised centreboard and high mast, could also be responsible for the tragedy.

The yacht had a vulnerability to winds, but the owner and crew would not have known, the report said, finding that the Bayesian was knocked over by “extreme wind”.

A coastguard official in Palermo said at the time that bad weather had been expected but not of the magnitude witnessed. Winds of up to 90mph were recorded on the day.

Subsequent investigations have identified that the boat was hit by a mesocyclone, which is a type of powerful rotating thunderstorm that can produce tornadoes or extreme wind bursts.

Inquest proceedings in the UK are looking at the deaths of Mr Lynch and his daughter, as well as Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, 70, and his wife, Judy Bloomer, 71, who were all British nationals.

US lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, and Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the vessel, also died in the sinking.

Fifteen people, including Mr Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, were rescued.

Mr Lynch founded software giant Autonomy in 1996 and was cleared in June last year of carrying out a massive fraud over the sale of the firm to Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 2011.

The boat trip was a celebration of his acquittal in the case in the US.

Every baby’s DNA to be screened on the NHS under new plans

All babies could have their DNA mapped to test for future illnesses under a plan unveiled by the government, it has been reported.

Labour is set to pour £650m into DNA technology in an effort to treat serious illnesses before they become a problem.

In comments first reported in the Daily Telegraph, health secretary Wes Streeting said new technology in areas such as genomics would help “leapfrog” illnesses.

The outlet says that within a decade every baby will undergo whole genome sequencing as part of the drive.

The investment in genomics is expected to support the government’s 10-year plan for the NHS, which will see a greater focus on technology and prevention.

Mr Streeting said: “The revolution in medical science means that we can transform the NHS over the coming decade, from a service which diagnoses and treats ill health to one that predicts and prevents it.

“Genomics presents us with the opportunity to leapfrog disease, so we’re in front of it rather than reacting to it.”

Mr Streeting has previously spoken about his desire to make the NHS more preventative, reducing rates of serious illness and saving money in the process.

The plan is also likely to see a greater role for artificial intelligence and other technologies to predict illness and allow treatment or medication to be offered much earlier.

He added: “With the power of this new technology, patients will be able to receive personalised healthcare to prevent ill health before symptoms begin, reducing the pressure on NHS services and helping people live longer, healthier lives.”

Along with a greater focus on prevention, the government’s 10-year plan is expected to include Mr Streeting’s two other “shifts” in the NHS.

That will see a shift away from hospitals towards more community-focused care, and from analogue to digital services.

It follows chancellor Rachel Reeves’s announcement that the government would increase NHS funding by £29bn per year in real terms over the next three years as it tries to cut waiting lists in line with its election promises.

What’s the secret to a truly stress-free holiday?

High-end cruising has entered a new era. Today’s luxury travellers aren’t looking for big flashy experiences. They want slow-paced, intimate travel and authentic cultural immersion. More than anything else, they’re looking for ease: that feeling of being genuinely cared for, safe in the knowledge that they’re experiencing the best of the best.

That means excellent quality food and drink, of course – it’s got to be restaurant standard and cater to all tastes – but also onboard enrichment experiences of the highest calibre. The great beauty of cruising has always been that not a second is wasted. Savvy travellers get to explore a rich and rewarding variety of exotic, off-the-beaten track locations, but instead of spending half their holiday stuck in motorway traffic, they’re honing their swing in the golf net, or sipping on a cocktail on the upper deck as they travel from destination to destination.

When they’re onshore they want genuinely immersive experiences that get them under the hood of a destination: think cellar tours of local vineyards or speedboat cruises to hidden beaches. Done right, a high-end all-inclusive cruise is the ideal form of slow travel, offering a perfect balance of adventure and indulgence, proper pampering and a thrilling sense of discovery.

The world’s most luxurious fleet

First among equals when it comes to the new era of luxury cruising is Regent Seven Seas Cruises, which offers more than 170 different itineraries visiting over 550 ports of call worldwide. Each of the six ships in their fleet is opulently appointed with beautifully designed communal areas and a huge array of amenities, but none of them has a capacity of more than 746 guests, ensuring space and freedom for all aboard.

The all-suite accommodation means that the private spaces are similarly roomy, each having a private balcony and marble bathroom. And service is always impeccable with a crew-to-guest ratio that’s nearly one-to-one, meaning that the team can always go that mile extra for all travellers.

Across the ships, the food is uniformly excellent. As well as Regent’s signature Compass Rose restaurant, with its daily changing menu of bistro classics like lobster bisque and New Zealand lamb chops, the different ships also feature a range of speciality dining venues. These include Prime 7, a New York-style steakhouse, Pacific Rim with its pan-Asian menu (be sure to try the miso black cod), and fine-dining destination, Chartreuse, where the chefs turn out sophisticated plates of upscale French cooking like Beef Tenderloin Rossini and Seared Foie Gras.

With a number of long cruises on their roster, Regent has made sure that each of its ships is akin to an ultra-luxury, boutique floating hotel with an incredible variety of things to do during the day and top-level entertainment at night. There are courts for paddle tennis and bocce, and the onboard spa offers a range of exclusive bespoke treatments. The ships host talks by experts in their field and cooking lessons are also available on some of the ships at the culinary arts kitchens where visiting chefs guide guests in how to make wow-factor dishes that relate to the ports of call. In the evening, the Constellation Theatre hosts lavishly staged productions from a team of Broadway choreographers and artists.

Destinations that match the onboard luxury

Of course, none of this onboard luxury would mean much if the destinations weren’t up to scratch, but Regent’s superbly curated itineraries are up there with the very best. Its week-long trips include culture-packed European tours like Glories of Iberia which sails from Barcelona to Lisbon, and thrilling frontier explorations such as the Great Alaskan Adventure from Whittier to Vancouver.

Longer trips include four-week Legendary Journeys from Athens to Montreal, and fully immersive explorations of the Arctic. Long or short, these itineraries are all underpinned by a commitment to taking guests right to the heart of a destination with the kind of bespoke onshore activities and expert-led insights that mean on a Regent Seven Seas Cruises voyage, adventure is guaranteed.

Visit Regent Seven Seas Cruises now to uncover the true meaning of luxury and start booking your ultimate stress-free getaway

Badenoch says BBC would be ‘rewarding extremism’ with Kneecap Glastonbury coverage

Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative Party leader, has publicly stated her belief that the BBC “should not be showing” Irish rap group Kneecap’s performance at Glastonbury Festival next week.

Her intervention follows the recent court appearance of Kneecap member Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who was charged on Wednesday for allegedly displaying a flag in support of the proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah and chanting “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” during a gig in November last year.

Ms Badenoch said in the X post, which was accompanied by an article from The Times that claimed the BBC had not banned the group: “The BBC should not be showing Kneecap propaganda.

“One Kneecap band member is currently on bail, charged under the Terrorism Act.

“As a publicly funded platform, the BBC should not be rewarding extremism.”

The Tory leader of the Opposition has previously called for the group to be banned from Glastonbury, and last year Kneecap won a discrimination case against the UK Government in Belfast High Court after she tried to refuse them a £14,250 funding award when she was a minister.

Kneecap took aim at Ms Badenoch in their latest single, The Recap, released just before their headline set at London’s Wide Awake festival in May, with the song mocking the politician’s attempts to block their arts funding and the Conservative Party’s election loss.

On Wednesday, O hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was cheered by hundreds of supporters as he arrived with bandmates Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in “Free Mo Chara” T-shirts.

During the proceedings, the court heard the 27-year-old is “well within his rights” to voice his opinions on Israel and Palestine, but the alleged incident at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, is a “wholly different thing”.

O hAnnaidh was released on unconditional bail until his next hearing at the same court on August 20.

Following the hearing, the rapper said: “For anybody going to Glastonbury, you can see us there at 4pm on the Saturday.

“If you can’t be there we’ll be on the BBC, if anybody watches the BBC. We’ll be at Wembley in September.

“But most importantly: free, free Palestine.”

The charge came after a counter terrorism police investigation after the historical gig footage came to light, which also allegedly shows the group calling for the deaths of MPs.

In April, Kneecap apologised last month to the families of murdered MPs but said footage of the incident had been “exploited and weaponised”.

In an initial post in response to the charge, Kneecap said: “14,000 babies are about to die of starvation in Gaza, with food sent by the world sitting on the other side of a wall, and once again the British establishment is focused on us.

“We deny this ‘offence’ and will vehemently defend ourselves, this is political policing, this is a carnival of distraction.

“We are not the story, genocide is, as they profit from genocide, they use an ‘anti-terror law’ against us for displaying a flag thrown on stage. A charge not serious enough to even warrant their crown court, instead a court that doesn’t have a jury. What’s the objective?

“To restrict our ability to travel. To prevent us speaking to young people across the world. To silence voices of compassion. To prosecute artists who dare speak out.

“Instead of defending innocent people, or the principles of international law they claim to uphold, the powerful in Britain have abetted slaughter and famine in Gaza, just as they did in Ireland for centuries. Then, like now, they claim justification.

“The IDF units they arm and fly spy plane missions for are the real terrorists, the whole world can see it.”

Formed in 2017, the group are known for their provocative lyrics in both Irish and English, and merchandise.

Their best-known tracks include Get Your Brits Out, Better Way To Live, featuring Grian Chatten from Fontaines DC, and 3Cag.

A BBC spokesperson said: “As the broadcast partner, the BBC will be bringing audiences extensive music coverage from Glastonbury, with artists booked by the festival organisers.

“Whilst the BBC doesn’t ban artists, our plans will ensure that our programming will meet our editorial guidelines. Decisions about our output will be made in the lead up to the festival.”

Simon Calder’s top 11 beaches to soak up the summer sun

After months of rain and miserable weather, it’s finally here: the Great British heatwave. With reports that temperatures could reach as high as 33C, it’s all systems go to make the most of the sun, and what better way to do that than by visiting one of the many beaches we Brits have been blessed with?

With nearly 8,000 miles of coastline (some estimates even say 11,000), there are many places to enjoy the heat in peace and quiet – so no need to squeeze yourself into a sun lounger on Brighton beach… From picturesque shores along the Scottish coast to vibrant spots stretching from Durham to Scilly, these are some of best areas to pay a visit.

So don that sun hat, fire up the disposable BBQ and slap on that sun screen: it’s time to hit the beach.

To be alone and at one with the elements, aim for the beach at Luskentyre on the Isle of Harris. The outer shore of the Outer Hebrides is the raw edge of Britain, where the soundtrack rumbles with the weary roar of an ocean at the end of a 3,000-mile journey. You’ll find turquoise water of implausible clarity and ice-white sand, sculpted into unworldly shapes by the west wind.

This is a broad beach with a view. The hills of County Antrim subside into the sea, and beyond the tumbling cliffs, through the mist, stands the Mull of Kintyre, that bulky punctuation at the end of Scotland’s Argyll Peninsula. And at the end of the day, if you wish, you can sail across to Campbeltown on the 4.30pm ferry – watching Northern Ireland retreat in your wake.

I count this fickle stretch of sand as the southernmost in Britain – and given the difficulty in reaching this corner of the kingdom, you can expect to enjoy the place in relative solitude. If you don’t have your own yacht, take a boat from Penzance or a plane from one of several southwest airports to St Mary’s – then a local boat across to St Agnes.

The morning sun brings Torbay to life, with Paignton shining brightest. A traditional resort with the benefit of an interesting hinterland: fishing-village Brixham to the south, post-Fawlty Torquay to the north, and the gorgeous River Dart just southwest.

Two retro transport options earn the otherwise unremarkable beach at Ryde its place: Britain’s last surviving hovercraft roars off to Southsea several times an hour, while an ancient former Tube train rattles down the pier, the opposite end of the railway spectrum from the Trans-Siberian.

The Welsh mainland has a ridiculous number of excellent beaches, but this is my favourite: the sweep of sand that bookends the Gower Peninsula, with a wild, western aspect that makes it ideal at the end of a warm summer afternoon.

For sheer diversity, head to England’s easternmost county. On the “Suffolk Heritage Coast” between Aldeburgh and Southwold, you find rich flora and birdlife; the Sizewell B nuclear plant; the artists’ colony of Walberswick; Alain de Botton’s “balancing barn”, a short way inland; and miles and miles of beaches that face the dawn.

For many of us, the beach is just an excuse for a collection of indulgences – and Blackpool vies with Brighton for the crown of Britain’s most hedonistic resort. The Lancashire town wins thanks to having proper sand, not shingle, as well as the Tower and the Pleasure Beach.

Lord Byron married Annabella Milbanke at Seaham Hall two centuries ago, and the cliff-top residence is now an elegant spa hotel. In the intervening years, Seaham was the heart of the coal industry, with shafts extending deep beneath the North Sea and a hinterland desecrated by development. Now, nature is reclaiming the shore.

Want a sweep of shoreline to yourself? Find your way on foot or by sea to the Knoydart Peninsula, Britain’s last great wilderness. Western Scotland has more appealing sands (notably in the Outer Hebrides), but while Knoydart is part of the mainland, it offers even more isolation.

The name describes the location: where the river through Newcastle reaches the North Sea. The setting is spectacular, with a rugged, crumbling castle marking the end of a handsome town with great places to eat. None is more rewarding than Riley’s Fish Shack, down on the sand with deckchair dining. The beach curves gracefully north, inviting a swim regardless of the chilly North Sea.