Donald Trump calls Vladimir Putin 'absolutely crazy' after drone attack on Ukraine


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US President Donald Trump has called Russian President Vladimir Putin “crazy” after Moscow launched a deadly barrage of drones against Ukraine, as the warring countries announced a large-scale prisoner exchange.

At least 13 people were killed when Russia launched a record number of drones against Ukraine overnight into Sunday.

“I've always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely crazy,” Mr Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.

“I've always said that he wants all of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that's proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia.”

His comments were a rare rebuke to Mr Putin, who he often speaks of with admiration. The US leader has, however, expressed increasing frustration with Moscow's position in deadlocked truce negotiations with Kyiv.

The Kremlin, asked about Mr Trump's remarks, suggested he and others might be “emotionally overloaded”.

“This is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone absolutely and with emotional reactions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Earlier on Sunday, Mr Trump told reporters that he was “not happy” about the latest attack on Ukraine and that he was “absolutely” considering increasing sanctions on Moscow.

“I've known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he's sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don't like it at all,” he said.

Destroyed homes following a Russian missile attack in Kyiv on Sunday. Bloomberg
Destroyed homes following a Russian missile attack in Kyiv on Sunday. Bloomberg

Ukraine's emergency services described on Sunday an atmosphere of “terror” in the country after a second night of Russian air strikes, including on the capital Kyiv.

Those killed in the latest Russian strikes included victims aged eight, 12 and 17 in the north-western region of Zhytomyr, officials said.

“Without truly strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media.

“The silence of America, the silence of others around the world only encourages Putin,” he said. “Sanctions will certainly help.”

In his social media post, Mr Trump also criticised Mr Zelenskyy, a frequent target of his ire, accusing him of “doing his country no favours by talking the way he does”.

“Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don't like it, and it better stop,” he said.

The EU's foreign affairs minister, Kaja Kallas, also called for “the strongest international pressure on Russia to stop this war”.

“Last night's attacks again show Russia bent on more suffering and the annihilation of Ukraine,” she said on social media.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul also denounced the attacks.

“Putin does not want peace, he wants to carry on the war and we shouldn't allow him to do this,” he said. “For this reason we will approve further sanctions at a European level.”

Ukraine's military said on Sunday it had shot down a total of 45 Russian missiles and 266 attack drones overnight. Air force spokesman Yuriy Ignat said 298 drones were launched, adding that this was “the highest number ever”.

Four people were reported killed in Ukraine's western Khmelnytskyi region, and four in the Kyiv region. Two people were killed in the southern Mykolaiv region.

Russia said its strikes were aimed at Ukraine's military-industrial complex and that it had brought down 110 Ukrainian drones.

The strikes on Ukraine came as Russia said it had exchanged another 303 Ukrainian prisoners of war for the same number of Russian soldiers held by Kyiv – the last phase of a swap agreed on during talks in Istanbul on May 16.

It was their biggest prisoner swap since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, with 1,000 captured soldiers and civilian prisoners in total sent back by each side. Mr Zelenskyy confirmed the swap was complete.

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THE CLOWN OF GAZA

Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah 

Starring: Alaa Meqdad

Rating: 4/5

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Lamsa

Founder: Badr Ward

Launched: 2014

Employees: 60

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: EdTech

Funding to date: $15 million

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Indika
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Spare

Profile

Company name: Spare

Started: March 2018

Co-founders: Dalal Alrayes and Saurabh Shah

Based: UAE

Sector: FinTech

Investment: Own savings. Going for first round of fund-raising in March 2019

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Xpanceo

Started: 2018

Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov

Based: Dubai, UAE

Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality

Funding: $40 million

Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)

The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

How the bonus system works

The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.

The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.

There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).

All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The candidates

Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive

Ali Azeem, business leader

Tony Booth, professor of education

Lord Browne, former BP chief executive

Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist

Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist

Dr Mark Mann, scientist

Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner

Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister

Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster

 

Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

  • Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
  • Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

  • Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
  • Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
  • Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
How it works

1) The liquid nanoclay is a mixture of water and clay that aims to convert desert land to fertile ground

2) Instead of water draining straight through the sand, it apparently helps the soil retain water

3) One application is said to last five years

4) The cost of treatment per hectare (2.4 acres) of desert varies from $7,000 to $10,000 per hectare 

How much of your income do you need to save?

The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.

In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)

Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.

 

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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
 
  • Grade 9 = above an A*
  • Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
  • Grade 7 = grade A
  • Grade 6 = just above a grade B
  • Grade 5 = between grades B and C
  • Grade 4 = grade C
  • Grade 3 = between grades D and E
  • Grade 2 = between grades E and F
  • Grade 1 = between grades F and G
Squid Game season two

Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk 

Stars:  Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun

Rating: 4.5/5

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MEFCC information

Tickets range from Dh110 for an advance single-day pass to Dh300 for a weekend pass at the door. VIP tickets have sold out. Visit www.mefcc.com to purchase tickets in advance.

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

Things Heard & Seen

Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini

Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton

2/5

Updated: May 26, 2025, 1:22 PM`