Monday Briefing: An audacious Ukrainian assault

Plus, a deadly incident at an aid site in Gaza.
Morning Briefing: Europe Edition
June 2, 2025

Good morning. We're covering Ukraine's attack on air bases in Russia and bloodshed in Gaza near an aid distribution site.

Plus: The tech bros of "Mountainhead."

A Ukrainian soldier fires a large weapon in a wooded area. There are flames coming out of the barrel.
A soldier fired on Russian forces in the Donetsk region of Ukraine on Saturday. Anatolii Stepanov/Reuters

Ukraine attacked air bases across Russia

Ukraine mounted one of its broadest assaults of the war against air bases in Russia yesterday, a coordinated drone attack that targeted sites from eastern Siberia to the western border and left several aircraft in flames.

Ukraine also suffered a blow when a Russian missile struck one of its military training bases, killing at least 12 soldiers. That happened hours after Russia launched what Ukrainian officials called its largest combined overnight aerial assault since the start of the war.

The fighting escalated even as delegations from Ukraine and Russia were expected to sit down for cease-fire negotiations today in Istanbul.

Details: Drones were secretly brought into Russia on trucks and launched from those vehicles to hit the air bases, according to a Ukrainian security official, who said dozens of Russian aircraft had been damaged.

Quotable: A Russian blogger described the Ukrainian attack as a "black day for Russian long-range aviation."

Talks: During a previous round of talks in Istanbul, both sides agreed to share their peace terms. Since then, Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of stalling.

Men push a cart containing bodies through a crowd.
Using a cart to move bodies after the shooting in Rafah in Gaza yesterday. Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

More than 20 were killed near a Gaza aid site

Over 20 people were killed and more than 100 wounded when Palestinians hoping for food from an aid distribution center in the southern Gazan city of Rafah came under fire, according to local health officials. An Israeli military official said soldiers had fired warning shots. Here's what to know about the distribution of aid in Gaza.

It was the latest chaotic episode involving the Israeli-backed initiative to establish aid distribution sites in Gaza, run by American security contractors. Gazans have faced widespread hunger since March, when Israel began blocking all food, fuel and medicine bound for the enclave.

Toll: Paramedics removed at least 23 bodies from the vicinity of the distribution center, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society. The International Committee of the Red Cross said its field hospital in Rafah had received 179 patients, 21 of whom were declared dead on arrival. Gaza's health ministry said 31 people had been killed.

More news:

A docked container ship.
A ship at the Port of Los Angeles. Maggie Shannon for The New York Times

Trump's tariffs are here to stay, aides say

President Trump's top economic advisers said they would not be deterred by a recent court decision that found many of the administration's tariffs to be illegal. "Rest assured, tariffs are not going away," Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary, said on "Fox News Sunday."

The aides pointed to other authorities that could be invoked to pressure China and other nations into trade talks. They also signaled that Trump had no plans to extend his 90-day pause on some of the steepest tariffs, raising the odds that those duties — the mere announcement of which roiled global markets — would take effect in July as planned.

MORE TOP NEWS

Five riot police officers facing a crowd of people. The scene is tinted orange from a nearby fire.
Abdul Saboor/Reuters

Business & Tech

SPORTS NEWS

Max Verstappen wearing his racing suit and helmet.
Max Verstappen David Ramos/Getty Images

MORNING READ

Paula Ritchie, wiping away tears, sits on a bed with pillows behind her back. She has a bandage on her right forearm.
Oliver Farshi for The New York Times

Medically assisted dying in Canada was initially restricted to patients with terminal conditions. But in 2021, the law was amended to include people who were suffering but weren't actually dying. Similar legislation was already in place in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.

To supporters, the legal change is an act of profound political empathy. For critics, it is a moral stain on the nation. And for patients like Paula Ritchie, above, it feels like the grace of God.

Lives lived: Yasunao Tone, an experimental composer and multimedia artist associated with the Fluxus movement, died at 90.

CONVERSATION STARTERS

A short clip of Miley Cyrus speaking on a phone while lying on a table.
Philip Montgomery for The New York Times
  • Miley Cyrus: The singer has released a new album, "Something Beautiful." In The Interview, she spoke about her journey to become one of pop's reigning queens.
  • Islands of art: The Naoshima New Museum of Art is the latest star in the constellation of more than three dozen museums and installations across three Japanese islands.
  • A torrent of dance: Manuel Legris's version of "Sylvia" for the Paris Opera Ballet is ferociously demanding of its dancers.
  • Beach Birkin: The Boatkin bag marries the style of Hermès's signature purse with the canvas of L.L. Bean's Boat and Tote.

ARTS AND IDEAS

From left, Ramy Youssef, Cory Michael Smith, Steve Carell and Jason Schwartzman  stand in front of a table with a map on it in a scene from
Macall Polay/Apple+, via HBO

A dark comedy from the creator of 'Succession'

The world is burning in the new HBO film "Mountainhead," and it's all thanks to a group of not-so-genius tech magnates who are holed up in a snowy retreat. The dark comedy, which premiered on Saturday, is the latest project from Jesse Armstrong, the creator of "Succession."

While it doesn't have the same depth, our television critic James Poniewozik writes, "Armstrong's hallmarks are present: a brutal sense of interpersonal power dynamics, a flair for creative profanity and an abiding belief that the worst people will succeed."

For more: Read our profile of Cory Michael Smith, who plays one of the moguls, and take a peek at the film's secluded $65 million ski chalet.

RECOMMENDATIONS

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Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Brett Regot.

Cook: A spoonful of curry paste electrifies this pad prik king.

Watch: "Dept. Q," a new detective show on Netflix, is a study in internationalism.

Listen: Our critics recommend these five classical music albums.

Train: Here's how to avoid injuries on the tennis court.

Ogle: Explore million-dollar homes in Italy.

Shine: We have tips for restoring all of your rusty metal.

Play the Spelling Bee. And here are today's Mini Crossword and Wordle. You can find all our puzzles here.

That's it for today's briefing. See you tomorrow. — Natasha

P.S. Do you run a business in Europe? Our reporters want to hear about how you're navigating the uncertainty around Trump's tariffs. Fill out the form here.

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