Trump-Zelenskyy call ‘this afternoon,’ official says
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US leader Donald Trump are planning to speak by telephone on Friday afternoon Kyiv time, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP.
(It’s 12:43 in Kyiv at the moment.)
“It’s being prepared for this afternoon, but everything will be clear at the last moment,” the source said.
The call would follow a conversation between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin a day earlier.
Key events
Blackout hits Czech Republic
Large parts of the Czech Republic including the capital city of Prague were hit by a major blackout, causing widespread disruption.
Other cities, like Hradec Králové, Liberec and Ústí nad Labem, also reported issues.
The country’s prime minister Petr Fiala said in a social media update that it was “an extraordinary and unpleasant situation,” as he assured citizens that the state was “working intensively to restore electricity supplies.”
He also confirmed that a crisis response was under way.
Czech media reported that the cause of the blackout was unknown, with officials quoted by iDnes appearing to dismiss suggestions of a third-party intervention.
Health minister Vlastimil Válek sought to reassure Czechs that the healthcare system had “clearly defined procedures in place” to deal with the disruption, with backup generators in use. “Patient care is not at risk,” he said.
Thousands demand restrictions on outside work during heatwave after street sweeper’s death
Ashifa Kassam
In Spain, more than 35,000 people have signed onto a petition calling on the government to decree a maximum temperature at which people can work outdoors.
The petition was launched by Elvira Gómez, a street sweeper in Catalonia.
“Thousands of us work in the open air, without shade, in physically demanding jobs, in heavy, thick suits and sometime in temperatures of up to 40 degrees without access to water or rest areas,” the petition notes.
It comes after the death of Montse Aguilar, a street sweeper in Barcelona. On Saturday, as Spain wrestled with its first heatwave of the summer, Aguilar told a friend that she was feeling ill after hours of working outdoors in temperatures that had climbed past 35 degrees Celsius. She walked home after her shift and collapsed soon after – paramedics were unable to revive her.
Gómez said she and other street sweepers worried constantly that something similar could happen to them. “If we are lucky, we get a five-minute break per hour or a bottle of water for the whole shift,” she noted.
While Spanish law stipulates that companies must take measures to protect their employees when there are official heat alerts, Gómez said it wasn’t enough. “This does not protect those of us who work in the sun when there is no alert but it’s 33 to 35 degrees,” she said.
Spanish law had already set out limits for office workers, stipulating that indoor spaces must be kept at 27 degrees or cooler. “But if you work in the street, there’s no limit.”
She called on Spain – where heatwaves are becoming more frequent – to take action.
“We don’t want to mourn the deaths of more of our colleagues due to heat exhaustion,” the petition notes.
More deaths linked to continuing heatwave in Italy
Lorenzo Tondo
in Palermo
A 22-year-old woman has died of a heart attack while training in a gym without air conditioning near Turin, as Italy continues to struggle with extreme summer temperatures.
The woman, who was from Chieri, collapsed on Thursday while working out in the weights room of a gym in Poirino, a town in the province of Turin. According to local sources, the facility had no air conditioning system, and staff confirmed that windows are typically left open during hot days to provide ventilation.
Despite attempts to revive her, the woman died on site.
Separately, a 58-year-old construction worker has died after collapsing on a job site in Atina, a town in the province of Frosinone, marking the second fatality on a local building site in just three days and the 8th victims in Italy due to the heat.
The man had been working on the installation of a new fibre optic network along Via Randolfi when he reportedly fell ill and collapsed around 10am. Emergency medical teams from Cassino arrived within minutes and attempted resuscitation, but were unable to save him. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The incident has reignited concerns over health and safety conditions on Italian construction sites, particularly during periods of intense heat.
On Friday, 58-year-old retired farmer, from Palagonia in the province of Catania, was found dead on his land in the Serravalle area of Lentini, in the province of Syracuse, possibly due to a heart attack brought on by extreme heat.
Health authorities have issued repeated warnings in recent days urging people to avoid physical exertion during the hottest hours of the day, particularly in enclosed or poorly ventilated spaces.
At least 27 injures in gas explosion at petrol station in Rome
Lorenzo Tondo
in Palermo
A gas explosion at a petrol station in Rome injured at least 27 people, including police officers and emergency workers who had been called in to respond to a gas leak after a truck struck a gas pipe.
The blast, which occurred in the northeast of the capital, was powerful enough to be heard across much of the city. A thick plume of smoke rose into the sky and was visible from several districts. Local residents sustained minor injuries from flying glass as windows shattered under the force of the explosion.
Among the injured was a man pulled from a burning car who remains in serious condition. The others are not believed to be in life-threatening danger, according to local officials.
The manager of a nearby summer camp said the timing of the explosion, early in the morning, may have prevented a much greater tragedy. “It would have been a massacre if the 60 children and 120 people who use the swimming pool had already arrived,” they said.
Prime minister Giorgia Meloni said she was in close contact with Rome’s mayor, Roberto Gualtieri, and was monitoring the situation. Pope Francis also expressed his solidarity, saying he was praying for the victims.
Rome prosecutors have opened an investigation into the incident.
Jakub Krupa
As we wait for the Trump-Zelenskyy call, let’s do a quick news round on other developments in Europe.
Macron, Starmer to co-chair Ukraine summit in UK on 10 July
We’re now getting a line from the Élysée Palace that French president Emmanuel Macron and British prime minister Keir Starmer will co-chair a Ukraine summit in the UK on 10 July.
“There will certainly be a discussion on how to seriously maintain Ukraine’s combat capability,” the palace said, adding that Starmer and Macron will co-chair the meeting of Kyiv’s allies by video link.
The date coincides with Macron’s formal state visit to the UK from 8 to 10 July, during which he will also address the UK parliament.
AFP noted Macron will be the first French president to make a state visit since Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008.
Ukraine’s Zelenskyy confirms fresh prisoner swap with Russia
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has just confirmed the latest swap of prisoners of war, posting some pictures of them wearing Ukrainian flags.
He said:
“Our people are home. Most of them had been held in Russian captivity since 2022.
Today, our defenders who fought for Ukraine in various regions – the Donetsk region and Mariupol, the Luhansk, Kharkiv, and Kherson regions – are coming back. These are warriors of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service, and the State Special Transport Service. And also civilians.
Exchanges must continue, and I thank everyone ensuring this. Ukraine’s goal is to free all our people from Russian captivity. I am grateful to everyone who helps make this possible.”
Russia says currently unable to achieve goals in Ukraine through diplomacy
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Russia would continue its war on Ukraine as it was unable to achieve its goals through “diplomatic means.”
“We are interested in achieving our goals in the course of the special military operation and it is preferable to do it by political and diplomatic means,” Peskov said, as reported by AFP.
He added:
“But until that is not possible, we are continuing the special operation.”
Separately, the Russian defence ministry said that the two countries exchanged another group of prisoners of war on Friday.
The move was agreed during the most recent round of talks in Istanbul last month.
‘Various ways to fill Patriot gap,’ Germany says
Here are the exact lines from the German government spokesperson, via Reuters:
“There are various ways to fill this Patriot gap,” said the spokesperson, adding that one option being considered is buying the Patriot defence system in the United States and then passing them on.
“I can confirm that intensive discussions are indeed being held on this matter,” he said.
Active talks to buy US Patriot missiles for Ukraine, Germany says
We’re now getting a line from a German government spokesperson, via Reuters, that there are active talks to purchase Patriot air defence missiles from the US to provide them to Ukraine.
I will bring you more when we have it.
Trump-Zelenskyy call ‘this afternoon,’ official says
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US leader Donald Trump are planning to speak by telephone on Friday afternoon Kyiv time, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP.
(It’s 12:43 in Kyiv at the moment.)
“It’s being prepared for this afternoon, but everything will be clear at the last moment,” the source said.
The call would follow a conversation between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin a day earlier.
‘Putin is mocking your peace efforts,’ Polish foreign minister tells Trump urging him to restore supplies for Ukraine
Polish foreign minister Radosław Sikorski told US president Donald Trump in a social media post that Russia’s Vladimir Putin was “mocking your peace efforts” as he urged him to “restore supplies of anti-aircraft ammunition to Ukraine and impose tough new sanctions on the aggressor.”
Sikorski added that the massive Russian attack last night has caused “fires and much damage, including to the Polish consulate in Kyiv.”
Footage shows explosions in Kyiv after Russia pummels city in all-night drone attack – video
Macron spoke with Trump last night on Iran, Ukraine, EU-US trade talks
Angelique Chrisafis
in Paris
The Elysée said just after midnight that Emmanuel Macron had spoken to Donald Trump late on Thursday night. An Elysée source said they discussed Iran, Ukraine and current negotiations between the EU and the US on tariffs.
Macron also spoke to Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman on Thursday to discuss Iran and Gaza.
Kyiv strike overnight saw largest number of drones and missiles used in single attack, Ukraine says
Ukraine’s air force representative Yuriy Ignat said the overnight attack on Kyiv saw the largest number of Russian drones and missile used in a single attack during the more than three-year invasion, AFP reported.
Russia increases use of chemical weapons in Ukraine, German and Dutch intelligence services warn
German federal intelligence service, BND, has just published a joint report with the Dutch intelligence and military intelligence services accusing Russia of increasing the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine in a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Dutch defence minister, Ruben Brekelmans, said on the report:
“These weapons are being employed systematically and on a large scale. This is a slippery slope. It is completely unacceptable and again demonstrates the brutality of the aggressor Ukraine has to face.”
He added:
“Lowering the threshold for the use of this type of weapon poses a danger not only to Ukraine but also to the rest of Europe and the world.
This calls for more sanctions, the isolation of Russia and undiminished military support for Ukraine.”
The note says that according to Ukrainian records, “Russia has carried out more than 9,000 chemical weapons attacks on Ukrainian troops since the start of the large-scale invasion in 2022,” with at least three deaths directly attributable to exposure to chemical weapons.
Morning opening: Russian attacks on Ukraine continue
Jakub Krupa
Russia launched 550 drones and missiles overnight targeting Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities just hours after a phone call between the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and US counterpart, Donald Trump.
An all-night attack on the capital injured at least 23 people, damaging railway infrastructure and setting buildings and cars on fire throughout the city, authorities in the Ukrainian capital said in comments reported by Reuters.
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said that explosions were recorded in six out of ten of the city’s districts.
The attack – the latest in a series of escalating Russian airstrikes in recent weeks – came just hours after the latest phone call between Trump and Putin in which the US president reportedly tried to push for a ceasefire and peace talks.
But Trump told reporters he was “very disappointed” with the conversation with Putin, adding “I’m just saying I don’t think he’s looking to stop, and that’s too bad.”
He added:
I didn’t make any progress with him at all.
Trump is expected to speak with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy later today.
I will bring you all the updates here.
It’s Friday, 4 July 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
