Ukraine's allies are looking to see whether some member states in the European Union could supply Ukraine with five Patriot missile defence systems, of which Germany is willing to finance two, Germany's defence minister Boris Pistorius said this morning.

Mr Pistorius said Germany would have been willing to give two of its own systems to Ukraine but needed reassurance that it could replace them within six to eight months.

"We are now looking for solutions that will allow us to identify Patriot systems in member states in Europe," he said.

"So, it's not hopeless, but the prerequisite is that countries that have them are prepared to hand them over now so that others can pay for them and they can go to Ukraine," he added.

In his nightly video address, issued well after midnight, Volodymyr Zelensky said he had spoken to National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine chief Semen Kryvonos and other top prosecutors.

Anti-corruption bodies, he said, would continue to function "but without any Russian influence. It all must be cleansed.”

"There must be more justice. Of course, NABU and SAPO [Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office] will continue their work," he said. "It's also important that the prosecutor general be committed to ensuring real accountability for those who break the law. This is what Ukraine truly needs."

Mr Kryvonos had urged the Ukrainian president not to sign the fast-tracked bill, which he called an attempt to "destroy" Ukraine's anti-corruption infrastructure.

Two Russian soldiers in need of medical care were handed over by Ukrainian authorities yesterday to be returned home, the Russian defence ministry said.

A ministry statement on Telegram said the two servicemen were handed over and taken to Belarus, one of Moscow's closest allies, on Russia's western border. They were receiving treatment in Belarus and would soon return to Russia, it said.

The statement said the action was undertaken on the basis of agreements reached at the second of two direct meetings aimed at ending the conflict last month between Russian and Ukrainian representatives.

The two meetings in Istanbul resulted in agreements to return prisoners of war and remains of fallen soldiers, but made little progress towards an end to the more than three-year-old conflict.

US energy secretary Chris Wright has said sanctioning Russian oil to pressure Moscow into ending the Ukraine war is a "very real possibility."

"It is huge pressure on Russia," Mr Wright told Fox News' "Special Report with Bret Baier." "That's the biggest pressure you can put on them," he said.

The official added that the US is the world’s top producer of oil and gas, which means the country can take actions that were earlier unthinkable.

"We're able to do things that we couldn't do before," he said.

President Donald Trump said earlier this month that Washington could put 100 per cent tariffs on buyers of Russian oil and impose other sanctions if Moscow does not agree to a major peace agreement with Ukraine, a deadline that ends in early September.

Hundreds of Ukrainians protested near the presidential administration in central Kyiv late yesterday, with smaller demonstrations taking place in several other cities.

Ukraine has toughened restrictions on two anti-corruption agencies at the centre of the government's reform drive, rolling back their autonomy in favour of tighter executive control.

Amendments passed yesterday grant the general prosecutor, appointed by the president, strict control over the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, several lawmakers said.

President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose party holds a majority in parliament, approved the amendments late last night. The changes would allow the general prosecutor to transfer cases from the agencies and reassign prosecutors.

The vote drew sharp criticism from the heads of both agencies and a top EU official, and spurred the largest public protests since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Stamping out endemic graft is a requirement for Kyiv to join the European Union as well as to secure billions in Western aid. Independent investigators have in recent months embarrassed senior officials with allegations of corruption.

The Kremlin has said there was no basis to expect miracles from a proposed third round of direct Russian-Ukrainian peace talks, and declined to give any time frame for a potential agreement to end the war.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that Kyiv has sent Moscow an offer to hold another round of peace talks in Turkey this week, and that he wants to speed up negotiations for a ceasefire.

“There is no reason to expect any breakthroughs in the category of miracles - it is hardly possible in the current situation,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

“We intend to pursue our interests, we intend to ensure our interests and fulfil the tasks that we set for ourselves from the very beginning.”

Asked if he could give a sense of how the Kremlin saw the potential time frame of a possible peace agreement, Mr Peskov said he could give no guidance on timing.

“There is a lot of work to be done before we can talk about the possibility of some top-level meetings," Mr Peskov added, a day after Mr Zelensky renewed a call for a meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has renewed his call to meet Russian president Vladimir Putin face to face as Russia cast doubt on fresh peace talks being held this week.

Mr Zelensky said Ukraine was working to “prepare a leaders' meeting aimed at truly bringing this war to an end”, as the Kremlin said it did not expect any breakthroughs from fresh negotiations being held in Istanbul on Wednesday.

“Our position is fully transparent. Ukraine never wanted this war, and it is Russia that must end the war that it started,” the Ukrainian president said.

In May, Mr Zelensky challenged the Russian leader to meet him, saying he would be waiting in Turkey for him “personally”.

But on Tuesday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia was unlikely to agree to a peace deal and would continue “pursuing our interests”.

A Mirage 2000 fighter jet supplied to Ukraine from France crashed yesterday after experiencing equipment failure during an assignment, with the pilot ejecting safely, Ukraine's military said.

It was the first loss of a Mirage jet since Ukraine's military started receiving them earlier this year.

"Equipment failure occurred, which the pilot reported to the flight controller," a military statement said on Telegram.

"The pilot then acted competently, as is expected in crisis situations, and successfully ejected. A rescue crew found the pilot in a stable condition. There were no casualties on the ground."

Ukrainian news reports said the incident occurred in the northwestern Volyn region.

Ukraine's military announced the arrival of the first batch of Mirage aircraft in February.