Contributor/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- As Russia continues its nearly 16-month-long invasion of neighboring Ukraine, political turmoil has erupted in Moscow while Kyiv tries to take back territory.
A feud between Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Russian paramilitary organization Wagner Group, and Russia's top military brass escalated as Prigozhin's forces left the front line in Ukraine and marched across the border to seize a key Russian city. They then marched north toward Russia's capital, seemingly unopposed, before turning around just hours later. The short-lived rebellion was described by international observers as the most significant challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin's authority in his more than 20 years of rule.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops are in the early stages of a counteroffensive to reclaim the almost one-fifth of Ukraine’s territory that is under Russian control.
Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jul 01, 8:39 PM EDT Ukraine holds disaster drills amid fears Russia could sabotage Zaporizhzhia plant
Amid fears Russia might blow up the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Ukraine is holding drills to prepare emergency services with how to deal with a potential radioactive disaster.
ABC News was invited to the drills in the city of Zaporizhzhia this week, about 30 miles from the plant, where firefighters in hazmat gear simulated decontaminating people from radiation during an evacuation.
Emergency workers demonstrated scanning civilians with Geiger counters as they disembarked buses, stripping some civilians and hosing them with water as they lay on stretchers. Firefighters in yellow suits sprayed down vehicles and moved them through a large washer system rigged up between fire trucks.
This week, Ukraine's chief of military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, claimed Russia had now completed preparation to potentially sabotage the plant if it chooses.
-ABC News' Patrick Reevell
Jul 01, 4:46 PM EDT CIA director says mutiny shows 'corrosive effect' of Putin's war
CIA Director Bill Burns said Yevgeny Prigozhin's mutiny showed the "corrosive effect" of President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine during remarks in England on Saturday.
"It is striking that Prigozhin preceded his actions with a scathing indictment of the Kremlin’s mendacious rationale for its invasion of Ukraine, and of the Russian military leadership’s conduct of the war," Burns said during a lecture to Britain's Ditchley Foundation. "The impact of those words and those actions will play out for some time, a vivid reminder of the corrosive effect of Putin’s war on his own society and his own regime."
Burns, who served as U.S. ambassador to Russia from 2005 to 2008, also noted how Russian disaffection will gnaw away at the Kremlin and that the CIA is taking this opportunity to step up its recruitment efforts in Russia.
"Disaffection with the war will continue to gnaw away at the Russian leadership, beneath the steady diet of state propaganda and practiced repression," Burns said. "That disaffection creates a once-in-a generation opportunity for us at CIA, at our core a human intelligence service. We're not letting it go to waste."
-ABC News' Cindy Smith
Jun 30, 5:45 PM EDT Too early to tell impact of mutiny on Putin: Gen. Milley
Gen. Mark Milley, the U.S. military's top general, told reporters Friday that it's likely too early to tell the impact of the Wagner Group mutiny on Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"We want to know the answer to that question," Milley said when asked at the National Press Club if Yevgeny Prigozhin's mutiny had left Putin weakened. "I don't think we have evidence, conclusive evidence, either way, yet too early to tell."
Milley acknowledged that Ukraine's counteroffensive is making steady progress, but moving slowly -- something he said was not surprising given how tough of a fight it is.
"At the end of the day, Ukrainian soldiers are assaulting through minefields and in the trenches, and this is literally a fight for their life. So yes, sure, it goes a little slow, but that is part of the nature of war," Milley said.
He also noted that the U.S. is considering sending cluster munitions to Ukraine, though no decision has been made.
-ABC News' Luis Martinez
Jun 29, 4:36 PM EDT Russian Gen. Surovikin detained, US official says
Russian Gen. Sergei Surovikin has apparently been detained, according to a U.S. official. Other details about his status are unclear.
The development follows reports from a senior U.S. official on Wednesday that Surovikin had engaged in discussions with Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin about his plans to mutiny.
Prigozhin is now exiled in Belarus.
-ABC News' Luis Martinez
Jun 29, 2:56 PM EDT Pence makes surprise trip to Ukraine
Former Vice President Mike Pence made a surprise trip to Ukraine on Thursday, projecting solidarity against Russia in a way, so far, unmatched by his Republican competitors in the 2024 presidential campaign.
"As I made clear to President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy today, when I return home, whatever the future holds for me and my family, we're gonna stand for freedom," Pence told reporters. "And I'll do my part to make sure that America continues to stand for the courageous fighters here in Ukraine that are fighting to reclaim their freedom."
Pence visited the sites of atrocities in the early phase of the war, in Irpin and Bucha, among other stops, before meeting with Zelenskyy inside the presidential palace in the capital of Kyiv.
-ABC News' Libby Cathey and Guy Davies
Jun 29, 2:41 PM EDT Ukraine sees 'largest deterioration' of peace worldwide: Report
Ukraine recorded the "largest deterioration" of peace worldwide in the latest global peace report from the international think tank Institute for Economics & Peace.
"The war in Ukraine had a significant impact on global peacefulness, with Ukraine and Russia having the largest and fifth largest deteriorations in peacefulness respectively," the report stated.
Since last year's report, Ukraine fell 14 places to 157th among the 163 countries covered by the report. Due to the conflict, 65% of men in Ukraine ages 20-24 have fled the country or died, according to the report.
-ABC News' Emma Ogao
Jun 29, 12:45 AM EDT Suspect accused of helping Russia direct missile strike arrested
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Wednesday the Security Service of Ukraine and the police arrested a suspect who they say coordinated with Russian forces in Tuesday's missile attack on Kramatorsk, a city in the Donetsk region.
The missiles struck a popular pizzeria and killed 12 people, including three children. More than 60 people were injured, the president said in a public address.
The unidentified "spotter" was charged with treason, according to Zelenskyy.
"Anyone in the world who does not understand that one cannot be an accomplice of a terrorist state must be held accountable by the entire international community," he said.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Jun 27, 10:56 PM EDT Prigozhin thought he would have help from Russian military: Senior US official
A senior U.S. official tells ABC News that Yevgeny Prigozhin thought he would have help from the Russian military.
Both former Russian military officers and some others in Moscow had conversations with Prigozhin before he started his march, the official said.
The U.S. doesn't believe Russian President Vladimir Putin realized this beforehand, and the officers sided with Putin in the end, the official said.
According to the official, Prigozhin was shocked he didn’t have support.
-ABC News' Martha Raddatz
Jun 27, 9:43 PM EDT Russian missiles strike Donetsk city
Two Russian missiles struck Kramatorsk, a city in Ukraine's Donetsk region, killing at least four people, according to officials.
At least 47 people were injured in the attack, but the death and injury toll could rise.
One of the deceased victims was a 15-year-old and one of the wounded victims was a child under a year-old, officials said.