GEOFF BENNETT: And we start today's other headlines with the latest strikes between Russia and Ukraine.

Ukrainian drone attacks disrupted flights at Moscow's main airports for a third straight day, even as preparations were under way for a massive military parade to mark 80 years since victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

China's Xi Jinping arrived today to attend the festivities.

Meantime, Russian forces struck Ukraine overnight, killing two people in the capital, Kyiv, while, in Washington, Vice President J.D.

Vance told a conference that the U.S. is focused on brokering a long-term deal to end the war.

J.D.

VANCE, Vice President of the United States: The Russians are asking for a certain set of requirements, a certain set of concessions in order to end the conflict.

We think they're asking for too much, OK?

We would like both the Russians and the Ukrainians to actually agree on some basic guidelines for sitting down and talking to one another.

GEOFF BENNETT: Russia had rejected a 30-day cease-fire proposal from the U.S., which Ukraine agreed to.

Instead, President Vladimir Putin announced a three-day pause in fighting during Russia's Victory Day celebrations, which went into effect in the last hour or so.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed that cease-fire, calling it a theatrical show.

Hospital officials in the Gaza Strip say Israeli airstrikes killed at least 92 people today, including women and children.

One of the attacks hit a busy market in Gaza City.

Our producer on the ground who provided this footage says at least 23 people were killed there, including two journalists.

Footage from the scene showed bloodstains and food still left on tables at a restaurant that was hit.

It comes just days after Israel announced plans to step up operations in Gaza, which would include seizing the territory.

For the second time in two weeks, a us Navy fighter jet from the USS Truman aircraft carrier fell overboard into the Red Sea.

The ship has played a vital role in the U.S. air campaign against Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Tuesday's incident occurred when an F/A-18 Super Hornet tried to land on the flight deck, but the arresting gear designed to catch the jet with a hook and wire system failed.

That's according to an official.

The two pilots ejected safely and sustained only minor injuries.

In April, another F/A-18 slipped off the deck of the Truman.

Each jet costs more than $60 million.

The FAA says it will take immediate steps to improve operations at Newark Airport after more than a week of disruptions that will include brand-new telecommunications systems and a boost to air traffic control staffing.

It comes as Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is expected to announce a multibillion-dollar plan tomorrow aimed at upgrading air traffic control systems nationwide.

And air travelers must also get used to a new reality.

Starting today, Real ID is now a requirement to fly domestically.

The rollout has been mostly smooth so far.

Those without the I.D.s were given handouts advising them to use one the next time they fly or face delays.

Former President Joe Biden says it wouldn't have mattered if he had dropped out of the 2024 presidential race earlier than he did, but that it was still the right decision.

The comments came in his first broadcast interview since leaving the White House.

Biden spoke with the BBC to mark the 80th anniversary of the Allied victory in Europe, and said he worries that the relationship between Europe and the U.S. is fracturing under President Trump.

He also said the Oval Office confrontation between Trump and Ukraine's President Zelenskyy was beneath America, and he dismissed President Trump's proposals to acquire the Panama Canal and Greenland and make Canada the 51st state.

JOE BIDEN, Former President of the United States: What the hell is going on here?

What president ever talked like that?

That's not who we are.

We're about freedom, democracy, opportunity, not about confiscation.

GEOFF BENNETT: In that same interview, Biden described the Trump administration's willingness for Ukraine to concede territory to Russia as modern-day appeasement, a reference to British leader Neville Chamberlain's policy of trying to appease Hitler before World War II.

The final race of the nation's 2024 election has finally been decided six months after voters went to the polls.

In North Carolina, the Republican challenger for a state Supreme Court seat, Jefferson Griffin, conceded to the Democratic incumbent today.

That clears Allison Riggs to officially be reelected to an eight-year term as an associate justice.

It comes just two days after a federal judge ruled that thousands of disputed ballots challenged by Griffin must remain in the final tally.

Those results also show that the Democrat, Riggs, won the election by just 734 votes out of more than five million cast.

Three former Memphis police officers were acquitted today on state charges in the death of Tyre Nichols.

The jury took about eight hours over two days to find Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith not guilty on all charges.

But they could still spend years in prison after being convicted of federal charges last year.

Two other officers had already pleaded guilty in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, who fled a traffic stop in 2023.

The 29-year-old's death sparked nationwide protests and renewed calls for police reforms in the U.S.

The Federal Reserve kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged today as officials monitor the effects of President Trump's trade wars.

So far, inflation and unemployment remain relatively low nationwide, but: JEROME POWELL, Federal Reserve Chairman: Uncertainty about the path of the economy is extremely elevated.

GEOFF BENNETT: Fed Chair Jerome Powell said today that those tariffs could, in his words, generate a rise in inflation, a slowdown in economic growth, and a rise in unemployment.

President Trump and treasury Secretary Scott Bessent have pushed for lower borrowing costs.

Powell said that won't affect the Fed's decisions on rates moving forward.

Following the Fed's announcement, Wall Street ended higher.

The Dow Jones industrial average added nearly 300 points on the day.

The Nasdaq rose nearly 50 points, or about a quarter of 1 percent.

The S&P 500 also closed in positive territory.

Still to come on the "News Hour": we examine the ongoing legal battles sparked by President Trump's hard-line immigration policies; Republican Congressman Chip Roy on the budget battle in Congress; and a social media app that aims to bring neighbors together.