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Ukraine-Russia
Ukraine offers to drop NATO goal in talks with US
Ukraine has offered to drop its goal of joining NATO as it holds talks with United States officials in Berlin to negotiate an end to Russia’s invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the country is willing to instead seek security guarantees similar to NATO. The U.S. would submit a legally binding security guarantee for a vote in Congress, Axios reported. “Bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the U.S., Article 5-like guarantees for us from the US, and security guarantees from European colleagues, as well as other countries -- Canada, Japan -- are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion,” Zelenskyy wrote ahead of the talks. According to NATO’s Article 5, an armed attack against a NATO member obliges all other members to assist it. Peace talks in Berlin lasted over five hours on Sunday, and included Zelenskyy, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. “Representatives held in-depth discussions regarding the 20-point plan for peace, economic agendas, and more. A lot of progress was made, and they will meet again tomorrow morning,” wrote Witkoff. Zelenskyy will also meet with leaders from Germany, France, and the United King
Ukraine-Russia
Ukraine to present revised peace plan to US
Ukraine is set to present a revised peace plan to the United States on Tuesday as part of an escalating diplomatic effort to reshape the terms of negotiations aimed at ending Russia’s war. The update follows a hastily arranged meeting in London between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of France, Germany and Britain, convened to bolster Kyiv’s position ahead of renewed talks with Washington. With the conflict approaching its fourth year and political pressure mounting in Washington for a rapid settlement, Kyiv is working to counter a U.S.-backed draft that many European officials and Ukrainian policymakers fear leans too heavily in favour of Moscow. Speaking after the meeting, Zelenskyy confirmed that the revised Ukrainian proposal consists of 20 points. However, he stressed that one of the most contentious issues - the question of ceding territory to Russia - remains unresolved. Moscow has pushed for territorial concessions as a condition for progress, but Kyiv continues to rule out such compromises. “The mood of the Americans, in principle, is for finding a compromise,” Zelenskyy said. “Of course, there are complex issues related to the territory, and a compromise has not yet been found there.” He r
Ukraine-Russia
Ukraine-Russia peace deal 'really close' says US envoy
United States President Donald Trump’s outgoing Ukraine envoy said a deal to end the Ukraine war was “really close” and now depended on resolving two main outstanding issues: The future of Ukraine’s Donbas region and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 after eight years of fighting between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian troops in the Donbas, which is made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, who is due to step down in January, told the Reagan National Defense Forum that efforts to resolve the conflict were in “the last 10 metres” which he said was always the hardest. The two main outstanding issues, Kellogg said, were on territory - primarily the future of the Donbas - and the future of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, which is under Russian control. “If we get those two issues settled, I think the rest of the things will work out fairly well,” Kellogg said on Saturday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California. “We’re almost there.” “We’re really, really close,” said Kellogg.
Ukraine-Russia
Peace talks continue between US and Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly agreed to some of the proposed Ukraine peace deal points proposed by the United States earlier this week, with more talks scheduled in coming days. Talks were held in Moscow on Tuesday between U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and Putin, with U.S. President Donald Trump calling the outcome “reasonably good”, while the Kremlin said there had been “no compromise”. Despite this, Putin did agree to some of the proposals put forward by the U.S. delegation, and while speaking to the press, Trump said that his Russian counterpart "would like to make a deal". "What comes out of that meeting I can't tell you because it does take two to tango," Trump said.Credit: Kremlin Media RoomMeanwhile Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the talks were a “normal working process of finding a compromise”. "A direct exchange of views took place yesterday for the first time," he said. “Some things were accepted, some things were marked as unacceptable.” Further talks on Ukraine are set to be held in Florida later this week.
Ukraine-Russia
Witkoff to discuss peace plan with Putin in Moscow
United States Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is gearing up to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine during his visit to Moscow. Witkoff is set to negotiate the U.S.-backed 19-point plan following successful negotiations with Ukrainian officials, who have put the ball back in Russia’s court to work with the framework. The new plan is an amended version of the 28-point plan that was devised by the U.S. and Moscow without Ukraine’s input. The old plan favoured Russia, which will now be eager to give input on the revised plan discussed by the U.S. and Ukraine in Florida. However, it is unknown whether Putin will play ball with the new plan, especially since the previous one favoured Russia. Putin and Kremlin officials have been hesitant towards the amended peace plan, signalling that while Russia is ready to talk, the war with Ukraine may not necessarily end soon. “In general, we agree that this can be the basis for future agreements,” Putin said during a trip to Kyrgyzstan. While borders, security guarantees, the fate of Russian assets and the prospect for joint U.S.-Russia investment ventures will all be discussed during the meeting, Russian Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov says

Ukraine-Russia
Ukraine and US officials hold peace talks in Florida
Both United States and Ukrainian officials said peace talks in Florida were a step in the right direction, but that more still needs to be done. "Much work remains, but today was, again, a very productive and useful session where I think additional progress was made," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. Ukraine’s delegation was led by national security council secretary Rutem Umerov, who met with Robio, special envoy Steve Wifkoff and U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jaren Kushner, who served as an unofficial advisor. While Rubio didn’t reveal specifics about the negotiations to reporters, he did say that the goal was to end the war and set Ukraine up for “prosperity”. “We don't just want to end the war; we also want to help Ukraine be safe forever, so never again will they face another invasion, and equally importantly, we want them to enter an age of true prosperity,” Rubio said. Following the meeting, Umerov expressed gratitude to the U.S. "U.S. is hearing us, U.S. is supporting us, U.S. is walking beside us," Umerov said. Umerov also characterised the meeting as “productive” and “successful”, echoing Rubio’s sentiments of prosperity for Ukraine. "Our objective is a prosperous, strong Ukrai
Ukraine-Russia
Putin open to US plan but warns of land grabs
Vladimir Putin has indicated that a draft United States-Ukraine peace proposal could serve as the basis for a future agreement to end the nearly four-year-old conflict, even as he threatened further territorial advances if Ukraine does not meet Russia’s demands. Renewed diplomatic activity between Washington, Kyiv and key NATO members has intensified in recent days after the Trump administration advanced a series of proposals aimed at ending Russia’s invasion. On Thursday, Putin acknowledged for the first time that the emerging outlines of a plan developed by the U.S. and Ukraine could provide a foundation for a negotiated settlement. “In general, we agree that this could be the basis for future agreements,” he said during a trip to Kyrgyzstan, in comments translated by Reuters. It is the first time the Russian president has publicly addressed the peace efforts since a surge of discussions between U.S. and Ukrainian officials. Those talks followed reports last week of a 28-point U.S.-Russia draft plan that appeared to heavily favour Moscow’s longstanding demands, prompting Ukraine and several European allies to scramble to amend the document. Their counterproposals were presented during discussions in Geneva last
Ukraine-Russia
Calls for Witkoff to be fired after leaked Kremlin call
United States representatives call for special envoy to Ukraine, Steve Witkoff, to be fired after a leaked Kremlin call where he allegedly coached Moscow on how to handle U.S. President Donald Trump. Republican representative Don Bacon called for Witkoff’s immediate dismissal. "For those who oppose the Russian invasion and want to see Ukraine prevail as a sovereign & democratic country, it is clear that Witkoff fully favors the Russians,” Bacon said. “He cannot be trusted to lead these negotiations.” Republicans weren’t the only ones calling for his firing, with Democratic representative Ted Lieu going as far as to call Witkoff an “actual traitor”. “Steve Witkoff is supposed to work for the United States, not Russia.” In a recording obtained by Bloomberg of a 14 October 14 call between Witkoff and Vladimir Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, Witkoff said peace would require Moscow gaining control of Donetsk and potentially other Ukrainian territory, “Now, me to you, I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done: Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere,” Witkoff said, according to Bloomberg’s transcript. “But I’m saying instead of talking like that, let’s talk more hopefully because I th
Ukraine-Russia
Allies to Zelenskyy resign after corruption scandal
Two Ukrainian ministers have stood down from their posts after being engulfed in scandal. Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk and Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko were asked to stand down by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week, following a large-scale investigation into corruption within Ukraine's energy sector. The result was several high-level officials, some of whom are close allies to Zelenskyy, being accused of running a $100 million embezzlement scheme. Halushchenko and others involved are accused of receiving payments from contractors who have been fortifying Ukraine's energy infrastructure against Russian attacks. Former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov and Timur Mindich, co-owner of Zelenskyy's former TV studio Kvartal95, also stand accused. The 15-month-long investigation was spearheaded by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, who said they had reviewed 1,000 hours of audio recordings, which revealed the scheme, as well as laundering of the funds, which were then transferred outside Ukraine.