Latest Updates on Ukraine peace talks

At times, Trump has been more willing to accept Putin's assurances at face value than the leaders of some US allies, frustrating Kyiv, European capitals and US lawmakers

Wide-scale desertions and 2 million draft-dodgers are among a raft of challenges facing Ukraine's military as Russia presses on with its invasion of its neighbour after almost four years of fighting, the new defence minister said Wednesday. Mykhailo Fedorov told Ukraine's parliament that other problems facing Ukraine's armed forces include excessive bureaucracy, a Soviet-style approach to management, and disruptions in the supply of equipment to troops along the about 1,000-kilometre front line. We cannot fight a war with new technologies but an old organisational structure, Fedorov said. He said the military had faced some 200,000 troop desertions and draft-dodging by around 2 million people. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed 34-year-old Fedorov at the start of the year. The former head of Ukraine's digital transformation policies is credited with spearheading the the army's drone technology and introducing several successful e-government platforms. His appointment was part

The United States has accused Russia of a dangerous and inexplicable escalation of its nearly four-year war in Ukraine at a time when the Trump administration is trying to advance negotiations toward peace. US deputy ambassador to the United Nations Tammy Bruce on Monday singled out Russia's launch of a nuclear-capable Oreshnik ballistic missile last week close to Ukraine's border with Poland, a NATO ally. She told an emergency meeting of the Security Council that the United States deplores the staggering number of casualties in the conflict and condemns Russia's intensifying attacks on energy and other infrastructure. Ukraine called for the meeting after last Thursday's overnight Russian bombardment with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles, including the powerful, new hypersonic Oreshnik missile, which Moscow used for only the second time in what was a clear warning to Kyiv's NATO allies. The large-scale attack came days after Ukraine and its allies reported major progress .

A Ukrainian drone strike sparked a fire at an oil depot in Russia's southern Volgograd region, regional authorities said on Saturday. There were no immediate reports of casualties, the regional governor was quoted as saying in a Telegram post published on the channel of the local administration. The post did not specify the damage, but said that people living near the depot may have to be evacuated. Ukraine's long-range drone strikes on Russian energy sites aim to deprive Moscow of the oil export revenue it needs to pursue its full-scale invasion. Russia wants to cripple the Ukrainian power grid, seeking to deny civilians access to heat, light and running water in what Kyiv officials say is an attempt to weaponise winter. Saturday's attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, according to Ukrainian officials, killing at least four people in the capital. For only the second time in the nearly 4-year-old wa

Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and missiles, killing three and injuring at least 16 in the capital overnight into Friday, Ukrainian authorities said. Russia also struck critical infrastructure in the western city of Lviv using an unidentified ballistic missile, said Mayor Andriy Sadoviy. The Western Command of Ukraine's Air Force later said the missile travelled at a speed of 13,000 kilometres per hour, and that the specific type of rocket was being investigated. Several districts in Kyiv were hit in the attack, said Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko. In the Desnyanskyi district, a drone crashed onto the roof of a multi-storey building. At another address in the same district, the first two floors of a residential building were damaged as a result of the attack. In Dnipro district, parts of a drone damaged a multi-storey building and a fire broke out. Running water and electricity were disrupted in parts of the capital as a result of the attack, Kyiv's May

Russia has strongly condemned the US seizure of an oil tanker, heralding a new chill in relations between Moscow and Washington that could spread to other areas and affect President Donald Trump's efforts to persuade Russia to end its nearly four-year war in Ukraine. The seizure Wednesday of the Russian-flagged tanker in the North Atlantic "can only lead to a further escalation of military and political tensions in the Euro-Atlantic region, as well as a visible lowering of the threshold for the use of force' against peaceful shipping, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn't yet commented on the seizure of the tanker and has remained silent about the US capture of Venezuelan leader Nicols Maduro, which his diplomats have denounced as a blatant act of aggression. But while the Russian president has avoided any criticism of Trump, the seizure of the tanker by the US military represents a new challenge for the Kremlin. Hawkish commentators in Moscow .

Senator Lindsey Graham said Trump has greenlit a bipartisan bill that would let the US impose steep duties on countries buying Russian oil, complicating India-US trade talks

Donald Trump has 'approved' a bipartisan sanctions bill that proposes duties of up to 500 per cent on countries buying Russian oil, raising pressure on India, China and Brazil

The Ukrainian President thanked the United States for its readiness in providing a backstop in areas like security guarantees and reconstruction

India imported about 144 billion euros' worth of crude oil from Russia since the start of the Ukraine war, a European think tank said on Tuesday, estimating the Kremlin's cumulative earnings from global oil sales since February 2022 at around 1 trillion euros. India has been the second-largest buyer of Russian oil behind China, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). China bought Euro 210.3 billion worth of Russian oil since the start of the Ukraine war in February 2022, and another Euro 42.7 billion worth of coal and Euro 40.6 billion worth of gas. China's total buy from the beginning of the war until January 3, 2026, was Euro 293.7 billion. India, on the other hand, bought Euro 162.5 billion worth of fossil fuels - Euro 143.88 billion worth of oil and Euro 18.18 billion worth of coal - from Russia, CREA said. The European Union spent Euro 218.1 billion on buying Russian fossil fuels - Euro 106.3 billion in oil, Euro 3.5 billion on coal and Euro 108.2

Ukraine's allies are meeting Tuesday in Paris for key talks that could help determine the country's security after a potential ceasefire with Russia. But prospects for progress are uncertain, with the Trump administration's focus shifting to Venezuela while suggestions of a Greenland takeover are causing tension with Europe. Before the US capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, French President Emmanuel Macron had expressed optimism about the latest gathering of so-called coalition of the willing nations. For months, they have been exploring how to deter any future Russian aggression should it agree to stop fighting Ukraine. In a Dec. 31 address, Macron said that allies would make concrete commitments at the summit to protect Ukraine and ensure a just and lasting peace." Macron's office said Tuesday's meeting will gather an unprecedented number of officials attending in person, with 35 participants, including 27 heads of state and government. The US will be represented by ...

Ukraine's allies are meeting on Tuesday in Paris for key talks that could help determine the country's security after a potential ceasefire with Russia. But prospects for progress are uncertain with the Trump administration's focus shifting to Venezuela. Before the US capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, French President Emmanuel Macron had expressed optimism about the latest gathering of so-called coalition of the willing nations. For months, they have been exploring how to deter any future Russian aggression should it agree to stop fighting Ukraine. In a December 31 address, Macron said that allies would make concrete commitments at the summit to protect Ukraine and ensure a just and lasting peace." Macron's office said on Tuesday's meeting will gather an unprecedented number of officials attending in person, with 35 participants, including 27 heads of state and government. The US will be represented by President Donald Trump's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared ...

Donald Trump claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi knew he was not happy about India's purchase of Russian oil, saying the US could further raise tariffs 'very quickly'

President Donald Trump on Sunday told reporters that US national security officials have determined that Ukraine did not target a residence belonging to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a drone attack last week, disputing Kremlin claims that Trump had initially greeted with deep concern. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov last week said Ukraine launched a wave of drones at Putin's state residence in the northwestern Novgorod region that the Russian defence systems were able to defeat. Lavrov also criticised Kyiv for launching the attack at a moment of intensive negotiations to end the war. The allegation came just a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had travelled to Florida for talks with Trump on the US administration's still-evolving 20-point plan aimed at ending the war, and had Zelenskyy quickly denied it. I don't believe that strike happened," Trump told reporters as he travelled back to Washington on Sunday after spending two weeks at his home in ...

Two people were killed in Ukrainian drone strikes in Russian border regions, local officials said Sunday, ahead of peace talks to end the nearly 4-year-old war in Paris this week. Belgorod regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said one person died and two others, including a young child, were wounded when a Ukrainian drone struck a car. Another person was killed in a drone strike on a village in the Kursk region, regional Gov. Alexander Khinshtein said Sunday. In Ukraine, three people were wounded in the Kharkiv region in drone strikes overnight into Sunday, the country's State Emergency Service said. Meanwhile, the death toll from a Russian missile attack on the city of Kharkiv on Friday increased to five when body parts were found under the rubble of a building, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said Sunday. The latest attacks came after national security advisers from Europe and other allies visited Kyiv on Saturday to discuss security guarantees and economic support, as a US-led diplomat

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has chosen General Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine's head of military intelligence, as his new chief of staff, a move that comes at an especially critical moment in Russia's nearly 4-year-old invasion. Budanov replaces Andrii Yermak, Zelenskyy's longtime right-hand man who resigned in November after anti-corruption officials raided his apartment in an investigation into alleged graft in Ukraine's energy sector. The move against the powerful aide was a blow to the president that risked disrupting his negotiating strategy amid a US peace effort. What to know about Budanov: Rising through the ranks --------------------------- Budanov has led the military intelligence agency, known by its acronym GUR, since 2020. At 39, he is one of Ukraine's most recognizable and popular wartime figures, known for being the architect of many successful operations targeting Russian military assets, as well as for his independent and enigmatic personality. A career military ...

The drone strike earlier this week targeted the presidential residence located in the Novgorod region

The claims couldn't be independently verified though Saldo later posted photos allegedly showing the aftermath

At least 24 people were killed, and more than 50 were injured when three Ukrainian drones struck a cafe and a hotel in the Kherson region, where people were celebrating the New Year. The strike took place on Wednesday night. "Tonight, the enemy launched a targeted drone strike on a site where civilians were celebrating the New Year. Three UAVs struck a cafe and a hotel on the Black Sea coast in Khorly. According to preliminary reports, more than 50 people were injured, and 24 were killed. The numbers are being clarified," Kherson governor Volodymyr Saldo was quoted as saying by Rossiya-24 channel. In his Telegram post, Saldo said the reconnaissance drone strike occurred just before midnight. Meanwhile, the air defence systems have intercepted and destroyed 168 Ukrainian UAVs over the regions during the New Year night, and many airports in south and central Russia were closed for hours due to the threat of drone strikes. "During the past night, 168 Ukrainian fixed-wing unmanned aer

Moscow alleged Kyiv targeted Putin's residence, a claim he raised with Donald Trump during a phone call. The CIA later briefed Trump that such an attack was unlikely to have occurred