Page 34 - Russia

Putin heads into Trump call confident Russia has upper hand against Ukraine

Putin is confident that his forces can break through Ukraine's defenses by the end of the year to take full control of four regions that he has claimed for Russia

JD Vance meets Zelenskyy in Rome to discuss Ukraine-Russia peace talks

The focus of the meeting was on the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with discussions centred on their shared objective of halting the bloodshed in Ukraine

Russia launches one of biggest drone assault on Ukraine, at least 1 killed

Russia overnight into Sunday launched its most intense drone attack on Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion in 2022. Russia fired a total of 273 exploding drones and decoys overnight, Ukraine's air force said. Of those, 88 were intercepted and a further 128 lost, likely having been electronically jammed. According to Kyiv regional Gov. Mykola Kalashnyk, one woman was killed in a drone attack on the region and three other people were wounded. The barrage came after the first direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years on Friday failed to yield a ceasefire.

Ukraine-Russia political drama masks on ground realities as war continues

Since US-brokered talks began in March, Ukraine's strategy has been to convince the Trump administration that Vladimir Putin is unreliable and that Kyiv is serious about peace. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has few options, analysts and officials say, but to draw US President Donald Trump's ire against Putin, while depending on Europe's united and stalwart support. In the latest round, Zelenskyy not only accepted Putin's offer to hold direct talks in Turkiye, after the US endorsed the idea, but raised the stakes and challenged the Russian leader to a face-to-face. The gesture failed to move Putin and the Istanbul talks were demoted to a technical meeting Friday that failed to yield substantial results on ending the war. The US has expressed frustration with the stalled talks and threatened to withdraw if results aren't achieved. On Friday, Trump told reporters after boarding Air Force One to return to Washington from Abu Dhabi that he may call Putin soon. He and I will me

Putin still holds all the cards in Ukraine, with no reasons to fold

The Ukrainians surely felt a surge of alarm on hearing Trump's latest pronouncement, that peace will only come when he and Putin meet face-to-face

Russia, Ukraine hold 1st direct peace talks in 3 yrs amid low expectations

Russia and Ukraine are due to hold their first direct peace talks in three years Friday, gathering in Istanbul for Turkish-brokered negotiations, but officials and observers expect them to yield little immediate progress on stopping the more than 3-year war. A Ukrainian delegation led by Defence Minister Rustem Umerov was due to meet with a low-level Russian team headed by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky. The latest push to end the fighting got off to a rocky start on Thursday, when Russian President Vladimir Putin spurned an offer by Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy to meet face-to-face. Delegations from the two countries also flew to different Turkish cities and put together teams of significantly different diplomatic heft for possible talks. Although expectations for a possible Putin-Zelenskyy meeting were low, the apparent lack of traction in peace efforts frustrated hopes of bold steps being taken in Turkiye toward reaching a settlement. The two sides are far apart in

European leaders to meet in Albania on Russia-Ukraine security concerns

The leaders of 47 European countries and organisations will gather Friday for a one-day summit in the Albania's capital to discuss security and defense challenges across the continent, with Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine at the top of the agenda. The theme of the European Political Community, or EPC, summit in Tirana is New Europe in a new world: unity cooperation joint action. The gathering will also address ways to improve the continent's competitiveness and tackle unauthorised migration. But the EPC will also be a setting for leaders to meet bilaterally, or in small groups, to weigh in on major security issues. The inaugural summit in Prague in 2022 saw the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia holding rare talks in an effort to ease tensions between the longtime adversaries. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is among the leaders invited to the event in Tirana. On the eve of the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin spurned an offer by Zelenskyy to meet face-to-fa

Zelenskyy names delegation for talks in Turkey, says ceasefire top priority

The Istanbul delegation will be led by Defence Minister Rustem Umerov and will include military and intelligence officials

Trump says he's not surprised Putin will skip Ukraine peace talks in Turkey

Trump had earlier suggested that he might attend the talks himself but said Thursday that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is already in Turkiye meeting with NATO officials

Putin to skip talks in Turkey, names team for Russia-Ukraine negotiations

Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky will lead the Russian delegation, which will be joined by Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin, Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin

Russian researcher at Harvard University charged for smuggling frog embryos

Petrova, 31, has been held in custody since mid-February, when customs agents detained her at Boston's Logan Airport

Russia responsible for downing MH17 in 2014, global aviation body finds

The Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation on Tuesday found Russia responsible for shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine with the loss of 298 lives more than a decade ago, in a ruling that raises the prospect of victims' families being paid compensation. A Dutch-led international investigation concluded in 2016 that the Amsterdam-to-Kuala Lumpur airliner was shot down on July 17, 2014 from Ukrainian territory held by separatist rebels using a Buk missile system delivered from Russia. Moscow denies any involvement in the MH17 tragedy. The Netherlands and Australian governments brought the case against Moscow before the Montreal-based global aviation agency in 2022, and on Tuesday welcomed the verdict. The International Court of Justice wasn't an option, because Russia doesn't recognise The Hague, Netherlands-based court's jurisdiction. Council finds that Russia violated the Chicago Convention The council found that Russia had violated the Convent

UN aviation body indicts Russia for 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines MH17

The International Civil Aviation Organization held Russia accountable for the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, confirming its role in the tragic incident that killed 298 passengers

Russia eyes long-term coal exports to India amid 500-year reserve boost

Russia's coal reserves are enough to meet demand for more than five centuries and the country sees vast potential for cooperation with India, Russian Energy Ministry Officials here have said. The new environment-friendly and safe coal mining hubs will provide up to 250 million tonnes of additional production capacity by 2025, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said in an article. Russia is one of the leading coal suppliers to India by volume, Novak, who holds the rank of Deputy Prime Minister in the Russian cabinet, said. Russian coal production totalled 443.5 million tonnes in 2024, with 196.2 tonnes exported. In the article published in the latest issue of Energy Policy magazine, Novak writes that by 2050, the industry will be made up of high-tech, modern enterprises operating under strict environmental standards. Installed coal-power generation capacity in Siberia and the Far East is expected to reach about 38 GW. We also plan to introduce clean coal' technologies and ...

Russian drones attack Ukraine after Kremlin turns down ceasefire proposal

Russia launched more than 100 Shahed and decoy drones at Ukraine in nighttime attacks, the Ukrainian air force said Monday, after the Kremlin rejected an unconditional 30-day ceasefire in the more than three-year war. There was no response from the Kremlin, meanwhile, to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's challenge for Russia's President Vladimir Putin to meet him for face-to-face peace talks in Turkey this week. The US and European governments have made a concerted push to stop the fighting, which has killed tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides as well as more than 10,000 Ukrainian civilians. Russia's invading forces have taken around one-fifth of Ukraine. In a flurry of diplomatic developments over the weekend, Russia shunned the ceasefire proposal tabled by the US and European leaders but offered direct talks with Ukraine on Thursday. Ukraine, along with European allies, had demanded Russia accept a ceasefire starting Monday before holding peace talks. Moscow ...

Trump's Ukraine peace push coming to a head as Zelenskyy challenges Putin

Following a weekend of hectic diplomacy, Zelenskyy said he will travel to Istanbul on May 15 where Putin has proposed direct negotiations between the two countries

Zelenskyy hopes for ceasefire, says he'll be 'waiting for Putin' in Turkey

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy said he is hoping for a full and temporary ceasefire with Russia starting Monday, adding he would be in Turkiye to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin personally. His comments came after US President Donald Trump insisted Ukraine accept Russia's latest offer of holding direct talks in Turkiye on Thursday. Ukraine, along with European allies, had demanded Russia accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on Monday before holding talks, but Moscow effectively rejected the proposal and called for direct negotiations instead. It was not clear if Zelenskyy was conditioning his presence in Turkiye on the Monday ceasefire holding. We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy. There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Trkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses, he wrote on X. Trump

Zelenskyy welcomes Russian overtures, insists ceasefire before peace talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he is pleased to see that Russia is finally engaging with finding an end to the war, but there must be a ceasefire before peace talks can start. Calling it a positive sign, he said that the entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time. And the very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire. Russian President Vladimir Putin in remarks to the media overnight effectively rejected the ceasefire proposal and proposed restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15 instead.

1 mn Ukrainian refugees in Poland, yet candidates vow to put poles first

In the early months of 2022, as Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, millions of Ukrainians mostly women and children fled to Poland, where they were met with an extraordinary outpouring of sympathy. Ukrainian flags appeared in windows. Polish volunteers rushed to the border with food, diapers, SIM cards. Some opened their homes to complete strangers. In the face of calamity, Poland became not just a logistical lifeline for Ukraine, but a paragon of human solidarity. Three years later, Poland remains one of Ukraine's staunchest allies a hub for Western arms deliveries and a vocal defender of Kyiv's interests. But at home, the tone toward Ukrainians has shifted. Nearly a million Ukrainian refugees remain in Poland, with roughly 2 million Ukrainian citizens overall in the nation of 38 million people. Many of them arrived before the war as economic migrants. As Poland heads into a presidential election on May 18, with a second round expected June 1, the growing fatigue w

Putin proposes direct talks with Ukraine on May 15 'without preconditions'

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday proposed to restart direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15 "without preconditions". Speaking to reporters in the Kremlin in the early hours of Sunday, Putin proposed to "restart" peace talks Russia and Ukraine held in 2022. His remarks came after leaders from four major European countries threatened to ratchet up pressure on Putin if he does not accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine that they offered on Saturday in a strong show of unity with Kyiv.