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US refuses to blame Russia for Ukraine war, splitting with European allies

In a dramatic shift in transatlantic relations under President Donald Trump, the United States split with its European allies by refusing to blame Russia for its invasion of Ukraine in votes on three UN resolutions Monday seeking an end to the three-year war. In the UN General Assembly, the US joined Russia in voting against a Europe-backed Ukrainian resolution that calls out Moscow's aggression and demands an immediate withdrawal of Russian troops. The US then abstained from voting on its own competing resolution after Europeans, led by France, succeeded in amending it to make clear Russia was the aggressor. The voting was taking place as Trump was hosting French President Emmanuel Macron in Washington. It was a major setback for the Trump administration in the 193-member world body, whose resolutions are not legally binding but are seen as a barometer of world opinion. The US then pushed for a vote on its original draft in the more powerful UN Security Council, where resolutions

Donald Trump expresses hope Russia's war in Ukraine is nearing endgame

President Donald Trump said he was hopeful that Russia's war in Ukraine was nearing an endgame as he met on Monday with French President Emmanuel Macron on the third anniversary of the invasion. Trump, in broad-ranging comments on the state of the conflict, said he believed Russian President Vladimir Putin would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine to keep the peace. He also expressed hope that the conflict could end within weeks and that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would soon come to the U.S. to sign a deal to give the U.S. access to Ukraine's critical minerals to help repay some of the $180 billion in American aid that's been sent to Kyiv since the start of the war. It looks like we're getting very close, Trump told reporters at the start of his bilateral meeting with Macron. He added that Zelenskyy could potentially visit Washington this week or next to sign the deal. Trump and Macron earlier on Monday participated in a virtual meeting with fellow Group of Seven ..

After three years of war, Trump may give Russian economy a lifeline

US President Donald Trump is pushing for a quick deal to end the war in Ukraine, alarming Washington's European allies by leaving them and Ukraine out of initial talks with Russia

US pressures Ukraine to drop UN resolution for Russian troop withdrawal

The US has pressured Ukraine to withdraw its European-backed UN resolution demanding an immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine in favour of an American proposal that does not mention Moscow's invasion, a US official and a European diplomat said Sunday. But Ukraine refused to pull its draft resolution, and the UN General Assembly will vote on it Monday, the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, two European diplomats said. The 193-nation General Assembly then is expected to vote on the U.S. draft resolution, according to the diplomats and the US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because private negotiations are still ongoing. The Trump administration is also seeking a vote on its proposal in the more powerful UN Security Council. The 15-nation council will meet Monday afternoon on Ukraine, and late Sunday it scheduled the vote immediately afterward, but the European diplomats said it could be pushed to Tuesday at Russia's request. The duelling .

Russia prepares for Trump-Putin summit as US ends Moscow's isolation

Preparations are underway for a face-to-face meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin, Russia's deputy foreign minister said Saturday, marking a dramatic shift away from Western isolation of Moscow over its war in Ukraine. Speaking to Russian state media, Sergei Ryabkov said a possible Putin-Trump summit could involve broad talks on global issues, not just the war in Ukraine. The question is about starting to move towards normalising relations between our countries, finding ways to resolve the most acute and potentially very, very dangerous situations, of which there are many, Ukraine among them, he said. But he said efforts to organise such a meeting are at an early stage, and that making it happen will require the most intensive preparatory work." Ryabkov added that US and Russian envoys could meet within the next two weeks, to pave the way for further talks between senior officials. Russian and US representatives on Tuesday agreed to start working .

'Had very good talks' with Putin, but Zelensky 'not important', says Trump

Earlier, US President Donald Trump had called Zelensky a 'dictator without elections' following the Ukrainian leader's frustration over being excluded from discussions between US and Russian officials

After years of firm support, 10 days reshaped US approach to Ukraine

As Ukraine approached the three-year mark of Russia's full-scale invasion, the country's hoped-for path to a favourable and lasting peace was upended in a matter of days by the administration of US President Donald Trump. Kyiv had benefited from years of staunch support by its allies in the United States and Europe which had provided crucial military and financial support to help defend against Moscow's grinding incursions. But when Trump held a lengthy phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week undoing years of US policy to isolate the Russian leader over his aggression it was taken as a signal in Kyiv and other European capitals that their alliance to contain Moscow was fraying. Here's a timeline of events: Wednesday, Feb 12 On their 90-minute call, Trump and Putin agreed to begin negotiations to end the war, a move that was met with jubilation in Russia but which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had warned would be very dangerous " if Ukraine were excl

US offers UN resolution on Ukraine war that falls short of EU statement

The United States has proposed a draft UN resolution that stops far short of a competing European-backed statement demanding an immediate withdrawal of all of Moscow's forces from Ukraine. Both are timed to the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which falls on Monday, when the UN General Assembly will vote on the nonbinding resolutions. It sets up a clash between the United States and Europe as the strength of the transatlantic alliance has been called into question over the Trump administration's extraordinary turnaround on Russia, opening negotiations with Moscow after years of isolation as the US looks to broker a rapid end to the war. European leaders were dismayed that their officials and those from Ukraine weren't invited to preliminary US-Russia talks last week in Saudi Arabia. The very short US draft resolution offers mourning for "the tragic loss of life throughout the Russia-Ukraine conflict" and "implores a swift end to the conflict and further urges a ...

Zelenskyy ready for strong investment, security deal with US president

Zelenskyy also spoke about his meeting with Trump's envoy Keith Kellogg in his address to the nation. He also said that Ukraine needs strong agreements with the US that truly work

European troops, US support for Ukraine plan faces many challenges

As the US and Russia push ahead so far without Ukraine at the table on talks to end the war, political and military leaders in Europe are fleshing out details of a plan for European forces to help ensure Moscow does not attack again. After months of quiet discussions, the proposal has become increasingly public. It will likely be on the agenda when British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, two major backers of the idea, visit Washington on separate days next week for talks with President Donald Trump. Starmer, who will visit Thursday, has stressed that the force won't work without US military might to back it up. Persuading Trump to provide it could be a tall order. What is the plan? The security guarantee that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy really wants is NATO membership. European members of the military alliance still back that goal, but the US looks to have taken it off the table, along with Ukrainian hopes of regaining the fifth of its territor

Trump, Putin meeting depends on progress to end Ukraine war: Marco Rubio

Trump's bid to try and end the war left Ukraine and European allies concerned they would be cut out of any peace talks, but Rubio said the US has consulted with all

Republican lawmaker defies Trump, vows to stand against concession to Putin

We will use every lever and every vote at our disposal, to prevent Communist Dictator Vladimir Putin from being rewarded for his illegal invasion, Fitzpatrick said

Trump's outreach to Putin disrupts US-Ukraine policy and Nato ties

The key element of Mr Trump's deal appears to centre on veiled threats to withdraw US military aid to Ukraine to persuade Kyiv to cede to Russia territory

Ukraine won't be shut out but US-Russia trust key to peace deal, says Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday he would like to meet with US President Donald Trump but the meeting needs to be prepared to make it productive. I would like to have a meeting, but it needs to be prepared so that it brings results, Putin said in televised remarks. He added that he would be pleased to meet Trump. He hailed the talks between senior Russian and US officials in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday, noting that the parties agreed to restore the tattered diplomatic relations. Putin also said that Trump has acknowledged that the Ukrainian settlement could take longer than he had initially hoped.

Trump says he may meet Putin this month, dismisses Ukraine's concerns

He brushed aside Ukraine's concern about being left out of the meeting, saying Kyiv could have made a deal with Russia three years ago to avert the invasion by Moscow

Deeper look at talks between US, Russian officials and what comes next

Top US and Russian officials had their most extensive high-level engagement since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine almost three years ago, meeting for nearly four hours on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia as President Donald Trump sought to advance his goal of ending the fighting in Ukraine and mending ties with Moscow. The delegations led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the discussions were a good first step. They agreed to set up teams to look into restoring staffing at the US and Russian embassies in Moscow and Washington that have been decimated by a series of tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions. The effort is aimed at using those channels to support Ukraine peace negotiations and to explore ways to restart economic and global cooperation. However, the rapprochement may come at a cost to the transatlantic alliance of the US and Europe and significantly damage Washington's standing with Ukraine as well as with other nations counting on US

Russia wants to stop barbarianism, senseless war: US Prez Donald Trump

On being asked about the talks between US officials and Russian representatives over ending war, Trump said that he is 'much more confident' and 'the talks were very good'

Top Russian, US officials meet for talks on Ukraine war without Kyiv

Top Russian and American officials met in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to begin talks on improving ties and negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine. The meeting at the Diriyah Palace in Riyadh marks another pivotal step by the Trump administration to reverse US policy on isolating Russia and is meant to pave the way for a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump earlier this month upended US policy toward Ukraine and Russia by saying he and Putin had agreed to begin negotiations on ending the war. Ukrainian officials aren't taking part in the meeting, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that his country won't accept the outcome if Kyiv doesn't take part. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov arrived in the Saudi capital on Monday night. Ushakov said the talks would be purely bilateral and would not include Ukrainian officials. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national .

No seat for Ukraine as US and Russia hold crucial talks in Saudi Arabia

Top diplomats from the US and Russia are set to meet in Saudi Arabia, with Ukraine left out of the talks as tensions rise over the ongoing conflict and efforts for peace

European leaders hold emergency talks, fear Trump leaving age-old allies

European leaders sought to form a united front Monday at emergency talks in Paris, called after a US diplomatic blitz on Ukraine which has thrown a once-solid alliance into turmoil and left the Europeans questioning the reliability of their key transatlantic partner. Shortly before the meeting, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke with US President Donald Trump, but Macron's office would not disclose details about the 20-minute discussion. Leaders of Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and the European Union met at the Elysee Palace for talks on Europe's security quandary. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte was also there. Since last week, top US officials from the Trump administration, on their first visit to Europe, left the impression that Washington was ready to embrace the Kremlin while it cold-shouldered many of its age-old European allies. The US to leave Europe out of the negotiating table Gen Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy fo