Page 6 - Vladimir Putin

US, Russia threats to resume nuclear tests raise global security fears

The United States and Russia have both recently threatened to resume nuclear testing, alarming the international community and jeopardising a global norm against such tests. Experts say these threats from the world's two largest nuclear powers put pressure on nonproliferation efforts and endanger global peace and security. Because of other countries' testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis, US President Donald Trump said in a post on his Truth Social site at the end of October. That process will begin immediately. Moscow quickly responded. Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Security Council that should the US or any signatory to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty conduct nuclear weapons tests, Russia would be under obligation to take reciprocal measures. Here's a look at what a resumption of nuclear testing could mean. The treaty established a norm against nuclear ...

Rubio, Witkoff to meet Ukrainian negotiators as Trump pushes to broker deal

Top Trump administration officials are meeting Ukrainian negotiators in Florida this weekend, pushing to broker an end to Russia's war in Ukraine and setting the stage for key talks planned this week in Moscow with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President Donald Trump, were expected to sit down with a Ukrainian delegation to further hash out the details of a proposed peace framework talks that come at a sensitive moment for Ukraine as it continues to push back against Russian forces that invaded the country in 2022. On Friday, just before the Florida sit-down, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the resignation of his powerful chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, who up until that point had been the country's lead negotiator in talks with the US. The announcement came after Yermak's home was searched by anti-corruption investigators. Zelenskyy's government has been roiled by ...

Russia to ratify key military pact with India ahead of Putin's state visit

The Russian lower house of Parliament is set to ratify a crucial military pact with India ahead of President Vladimir Putin's state visit on December 4-5 for the 23rd bilateral summit, according to reports. Signed on February 18, 2025 in Moscow by the Indian Ambassador Vinay Kumar and erstwhile Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS) is to enhance military cooperation between the two strategic partners. The State Duma has uploaded the RELOS in its ratification database along with the Russian government's note and said that the Russian government believes that the ratification of the document will strengthen cooperation between Russia and India in the military sphere, official news agency TASS reported. The RELOS agreement aims to streamline coordination for joint military exercises, disaster relief and other operations. According to local defence sources, RELOS will enhance military cooperation by simplifying procedures for jo

Raft of agreements may be signed during Putin's India visit next week

Both nations look to deepen defence cooperation, and expand trade ties in 'national currencies'

Hungary's Viktor Orbn to meet Russia's Putin in Moscow for energy talks

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbn is visiting Moscow for energy talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a rare step from a European leader while Russia's war grinds on in Ukraine. The trip to Moscow is the second since last year for Orbn, who is widely considered Putin's closest partner among all European Union leaders. In comments to state media before departing for Moscow early Friday, Orbn said the focus of his talks with Putin would be Hungary's continued access to "cheap Russian oil and gas, resources that have come under sanctions by the US government. Hungary remains among the only EU countries to continue importing large quantities of Russian fossil fuels, and has strongly opposed efforts by the bloc to wean its member nations off Russian energy supplies. Earlier this month, Orbn travelled to Washington for a meeting with US President Donald Trump where he succeeded in securing an exemption to sanctions the Trump administration placed on Russian energy companies Luko

Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit India on Dec 4-5: Details

Vladimir Putin will visit India on December 4-5 for the annual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where both sides will review ties and India will seek clarity on delayed S-400 deliveries

US-Ukraine draft plan could form basis for future peace deal, says Putin

US and Ukrainian negotiators held talks on the latest US-backed peace plan in Geneva on Sunday

Russia denies big concessions to Ukraine after leaked US envoy call: Report

Trump said on Tuesday Witkoff would meet Putin and that Jared Kushner, who helped negotiate the deal that brought about an uneasy ceasefire in the Gaza war between Israel and the Palestinian

Inside Ukraine peace deal: What US, Russia and Kyiv agree on, and reject

Ukraine, the US and Russia are closer to a peace framework, but key issues like territory, security guarantees and military limits remain unresolved

Trump sending his envoys to see Putin, Ukrainians after fine-tuning plan

President Donald Trump said Tuesday his plan to end the war in Ukraine has been "fine-tuned" and he's sending envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to meet with Ukrainian officials. He suggested he could eventually meet with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but not until further progress has been made in negotiations. "I will be briefed on all progress made, along with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles," Trump added in the social media posting. "I look forward to hopefully meeting with President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages." Trump spoke after US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll held talks late Monday and throughout Tuesday with Russian officials in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, to discuss the emerging proposal. "The talks are going w

Witkoff advised Russia on how to pitch Ukraine peace plan to Trump

In an Oct 14 phone call that lasted a little over five minutes, Witkoff advised Yuri Ushakov, Putin's top foreign policy aide, on how the Russian leader should broach the issue with Trump

Ukraine backs 'essence' of peace deal, but sensitive issues linger

Zelenskiy could visit the United States in the next few days to finalise a deal with Trump, Kyiv's national security chief Rustem Umerov said, though no such trip was confirmed from the US side

Russia strikes homes and energy sites in Kyiv despite US peace push

Russia launched a wave of attacks on Ukraine's capital Kyiv early Tuesday, striking residential buildings and energy infrastructure, according to video footage and local authorities. A residential building in the central Pechersk district and another in Kyiv's eastern district of Dniprovskyi were badly damaged, Mayor Vitalii Kitschko said. Video footage posted to Telegram showed a large fire spread through multiple floors of the nine-story building in Dniprovskyi. At least four people were injured, the head of Kyiv city administration, Tymor Tkachenko, said. Ukraine's energy ministry said that energy infrastructure had been hit, without specifying what type or the extent of the damage. The Russian attack followed talks between US and Ukraine representatives in Geneva on Sunday about a US-Russia brokered peace plan. Oleksandr Bevz, a delegate from the Ukrainian side, told The Associated Press on Monday that the talks had been "very constructive" and the two sides were able to discu

US-Ukraine talks make headway as Trump's peace plan sees key revisions

Rubio said the discussions were "probably the most productive and meaningful" so far, noting that the 28-point peace plan proposed by President Donald Trump is still being refined

Ukraine holds talks with Western allies on peace plan proposed by US

Talks between Ukraine and its Western allies on a US-proposed peace plan to end Russia's invasion are underway in Geneva, Ukrainian officials said Sunday. The head of the Ukrainian delegation, presidential chief of staff Andrii Yermak, wrote on social media that they held their first meeting with the national security advisers from the UK, France and Germany. The next meeting is with the US delegation. We are in a very constructive mood, Yermak said. We continue working together to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine. The 28-point blueprint drawn up by the US to end the nearly four-year war has sparked alarm in Kyiv and European capitals. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the American support it needs.

Putin's upcoming India visit to be grand and fruitful, says Yuri Ushakov

President Vladimir Putin's forthcoming visit to India will be extremely grand and "fruitful", Russian State TV said on Sunday quoting Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov. We and the Indian side are actively preparing for the visit and hope it will be fruitful in every sense. It will be an extremely grand (visit) because it's even called a state visit, Ushakov said, in an interview to VGTRK Russian State TV's Kremlin correspondent Pavel Zarubin. The visit provides an opportunity to put into practice the agreement between the prime minister of India and the Russian president that they will meet annually for a thorough discussion on both bilateral affairs and current international issues, Ushakov said. According to him the dates will be simultaneously announced in New Delhi and Moscow closer to the visit. Last Monday while welcoming External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Putin's New Delhi visit will take place in three weeks. Sou

US plan for Ukraine could form basis for final peace settlement, says Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday cautiously welcomed a US proposal to end Moscow's nearly four-year war in Ukraine, saying it could form the basis of a final peace settlement." Putin said Moscow had received the plan, which he called a new version and a modernised plan," which he said could form the basis for a final peace settlement. "But this text has not been discussed with us in any substantive way, and I can guess why, Putin said in Moscow. "The US administration has so far been unable to secure the consent of the Ukrainian side. Ukraine is against it. Apparently, Ukraine and its European allies are still under illusions and the dream of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia on the battlefield. Earlier Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an address that his country is at a pivotal point in its four-year fight to defeat Russia's invasion, with Ukrainians potentially facing a choice between standing up for their sovereign rights or losing American

Trump's 28-point Ukraine peace plan would grant key Russian demands

Under the terms of the plan, the Ukrainian regions of Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk would be "recognised as de facto Russian, including by the United States

Trump working on '28-point' Russia-Ukraine peace roadmap: What's in it?

Russian officials say they are 'hopeful' about the 28-point plan being developed with Moscow, while Ukraine and its allies await clarity as Washington pushes renewed diplomacy

Jaishankar calls on Putin, conveys PM Modi's greetings ahead of summit

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday called on Russian President Vladimir Putin along with other heads of delegation of SCO member states. Jaishankar is here to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Heads of State Council meeting. "Called on President Putin along with other Heads of SCO Delegations this afternoon," Jaishankar said on social media. The meeting in the Kremlin was also attended by Russian PM Mikhail Mishustin, Iranian Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref, Prime Ministers Alexander Turchin of Belarus, Oljas Bektenov of Kazakhstan, Adylbek Kasymaliyev of Kyrgyzstan, Kokhir Rasulzoda of Tajikistan and Abdulla Aripov of Uzbekistan, as well as Pakistan Deputy PM Ishaq Dar and SCO Secretary General Nurlan Yermekbayev. On Monday, Jaishankar held extensive talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. The meeting comes as the two sides prepare for President Putin's visit to India for the 23rd annual summit. The Russian president is expected to visi