Ukrainian ambassador praises gear change in Germany under Merz
"There were clear results," Oleksii Makeiev told radio station WDR5 on Friday, referring to Wednesday's meeting between Zelensky and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
"And on a personal level, it went very well," he said.
"We are experiencing a new tone: more direct, clearer, more committed. The personal relationship between my president and Chancellor Merz is one of trust. And these are important things for diplomacy," Makeiev said.
He added that he has "rarely experienced such an atmosphere."
During the meeting, Merz promised Zelensky that Germany would support Ukraine in the production of long-range missiles.
However, Germany still does not plan to supply Kiev with its much-discussed Taurus cruise missiles, and there will be no further public discussion on the issue, Merz said.
Merz's predecessor, Olaf Scholz, clearly refused to supply Taurus missiles to Ukraine. He repeatedly emphasized that Germany must not be drawn into the war.
Since taking office, Merz has struck a tougher tone towards Russia.
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CBS News
a minute ago
- CBS News
Gabbard barred sharing intelligence on Russia-Ukraine negotiations with "Five Eyes" partners
Washington — As Russia's war in Ukraine rages on despite high-level meetings to discuss a possible path to peace, CBS News has learned that Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, issued a directive weeks ago to the U.S. intelligence community ordering that all information regarding the Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations not be shared with U.S.-allied intelligence partners. The memo, dated July 20 and signed by Gabbard, directed agencies to not share information with the so-called Five Eyes, the post-World War II intelligence alliance comprising the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, multiple U.S. intelligence officials told CBS News. They spoke under condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive national security matters. The officials said the directive classified all analysis and information related to the volatile Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations as "NOFORN," or no foreign dissemination, meaning the information could not be shared with any other country or foreign nationals. The only information that could be shared was information that had already been publicly released. The memo also limited distribution of material regarding peace talks to within the agencies that created or originated the intelligence. The memo does not seem to prevent the sharing of diplomatic information gathered by other means separate from the U.S. intelligence community, or military operational information unrelated to the talks — such as the details the U.S. shares with the Ukrainian military to aid in their defensive operations. Contacted by CBS News, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence referred questions to the White House, which did not respond. "In general, the value of the Fives Eyes intelligence partnership is that when we are making and they are making policy decisions, we can both augment each other's intelligence and therefore know more about the plans, intentions, and capabilities of our adversaries," explained Steven Cash, a former intelligence officer at the Central Intelligence Agency and Department of Homeland Security. "Among the reasons for that sort of default is the expectation that we and the other four are all sitting on the same side of the table with some other adversary on the other side," Cash said. He said it's important for the allies to have "a common intelligence picture" so policymakers and negotiators "can coordinate our positions and get the best deal we can, or fight the best war we can." Cash is the executive director of The Steady State, a nonprofit organization made up of former U.S. intelligence and national security professionals and government officials concerned with threats to American democracy. In March 1946, Winston Churchill spoke of the "special relationship" between the U.S. and the U.K. and the threat of the "Iron Curtain" that had "descended across the Continent." The United States and Britain first forged their intelligence alliance in secret, signing an agreement to pool information as a bulwark against the Soviet Union. Later, Canada, Australia and New Zealand joined the arrangement, transforming what began as a bilateral pact into the five-nation network that would come to be known as the Five Eyes. But now, nearly 80 years later, some former U.S. government officials warn that the breadth of Gabbard's order could undermine the intelligence community alliance — discouraging analysts from sharing insights and eroding trust among allies who have long relied on open exchanges to form a common picture of global threats and paths to successful negotiation. Cash and CBS News national security contributor Sam Vinograd, a former homeland security official, said Five Eyes often has intelligence that helps the U.S. produce comprehensive intelligence assessments, especially about Russia, given the access Five Eyes partners have to other intelligence sources. "Shutting our most trusted partners off from intelligence assessments could have a chilling effect on critical intelligence sharing if our partners believe they're being shut out of key access — including on key matters in their region. They could decide to take similar steps toward the U.S.," Vinograd said. She added, "Policy-wise, if our Five Eyes partners think they are being shut off from key information. They could choose to create new structures and channels without us. A lack of full collaboration with our closest partners could lead them to discuss matters impacting our national security without our input and perspective." Still, other former intelligence officers contend Gabbard's directive is commonplace within the U.S. intelligence community, and the criticism is much ado about nothing. They say both the U.S. and the other members of the intelligence alliance frequently withhold information from each other in diverging interest areas. Ezra Cohen, a Hudson Institute fellow who served as the acting undersecretary of defense for intelligence at the Pentagon, suggested that condemnation of Gabbard's memo likely stems from a dislike of Trump administration policies and her leadership as director of national intelligence. "There is a lot of information we do not share even with our Five Eyes partners, and it works in the reverse. There's a lot of U.K. eyes-only material. There's a lot of Australian eyes-only material," said Cohen. "Our interests are not always aligned with our Five Eyes partners," Cohen said. "And where we have diverging interests, and it's not just Ukraine, we absolutely mark things NOFORN." He admits it's possible the directive could result in depriving the U.S. of information, but maintains these types of decisions have historically been the norm between all of the Five Eyes members. He said the claim that the directive represents "a chilling of the relationship" between the U.S. and Five Eyes seems "a little bit like faux outrage." As intelligence work and diplomatic efforts continue, largely out of the public eye, the war in Ukraine continues to take a deadly toll. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned Moscow Thursday for launching hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles in an attack overnight, "as if nothing had changed at all. As if there were no efforts by the world to stop this war."
Newsweek
a minute ago
- Newsweek
Donald Trump Compares Himself to Richard Nixon in New Post
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. President Donald Trump drew comparisons with former Republican President Richard Nixon when he posted a photo of himself pointing at Russian President Vladimir Putin in a side-by-side with Nixon doing the same with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. Trump has previously compared himself publicly to Nixon in interviews, saying he learned from Nixon and contrasted his own political support to what he described as Nixon's lack of backing during his downfall, according to Forbes. Newsweek reached out to the White House by email on Thursday for comment. Why It Matters Trump met with Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, last week to discuss the invasion of Ukraine and seek a way towards a peace deal. Many criticized the president both for his red carpet rollout to greet the Russian president as well as the aftermath, which saw Trump walk away without a deal after saying that he would see such a result as a failure. The two world leaders spoke for two-and-a-half hours and addressed details of a potential ceasefire, and they took no questions immediately after the talks ended. US President Donald Trump smiles during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 18, 2025. US President Donald Trump smiles during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 18, 2025. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images What To Know Trump has vigorously defended his summit with Putin, writing on Truth Social on Sunday: "It's incredible how the Fake News violently distorts the TRUTH when it comes to me. There is NOTHING I can say or do that would lead them to write or report honestly about me. I had a great meeting in Alaska on Biden's stupid War, a war that should have never happened!!!" However, the criticism has persisted even as Trump works towards a potential trilateral meeting that would bring Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky face-to-face for the first time since the invasion started in 2022. Trump again defended his "peace through strength" approach by posting a picture of himself and Putin in a mirror to one of Nixon and Khrushchev. He wrote nothing in the post. Photo comparison posted by President Donald Trump on Truth Social showing himself and Russian President Vladimir Putin in juxtaposition with a photo of President Richard Nixon meeting Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. Photo comparison posted by President Donald Trump on Truth Social showing himself and Russian President Vladimir Putin in juxtaposition with a photo of President Richard Nixon meeting Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. via President Donald Trump Truth Social On Truth Social, the president's native platform, many praised Trump with their own meme responses, with many of those posts repeating the "peace through strength" line that the president has used in the past while also denigrating former Democratic Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden. On X, opinions varied more, with some finding the comparison unflattering – not because of Nixon's history, which saw him resign from the presidency after his involvement in the Watergate scandal emerged, but because of the way Nixon and Trump have each approached their respective Russian counterparts. Phillips P. Obrien, a professor of Strategic Studies at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, wrote that the "remarkable thing about these pictures Trump just tweeted is that he thinks people won't see the difference between Nixon and Khrushchev disagreeing and he and Putin joking. Putin is clearly laughing." Another user highlighted that Khrushchev and Putin themselves are representative of different geopolitical approaches, with Khruschev responsible for returning Crimea to Ukraine while Putin annexed the region in 2014. What People Are Saying President Donald Trump, in a subsequent Truth Social message, wrote: "It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invader's country. It's like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offense. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia. Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND. How did that work out? Regardless, this is a war that would have NEVER happened if I were President - ZERO CHANCE. Interesting times ahead!!! President DJT." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X, in part: "Now, each day carves out the contours of future security architecture for Ukraine. Weapons, funds, cooperation with partners, forces on the ground, in the air, and at sea. And every day, there will be new steps taken by partners to support Ukraine. Thank you to everybody helping." French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this week wrote on X: "In Washington, alongside President Zelensky and with our partners, we reiterated to President Trump our commitment to continue uniting our efforts for a strong and lasting peace that preserves Ukraine's interests and the security of Europeans. This peace will necessarily involve providing Ukraine with robust security guarantees, on which we have decided to work very concretely with the United States. It is also clear in our minds that pressure on Russia must continue as long as this peace has not been established."
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Germany to ease burden on electricity consumers from 2026
German electricity consumer prices are set to ease next year due to a €6.5 billion ($7.55 billion) government subsidy to finance transmission costs, sources in the Economics Ministry said on Thursday. The aim is to soften the impact of network charges on electricity consumers, the sources said, adding that the ministry has introduced a draft bill for internal government consultation. Structurally high electricity prices are a significant challenge for Germany's embattled economy and a burden on consumers. The subsidy is to be financed from a special government fund for climate and energy transformation. The subsidy for transmission network costs will now be implemented for the year 2026, with further relief in future years to be funded to the tune of €6.5 billion from the government pot, according to the ministerial sources. Details of how the relief will be passed on to consumers are still to be discussed by the conservative-led government coalition under Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The coalition agreement states that the goal is to permanently cap network charges. The reduction of network charges is part of a package of government measures. The Cabinet has already set plans in motion to relieve gas customers. Specifically, companies and consumers are to be exempted from the cost of building up gas reservoirs, the so-called gas storage levy. There are also proposals to make an electricity tax reduction for the manufacturing industry, agreed earlier this year, permanent from 2026. However, a reduction in electricity taxes for all, as pledged in the new government's coalition agreement, is not to come for now. The decision to limit the tax reduction to industry, due to budgetary constraints, sparked widespread criticism. Network charges, which help finance the costly expansion of electricity networks, have risen significantly as a component of the electricity price. The charges are incurred for the use of the electricity transmission network. They are then passed on to consumers by energy suppliers. The subsidy for transmission network costs is intended to dampen the increase in network charges related to the transition to green energy sources, according to the draft bill. "The relief must be passed on to customers through the network operators," Economic Affairs Minister Katherina Reiche told dpa last month of the planned measure. "My clear expectation of the industry is: The relief must reach the customer." Solve the daily Crossword
