Ukraine claims drone attacks on two oil refineries
Ukraine's military claimed strikes on two oil refineries and other infrastructure in Russia in what it said was a response to recent deadly attacks by Kremlin forces on Ukrainian cities.
Novokuibyshevsk plant in Samara region and Ryazan refinery were hit, the Ukrainian General Staff said in a Saturday FB post.
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Hindustan Times
3 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
‘Only option is…': Ukrainian troops dismiss peace hopes as Trump's deadline arrives
Ukrainian soldiers on the battlefield expressed little hope for a diplomatic solution to the war, as US President Donald Trump's deadline arrived Friday for the Kremlin to make peace and he eyed a possible summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss Moscow's invasion. Intense fighting is also taking place in Ukraine's Sumy border region, where Ukrainian forces are engaging Russian soldiers to prevent reinforcements from being sent from there to Donetsk.(REUTERS) Exasperated that Putin did not heed his calls to stop bombing Ukrainian cities, Trump almost two weeks ago moved up his ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and introduce secondary tariffs targeting countries that buy Russian oil if the Kremlin did not move toward a settlement. It was unclear what steps Trump intended to take Friday. When asked Thursday whether his deadline would hold, Trump said of Putin: 'It's going to be up to him. We're going to see what he has to say. It's going to be up to him. Very disappointed.' Trump's efforts to pressure Putin into stopping the fighting have so far delivered no progress. Russia's bigger army is slowly advancing deeper into Ukraine at great cost in troops and armor while it relentlessly bombards Ukrainian cities. Russia and Ukraine are far apart on their terms for peace. Ukrainian troops say they are ready to keep fighting Ukrainian forces are locked in intense battles along the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line that snakes from northeast to southeast Ukraine. The Pokrovsk area of the eastern Donetsk region is taking the brunt of punishment as Russia seeks to break out into the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region. Ukraine has significant manpower shortages. Intense fighting is also taking place in Ukraine's northern Sumy border region, where Ukrainian forces are engaging Russian soldiers to prevent reinforcements being sent from there to Donetsk. In the Pokrovsk area of Donetsk, a commander said he believes Moscow isn't interested in peace. 'It is impossible to negotiate with them. The only option is to defeat them,' Buda, a commander of a drone unit in the Spartan Brigade, told The Associated Press. He used only his call sign, in keeping with the rules of the Ukrainian military. 'I would like them to agree and for all this to stop, but Russia will not agree to that. It does not want to negotiate. So the only option is to defeat them,' he said. In the southern Zaporizhzhia region, a howitzer commander using the call sign Warsaw, said troops are determined to thwart Russia's invasion. 'We are on our land, we have no way out,' he said. 'So we stand our ground, we have no choice.' Putin makes a flurry of phone calls The Kremlin said Friday that Putin had a phone call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, during which the Russian leader informed Xi about the results of his meeting earlier this week with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff. Kremlin officials said Xi 'expressed support for the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis on a long-term basis.' Putin is due to visit China next month. China, along with North Korea and Iran, have provided military support for Russia's war effort, the U.S. says. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on X that he also had a call with Putin to speak about the latest Ukraine developments. Trump signed an executive order Wednesday to place an additional 25% tariff on India for its purchases of Russian oil, which the American president says is helping to finance Russia's war. Putin's calls followed his phone conversations with the leaders of South Africa, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Belarus, the Kremlin said. The calls suggested to at least one analyst that Putin perhaps wanted to brief Russia's most important allies about a potential settlement that could be reached at a summit with Trump. 'It means that some sort of real peace agreement has been reached for the first time,' said Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin Moscow-based analyst. Analysts say Putin is aiming to outlast the West Trump said Thursday that he would meet with Putin even if the Russian leader would not meet with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. That stoked fears in Europe that Ukraine could be sidelined in efforts to stop the continent's biggest conflict since World War II. Trump's comments followed a statement from Putin that he hoped to meet with Trump as early as next week, possibly in the United Arab Emirates. The White House said it was still working through the details of any potential meetings. The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington think tank, said in an assessment Thursday that 'Putin remains uninterested in ending his war and is attempting to extract bilateral concessions from the United States without meaningfully engaging in a peace process.' 'Putin continues to believe that time is on Russia's side and that Russia can outlast Ukraine and the West,' it said.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Ahead of Trump–Putin talks, Zelenskyy urges support for US ceasefire efforts
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday that Ukraine and its allies should work together to back all constructive steps by the United States aimed at reaching a ceasefire. 'There have been many calls in recent days, many contacts at various levels,' Zelenskyy said on the Telegram app after speaking with the Czech prime minister. 'All are united by the understanding that the war must be brought to an end and that Europe must develop a common position on every important security aspect.' Zelenskyy's comments came ahead of a planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin 'in the coming days', as a US deadline approaches for Russia to agree to a ceasefire in its war on Ukraine or face economic penalties. On Thursday, Putin had named the United Arab Emirates as one of the possible venues for a meeting with Trump, calling it a 'suitable' location for high-level talks.
Mint
3 hours ago
- Mint
Glad to see warming US-Russia ties, Xi Jinping tells Putin as China defends Russian oil imports
Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a phone call on Friday, told Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that he is glad to see the US and Russia talking, reported news agency Bloomberg. US President Donald Trump said he would be willing to meet Putin, even if the Russian president hadn't yet agreed to also sit down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Signalling his interest in brokering a peace deal in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Trump said: 'I will do whatever I can to stop the killing.' In a phone conversation, Xi set out Beijing's position on Ukraine to Putin, describing it as a set of complex issues with no simple solutions, Bloomberg report said citing Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. The development comes shortly after China defended its imports of Russian oil as justified and legitimate, resisting threats of secondary tariffs by the US for any country that trades with Russia. 'It is legitimate and lawful for China to conduct normal economic, trade and energy cooperation with all countries around the world, including Russia,' the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday in a statement to Bloomberg News. 'We will continue to adopt reasonable energy security measures in accordance with our national interests.' China's imports from Russia rose in July to $10.06 billion — the highest level since March. But overall this year, imports from Russia are still down 7.7% compared to the same period in 2024, the report said citing the customs data. When asked about Trump's comments on Thursday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News that tariffs on China over oil purchases 'could be on the table at some point.' The US-China ties have steadied after the two sides agreed to put sky-high tariffs on hold as they seek to negotiate an agreement. Earlier this week, Trump said he was getting 'very close' to a deal with China to extend the trade truce, which is due to expire on Tuesday.
