Zelensky to meet Trump after Putin peace talks end with no deal: Ukraine president will fly to Washington to discuss next steps to end Russia's invasion
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The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
A timeline of territorial shifts in Russia's war on Ukraine
Russia's troops are continuing their slow war of attrition in eastern and northern Ukraine, even as the conflict enters a pivotal phase with a series of high-level meetings that are part of U.S. President Donald Trump 's push for peace. In the three-and-a-half years since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the front line has continued to move slowly with some unexpected strikes also redrawing the map. Here is a look at some of the main events in the conflict. Feb. 24, 2022 — Russian President Vladimir Putin launches an invasion of Ukraine from the north, east and south. Russian troops quickly reach Kyiv's outskirts, but their attempts to capture the capital and other cities in the northeast meet stiff resistance. March 5, 2022 — Russian advances toward Kyiv and Kherson reach their height. The port city of Mariupol is surrounded. April 2, 2022 — Ukraine defeats Russian forces in Kyiv after throwing them back in Chernihiv. Aug. 29, 2022 — Ukraine's first counteroffensive starts in the east and south. Sept. 30, 2022 — Russia illegally annexes Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine, even though it doesn't fully control either of the four. September to November 2022 — Ukrainian forces reclaim vast parts of the Kharkiv, Mykolaiv and Kherson regions in the first counteroffensive, including the city of Kherson itself. May 22, 2023 — Russia claims control of Bakhmut after months of fighting. June 6, 2023 — As Ukraine's long-anticipated second counteroffensive starts, the Russian-controlled Kakhovka Dam explodes, sending a wall of water into southern Ukraine and upending Ukrainian battle plans. Fall 2023 — The second Ukrainian counteroffensive ends, with little change to the front line. Feb. 18, 2024 — Russian forces take complete control of the eastern city of Avdiivka after months of combat. April 19, 2024 — The U.S. House of Representatives approves $61 billion package for Ukraine after months of delay. May 10, 2024 — Russia launches a new offensive in the northeastern region of Kharkiv, capturing a string of villages and opening a new front in the war. Aug. 6, 2024 — Ukraine launches a lightning incursion into Russia's Kursk region, holding territory along the border in an unexpected and embarrassing episode for the Kremlin. Jan. 20, 2025 — Trump is inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States. His election raises uncertainty as to whether Washington will continue to support Ukraine. April 26, 2025 — Moscow says all Ukrainian troops have been forced out from Russia's Kursk region. Several weeks later, Putin visits the area in a show of strength and is filmed speaking with local volunteers. June 1, 2025 — Ukraine strikes airfields deep inside Russia by launching drones that have been secretly stored and transported across the country on the back of trucks. The attack is codenamed Operation Spider Web. Summer 2025 — Russia and Ukraine both step up drone strikes with the ability to strike deep into each other's territory. June 30, 2025 — Russia says it has taken full control of Ukraine's Luhansk, one of four regions that Moscow illegally annexed in September 2022. July 31, 2025 — Russia says it has taken full control of the strategically important Ukrainian city of Chasiv Yar after a grinding, months-long assault. August 2025 — Russian forces continue their push in the Donetsk region, where the Kremlin has focused the bulk of military efforts, capturing small villages and closing in on Pokrovsk, a strategically important city. Aug. 15, 2025 — Putin meets Trump in Alaska for the first Russia-U.S. summit in four years to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Zelenskyy and European officials say Putin wants Ukraine to withdraw from the remaining 30% of the Donetsk region that it controls as part of a deal. Follow The Associated Press for full coverage of the war.
The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
Republican merch line scrapped after DIY giant complains
The Republican Party of Florida has pulled a line of "Deport Depot" merchandise from its online store after Home Depot objected to the unauthorized use of its brand. The merchandise, which included hats, T-shirts, and mugs, mimicked Home Depot's logo and was launched following Governor Ron DeSantis 's announcement of a new immigrant detention centre. Home Depot said it does not allow any organization to use its logo for commercial purposes. This incident follows a previous merchandise line from the Florida GOP, "Alligator Alcatraz," which also sought to fundraise from the state's immigration policies. DeSantis announced plans to convert a disused state prison into the "Deportation Depot," an immigration detention center, after a federal court order halted new construction at the "Alligator Alcatraz" site due to environmental concerns.
The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
The stakes are high as Zelenskyy and European leaders head to Washington
U.S. President Donald Trump is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House on Monday to discuss how to end Russia 's three-year war in Ukraine. Months of U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting haven't made headway, but the stakes have risen since Trump met with with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday. After that summit, Trump abandoned the requirement of reaching a ceasefire in order to hold further talks and aligned with Putin's position that negotiations should focus on a long-term settlement instead. The presence of several European leaders at the talks in Washington shows how central the conflict — and any settlement — is to wider security questions on the continent. They are looking to safeguard Ukraine and Europe more broadly from any further aggression from Moscow — but also are providing a show of support for Zelenskyy after his last visit to the White House led to an angry confrontation. The American and Ukrainian leaders are scheduled to first meet privately, without the Europeans. Here's what to know about the Washington meeting. The talks could be a pivotal moment in the war After meeting Putin in Alaska, Trump is making a big push for a breakthrough. A lot of issues need to be resolved, however, and the two sides have previously established red lines that are incompatible, including questions of whether Ukraine will cede any land to Russia, the future of Ukraine's army and whether the country will have any guarantee against further Russian aggression. In a post on social media Sunday night, Trump appeared to shift the burden for ending the war to Zelenskyy, whose country was invaded in February 2022. 'President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,' he wrote. A comprehensive peace deal could still be a long way off. Putin wants Donbas As a condition for peace, the Russian leader wants Kyiv to give up Donbas, the industrial region in eastern Ukraine that has seen some of the most intense fighting but that Russian forces have failed to capture completely. In his Sunday night post, Trump wrote that Zelenskyy should also accept Russia's illegal 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. As part of a deal, Putin has said the United States and its European allies can provide Ukraine with a security guarantee resembling NATO's collective defense pledge, according to a senior U.S. official. Trump envoy Steve Witkoff called that Russian concession 'game-changing' though he offered few details on how it would work. Ukraine has long pressed for some kind of guarantee that would prevent Russia from invading again. Ukraine won't surrender land to Russia Zelenskyy has rejected Putin's demand that Ukraine surrender the Donbas region, made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, since the Ukrainian Constitution forbids giving up territory or trading land. That also means he can't cede Crimea either. Instead, freezing the front line — which snakes roughly 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from northeastern to southeastern Ukraine — seems to be the most the Ukrainian people might accept. Russia currently holds about 20% of Ukrainian territory. Europe's security is also at stake in the talks European leaders see Ukraine's fight as a bulwark against any Kremlin ambitions to threaten other countries in eastern Europe and beyond. French President Emmanuel Macron described Ukraine as an 'outpost of our collective defense if Russia wanted to advance again.' 'If we are weak with Russia today, we'll be preparing the conflicts of tomorrow and they will impact the Ukrainians and — make no mistake — they can impact us, too.' Macron said Sunday. The European political heavyweights expected in Washington are Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. Civilians are killed as the fighting continues Ukraine has in recent months been losing more territory against Russia's bigger army, and Moscow's forces breached Ukrainian lines in a series of minor infiltrations in the Donetsk region ahead of the Alaska summit. But there is no sign of a looming, major Russian breakthrough on the front line. Both sides have also kept up their daily long-range strikes behind the front line. A Russian drone strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, killed six people late Sunday, including an 18-month-old and a 16-year-old, according to regional head Oleh Syniehubov. The attack on the northeastern city injured 20 others, including six children, he said. Russia's Defense Ministry on Monday reported intercepting 23 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and the annexed Crimean peninsula overnight. ___
