Zelenskyy Meets European Leaders Ahead of Virtual Meeting With Trump
Zelenskyy is due to meet with Merz and the leaders of several other European Union and NATO countries ahead of a virtual call with Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
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The Hill
3 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump must not give anything away in Alaska
Many commentators have likened President Trump's meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska to the 1938 Munich meeting between Adolf Hitler, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Premier Eduard Daladier over the fate of Czechoslovakia. There certainly are similarities. The Munich meeting took place without the presence of Czech President Edvard Benes, and the Alaska summit will not include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. And there is widespread fear, especially in Europe, that Trump will yield to Putin's demands for Ukrainian territory — both that which his armed forces have already seized in Crimea and the oblasts of Luhansk and Donetsk, and those still held by Ukraine there and in the oblasts of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. As the Institute for the Study of War points out, should Putin successfully obtain control of all four oblasts — and especially all of Donetsk, which contains what the Institute terms Ukraine's 'fortress belt' — he would control several potential vectors of attack on the remainder of Ukraine. This would enable Russian forces to seize the country, just as Hitler ultimately took all of Czechoslovakia. Yet there are significant differences as well. Hitler was determined to seize the Sudetenland, and ultimately all of Czechoslovakia, without firing a shot. He had already effectively incorporated Austria that way in the 1936 Anschluss. And he succeeded in doing so. While Putin also wants to be handed over territories that his forces have not yet occupied without having to fight for them — in this regard following Hitler's precedent — he faces a very different set of circumstances. Russian forces have been fighting a determined Ukrainian military since February 2022. Moreover, despite ceaseless and heavy bombardment of Ukrainian formations and military infrastructure, coupled with terror attacks on cities and civilian institutions, Russia has gained remarkably little territory over the past three years of intense combat. Furthermore, just as Putin mistakenly thought that a Spetsnaz (special forces) attack on Kyiv at the start of the war would decapitate the Ukrainian leadership and install a pliant pro-Russian regimen, he also appears to have erroneously thought that Russian-speaking Ukrainians, many of them in the four provinces he seeks to annex, would also take Moscow's side. Yet Russia's attacks have actually united most of Ukraine's population, most notably those selfsame Russian speakers who once held positive attitudes toward Moscow. For its part, Ukraine not only has limited Russian advances in over three years of war, it has inflicted severe damage to Russia's military infrastructure, hit targets deep inside Russia including Moscow and has killed or wounded hundreds of thousands of Russian soldiers and North Korean personnel. Still another difference relates to Ukraine's neighbors and partners. Whereas the leading European powers in 1938 hastily acquiesced to Hitler's demands, France, Germany, Britain, the Nordic and Baltic states and the European Union have all made it clear that they stand by Kyiv's determination to preserve its territorial integrity and that Ukraine must have a seat at any table that would determine its future. In addition, NATO has not closed the door on the prospect, however remote, of Ukrainian accession; Putin wants that door shut tight and permanently. That Trump has spoken of concessions in the form of land swaps, while Putin has never indicated anything like an exchange of territory, has deepened European concerns that a deal would legitimate a Russian land grab. It also worries Europeans that Trump is so eager to achieve an agreement, regardless of how its terms affect Ukraine, because he covets the Nobel Peace Prize. The prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, whose members are appointed by the Norwegian parliament; since Norwegians generally view Trump unfavorably, it is highly unlikely that the Committee would ever award him the prize. Hitler interpreted Daladier and Chamberlain's willingness to fold at Munich as a signal that he would not encounter British opposition to either his seizure of all of Czechoslovakia or his planned attack on Poland. He viewed both men as 'poor worms,' and Nazi documents released subsequent to World War II reveal that Hitler viewed Chamberlain as so weak that he worried that British prime minister would preemptively give away Poland, thereby robbing Germany of the ability to seize the country by force. Trump needs to demonstrate to Putin when they meet in Alaska that he is no Neville Chamberlain. He must avoid any giveaway to the Russian dictator, which would only whet Putin's clearly insatiable appetite for more conquests, be they remainder of Ukraine, neutral Moldova or one of NATO's Baltic members. As Hitler sought 'lebensraum' — 'living space' for Germans — Putin seeks to restore the Czarist Empire. Whatever the term, the objective was and is the same: territorial expansion. It took a global war to stop Hitler. Hopefully, a strong-willed Trump will obviate the prospect of another devastating conflict. Dov S. Zakheim is a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and vice chairman of the board for the Foreign Policy Research Institute. He was undersecretary of Defense (comptroller) and chief financial officer for the Department of Defense from 2001 to 2004 and a deputy undersecretary of Defense from 1985 to 1987.
Los Angeles Times
3 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Letters to the Editor: Secretary's willingness to tamper with past climate reports is dangerous
To the editor: U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright is intending to review and potentially alter the nation's next climate science report ('Energy secretary says Trump administration may alter past National Climate Assessments,' Aug. 7). He's already removed the climate assessments from the government websites. He has accused the previous reviews (even the ones made during the first Trump administration) as being 'politically biased.' Just wondering if Wright has actually looked outdoors recently or at least kept abreast of the weather reports. Has he not seen the spate of unprecedented tornadoes razing towns and communities? Or witnessed the deadly floods throughout the country? Or the wildfires from hell in the West? Or the unbearable heat waves hitting the Northeast? Or the approaching hurricanes that signal widespread death and destruction on the way? It is clear that Wright is on a leash, eager to do the bidding of his master — old 'Drill, Baby, Drill!' His stated intentions, as well as his removal of the climate assessments from years past from governmental websites, make him complicit in the disaster that is to come. Lanore Pearlman, Claremont ... To the editor: I see that Wright, previously the CEO of a company that did fracking, says that the government climate reports have been politically driven and are not accepted by 'a credible economist or scientist.' I am sure he is right that some economists do not wish to contemplate the possibility of climate change, but I would challenge him as to what the majority scientific opinion might be. Hundreds of scientists have studied the issue. Most published articles note that change is occurring. The evidence is everywhere: shrinking glaciers in every part of the globe, shrinking polar and Greenland ice sheets, the melting of the Russian tundra, bleaching coral reefs, longer, hotter summers, disruption of rain patterns, even the opening of the Northwest Passage. The actual debate appears to be whether human activity is causing it. In other words, conservatives do not believe we can stop the process. Erica Hahn, Monrovia ... To the editor: Wright's changes might misinform some, but if our extreme weather-related events continue at their enhanced pace, eventually the public will demand action. Those events are devastating and deadly to the affected population and the economic damage is astounding. I find it disingenuous and devious that the Energy secretary is considering changes to previous scientific-based reports. Going back to scrub past reports won't change the facts that our climate has changed and fossil fuel emissions are exacerbating this change. Jonathan Light, Laguna Niguel
New York Post
3 minutes ago
- New York Post
Russia appears ready to test new missile — even as Putin prepares for Trump talks, researchers warn
Russia appears to be preparing to test its new nuclear-armed, nuclear-powered cruise missile, according to two US researchers and a Western security source, even as Russian President Vladimir Putin readies for talks on Ukraine with US President Donald Trump on Friday. Jeffrey Lewis of the California-based Middlebury Institute of International Studies, and Decker Eveleth of the CNA research and analysis organization, based in Virginia, reached their assessments separately by studying imagery taken in recent weeks until Tuesday by Planet Labs, a commercial satellite firm. They agreed the photos showed extensive activity at the Pankovo test site on the Barents Sea archipelago of Novaya Zemlya, including increases in personnel and equipment and ships and aircraft associated with earlier tests of the 9M730 Burevestnik (Storm Petrel). 5 A satellite view shows an aircraft at the Rogachevo military airfield in Rogachevo, Russia on August 5, 2025 via REUTERS 'We can see all of the activity at the test site, which is both huge amounts of supplies coming in to support operations and movement at the place where they actually launch the missile,' Lewis said. A Western security source, who asked not to be further identified, confirmed that Russia is preparing a Burevestnik test. Lewis said a test could occur this week, raising the possibility it could overshadow the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska. Asked for comment, the White House did not address the possibility of a Burevestnik test. The Pentagon, the CIA, and Russia's Defense Ministry declined to comment. Putin has said the weapon – dubbed the SSC-X-9 Skyfall by NATO – is 'invincible' to current and future missile defenses, with an almost unlimited range and unpredictable flight path. 5 A satellite image showed equipment appearing to be at the Pankovo test site in Russia's Yuzhny Island on August 7, 2025. via REUTERS Lewis, Eveleth, and two arms control experts said the missile's development has taken on more importance for Moscow since Trump announced in January the development of a US Golden Dome missile defense shield. But many experts say it is unclear the missile can evade defenses, will not give Moscow capabilities it does not already have, and will spew radiation along its flight path. A test would have been scheduled long in advance of last week's announcement of the Trump-Putin meeting, the researchers and experts said. Start your day with all you need to know Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more. Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters But Putin could have suspended preparations in view of US spy satellites to signal his openness to ending his war in Ukraine as well as to restarting arms-control talks with the US, the experts said New START, the last US-Russia pact capping strategic nuclear deployments, expires on February 5. 'Sometimes you can push up or push down the schedule for a political reason,' said Tom Countryman, a former acting undersecretary of state for arms control. 5 Researchers suspect Russia is preparing to test its nuclear-powered cruise missile. via REUTERS The Burevestnik has a poor test record, according to the Nuclear Threat Initiative advocacy group, with two partial successes among 13 known tests. Special aircraft Eveleth and Lewis said the Planet Labs imagery showed stacks of shipping containers, equipment, and personnel arriving since late July. Lewis said two aircraft equipped to gather test data had been parked at the archipelago's Rogachevo military airfield since mid-July. Images he provided to Reuters showed two large jets mounted with saucer-shaped radar domes. He noted the presence of at least five ships associated with previous tests. A ship-tracking website – – showed a sixth ship linked to earlier tests was due to arrive on Tuesday, he said. 5 'We can see all of the activity at the test site,' researcher Jeffrey Lewis said. via REUTERS Reuters confirmed the website showed the vessel, a cargo ship named the Teriberka, bound for Novaya Zemlya, but could not independently confirm the researchers' other findings. Eveleth and Lewis said they began examining imagery of Pankovo starting from July, after Russia on August 6 published a notice to mariners to stay away from the area from August 9-12. Reuters found a series of notices on the US Federal Aviation Administration's Defense Internet NOTAM Service issued by Russia showing a possible launch window between August 9-22. 5 Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to meet with President Trump on Friday. VYACHESLAV PROKOFYEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL/EPA/Shutterstock The Norwegian military told Reuters in an email that the Barents Sea is a 'prime location for Russian missile tests' and that it had indications from notices and maritime warnings of 'preparations for test activities.' But it said it would 'not confirm any knowledge of what kind of munitions they are to test.' In late July, Eveleth said, he noticed a shelter protecting the Burevestnik launcher from the weather was being slid back and forth, which he called 'very clear evidence' of plans for a test. Lewis provided to Reuters images taken of the site on August 7 showing the protective launcher cover, stacks of shipping containers, a crane for moving them, and a helicopter. 'It's full steam ahead,' he said of the pace of test preparations.
