How likely is Putin to meet with Zelensky
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
9 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Russian attack hits American factory in Ukraine during US-led push for peace
Russia has launched a rare drone and missile attack on western Ukraine, officials said, striking targets including an American-owned electronics plant and injecting further uncertainty into the US-led peace efforts. The aerial assault on a part of Ukraine that has largely avoided such attacks was one of Russia's biggest this year and came amid Moscow's objections to key aspects of proposals that could end the fighting after Russia's February 2022 invasion of its neighbour. US President Donald Trump discussed the war with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week before hosting Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders at the White House on Monday. Donald Trump (Seth Wenig/AP) Mr Trump last month questioned Mr Putin's commitment to ending the war, saying the Russian leader 'talks nice and then he bombs everybody'. In a social media post on Thursday, the US president criticised his predecessor, Joe Biden, for not providing Ukraine with the weaponry it needs to 'fight back'. 'It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invaders country,' Trump wrote. 'It's like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offensive. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia.' Russia has fired nearly 1,000 long-range drones and missiles at Ukraine since Monday's White House talks, according to Ukrainian tallies. European countries are discussing how they can deploy military assets to deter any post-war Russian assault on Ukraine, but the Kremlin will not accept the deployment of any troops from Nato countries, and foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday that making security arrangements for Ukraine without Moscow's involvement was pointless. Mr Putin is ready to meet with Mr Zelensky to discuss peace terms, Mr Lavrov said on Thursday, but only after key issues have been worked out by senior officials in what could be a protracted negotiating process because the two sides remain far apart. Ukrainian and European leaders have accused Mr Putin of stalling in the peace efforts in the hopes that his bigger army, which has been making slow advances, can capture more Ukrainian land. Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the overnight attack which left one person dead (Jacquelyn Martin/AP) US secretary of state Marco Rubio plans to host a conference call on Thursday with the national security advisers of European countries expected to play a role in future security guarantees for Ukraine, a senior US official said. Military leaders from Ukraine, the US, the UK, Finland, France, Germany and Italy met on Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington to work out military options, said Joseph Holstead, a spokesman for the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. A source said 'everything is being considered and nothing is being ruled out' regarding security guarantees for Ukraine, apart from US boots on the ground. Military chiefs and their staffs are looking at options including 'how big' the security guarantee is and what happens if it is implemented with or without a ceasefire, the official said, noting that European defence chiefs acknowledged it is their 'responsibility to secure Europe'. Russia launched 574 drones and 40 ballistic and cruise missiles overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force said. The attack mostly targeted western regions of the country where much of the military aid provided by Ukraine's western allies is believed to be stored. The strikes killed at least one person and injured 15 others, according to officials. Mr Zelensky condemned the attack amid the push for peace, saying it was carried out 'as if nothing were changing at all'. A US electronics plant near the Hungarian border was struck, according to Andy Hunder, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine. The Flex factory is one of the biggest American investments in Ukraine, he told the Associated Press. Russian President Vladimir Putin (Vyacheslav Prokofyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo/AP) At the moment of impact, 600 night shift workers were on the premises, and six were injured, Mr Hunder added. Russian attacks on Ukraine since it launched its invasion have damaged property belonging to more than half of the chamber's roughly 600 members, he said. 'The message is clear: Russia is not looking for peace. Russia is attacking American business in Ukraine, humiliating American business,' Mr Hunder said. Russia's Defence Ministry said the strikes targeted 'enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex'. It claimed the attack hit drone factories, storage depots and missile launch sites, as well as areas where Ukrainian troops were gathered. Russia has repeatedly denied targeting civilian areas of Ukraine. In the western city of Lviv, one person was killed and three were injured as the attack damaged 26 residential buildings, a nursery school and administrative buildings, regional head Maksym Kozytskyi wrote on Telegram. The regional prosecutor's office said three Russian cruise missiles with cluster munitions struck the city. Moscow has shown no signs of pursuing meaningful negotiations to end the war, Mr Zelensky said. He urged the international community to respond with stronger pressure on Moscow, including tougher sanctions and tariffs. On Wednedsay he said plans for security guarantees will become clearer by the end of next week, and he then expects to be ready to hold direct talks with Mr Putin for the first time since the full-scale invasion. The talks could also be conducted in a trilateral format alongside Mr Trump, the Ukrainian president said.
The Irish Sun
9 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Putin's ‘top sniper' dubbed The Executioner exposed as a ‘CHEAT who faked battlefield wounds in £1.7m compensation scam'
RUSSIA'S best sniper who "killed dozens" of Ukrainians has been exposed as a fraudster in a huge military corruption scandal. Nicknamed "the Executioner", he has been accused of claiming payouts for sham injuries. 5 Konstantin Frolov, once known as the "Executioner", has been exposed as a fraudster. Credit: East2West 5 Wounds the colonel claimed were from the battlefield in Ukraine, but were actually self-inflicted Credit: East2West 5 "War hero" Konstantin Frolov being interviewed by state TV back when he was a celebrated sniper Credit: East2West He and his comrades reportedly staged injuries in order to be celebrated as war heroes - and claim state compensation. Russian media once applauded Lieutenant Colonel Konstantin Frolov, 38, for being "commander of Russia's 'most effective sniper group'. He claimed to have been wounded seven times in the war against Ukraine. And his country upheld him as an exceptional soldier willing to risk everything on the front line. Read more on Russia PUTIN'S TOLL Russia would suffer '2 million casualties' if it tries to take more of Ukraine But now it's revealed that the "combat wounds" were self-inflicted and sometimes carried out by fellow soldiers, who "avoided vital organs". The quack sniper initially denied the charges, but then he confessed - and took 30 comrades down with him. A major military corruption scandal was exposed, where 30 servicemen had claimed £1.7million in payouts for bogus injuries. They all shot each other to inflect non-fatal wounds and win medals for valour. Frolov is also suspected of completely pretending to lead a sniper unit. He possibly even faked adopting a girl he rescued from shelling. Putin general 'has arm and leg AMPUTATED' as he fights for life after Ukrainian strike Before he was detained, Russian state TV hailed him as 'the senior sniper in one of the Airborne Forces units". Photos showed him wearing multiple medals and insignia. But now the father-of-three has been stripped of all the honours and detained. He faces charges of large-scale fraud, bribery and illegal possession of weapons and explosives. 5 The quack war hero feigned battlefield injuries for undeserved valour and cash Credit: East2West 5 Colonel Artem Gorodilov, 41, is another soldier embroiled in this mass fraud scandal Credit: East2West Russia state TV said: "He has just returned from Avdiivka, where he was wounded for the seventh time. 'A shrapnel fragment flew under his bulletproof vest, barely missing his heart. 'He refused rehabilitation and leave and returned to duty. The colonel said: 'How can I walk around my hometown when people are fighting here and I'm there? 'My guys are here, my group is here. I can't do that.' The TV report had claimed he was "one of the most effective snipers in the war zone".
The Journal
12 hours ago
- The Journal
Russia says EU troops in Ukraine would be 'unacceptable', as Zelenskyy asks allies for security deal
RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER Sergei Lavrov has said any presence of European troops in Ukraine would be 'absolutely unacceptable'. It comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he could only meet with Vladimir Putin once his allies agree security guarantees to deter future Russian attacks once the fighting stops. Lavrov also said Ukraine is 'not interested' in a long-term peace deal, accusing it of seeking security guarantees incompatible with Russia's demands. On the front lines, Russia said it had captured the village of Oleksandro-Shultyne in the eastern Donetsk region, the latest in a long string of territorial gains. The village lies less than eight kilometres from Kostiantynivka, a fortified town in the Donetsk region that Russia has been pressing towards on both sides. In comments to journalists Thursday, Foreign Minister Lavrov accused Ukraine of making unrealistic security demands. Any deployment of European troops to the country would be 'absolutely unacceptable', he said. Advertisement 'The Ukrainian regime and its representatives comment on the current situation in a very specific way, directly showing that they are not interested in a sustainable, fair, long-term settlement,' he said. Zelenskyy separately announced that Ukraine had tested a long-range cruise missile, known as Flamingo, that can strike targets as far as 3,000 kilometres away. 'The missile has undergone successful tests. It is currently our most successful missile,' he told reporters. Mass production could begin by February, he added. Talks towards peace Since Trump returned to the White House in January and began pushing for an end to the fighting, Russian forces have continued to slowly but steadily gain ground across the front line. Zelenskyy said Russian forces were building up troops along the front in the Zaporizhzhia region, which Moscow claims as its own along with four other Ukrainian regions. Trump met Putin in Alaska last Friday, before bringing Zelenskyy and European leaders to Washington for separate talks on Monday. Zelenskyy has said the only way to end the war is a meeting with Putin, and has said Trump should be present too. But Moscow has played down the prospect of a summit between Putin and Zelenskyy any time soon, saying it wants to be included in discussions on future security guarantees for Ukraine.
