Trump-Putin latest: Zelensky breaks silence as Don heads to meet Vlad after saying killing may be in tyrant's genes
Donald Trump held a phone call with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko during his flight to Alaska, according to Russian media.
Lukashenko is one of Putin's closest allies and has stuck by him throughout the war.
Trump detailed the call on Truth Social as he said: "I had a wonderful talk with the highly respected President of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko.
"The purpose of the call was to thank him for the release of 16 prisoners.
"We are also discussing the release of 1,300 additional prisoners. Our conversation was a very good one.
"We discussed many topics, including President Putin's visit to Alaska.
"I look forward to meeting President Lukashenko in the future."
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Daily Mail
a minute ago
- Daily Mail
Zelensky says giving up land for peace could be 'impossible' as Trump rages at 'fake news' over his showdown with Putin - as Europe's leaders head to the White House
Volodymyr Zelensky has said giving up land for peace in a future agreement with Russia could be 'impossible'. Speaking in Brussels today, the Ukrainian president insisted that his country's constitution made it 'impossible to give up territory or trade land'. But he went on to say: 'Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at a trilateral meeting.' 'We need real negotiations, which means we can start where the front line is now,' Zelensky said, adding that European leaders supported this. It comes as US president Donald Trump appears poised to urge the Ukrainian leader to agree to a Russian land grab of his country's territory. Russian president Vladimir Putin is said to have demanded full control of Donetsk and Luhansk - two occupied Ukrainian regions - as a condition for ending the war. Zelensky was speaking ahead of a virtual meeting with European leaders and before he travels to Washington to meet with Donald Trump following the US leader's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. He reiterated his position that it was necessary to establish a ceasefire in order to then negotiate a final deal. Russian president Vladimir Putin is said to have demanded full control of Donetsk and Luhansk - two occupied Ukrainian regions - as a condition for ending the war when he met Trump on Friday 'It's important that Washington is with us,' the Ukrainian leader said. He will be accompanied by several European allies, including Keir Starmer, for Monday's talks with Trump. Zelensky said that Ukraine did not yet know all the demands made by Putin at the meeting with Trump on Friday, adding that it would take a long time to go over them - and that this was not possible under 'the pressure of weapons'. Meanwhile, the world is still reeling from Trump's meeting with Putin in Alaska, where he rolled out the red carpet for the war-mongering tyrant. Most international commentators believe the negotiations were a win for Putin, with the media noticing he appeared energetic and satisfied by how the summit had gone. Trump, on the other hand, appeared uncharacteristically deflated and seemed disheartened that the famed deal-maker was not able to get an agreement together. But the US President has hit back at his critics, posting on his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday morning: '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!!!' Only minutes later, he posted: 'If I got Russia to give up Moscow as part of the Deal, the Fake News, and their PARTNER, the Radical Left Democrats, would say I made a terrible mistake and a very bad deal. Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin shake hands after a joint press conference following the US-Russia summit on Ukraine at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday 'That's why they are the FAKE NEWS! Also, they should talk about the 6 WARS, etc., I JUST STOPPED!!! MAGA.' It comes as Trump envoy Steve Witkoff gave an interview with CNN where he discussed the issue of territory - and specifically of the five regions he described as always having been the 'crux of the deal'. Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014 while the regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson were annexed after referendums internationally viewed as shams in 2022. 'The Russians made some concessions at the table with regard to all five of those regions,' Witkoff said today. He added that the Donetsk region constitutes an 'important discussion' - and one which he said will happen tomorrow. The Donbas is predominantly Russian-speaking, and after Russia snatched Crimea in 2014, its proxy forces have gained a foothold there in a long-running war. Zelensky, who has rejected Putin's demands that Kyiv withdraw from the remaining 30 per cent of Donetsk that it still controls, played down the Russian advances, saying on X that his forces were 'countering' and 'increasing the pressure' on the 'occupier'. 'The Russian army continues to suffer significant losses in its attempts to secure more favourable political positions for the Russian leadership at the meeting in Alaska. We understand this plan and are informing our partners about the real situation,' he said. Zelensky's statement comes as negotiations to end the war continue to mount. Sir Keir Starmer, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, German chancellor Friedrich Merz and France's Emmanuel Macron will travel to Washington tomorrow for peace talks at the White House. Ms Von der Leyen said 'at the request of President Zelensky, I will join the meeting with President Trump and other European leaders in the White House tomorrow.' Other European leaders confirming they will go tomorrow included Finnish president Alexander Stubb, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni and Nato secretary general Mark Rutte. Mr Zelensky's Oval Office rendezvous follows Western allies holding a 'coalition of the willing' video call at 2pm earlier today, hosted by Sir Keir, Mr Macron and Mr Merz. Mr Trump is said to be inclined to support the plan, and will speak to Mr Zelensky about it when they meet in the Oval Office. The European leaders may also fear a repeat of Mr Zelensky's last visit to the White House at the end of February. The tumultuous spat resulted in a souring of relations between the US and Ukraine, including a temporary cut off of American aid for the war effort. Downing Street insisted Sir Keir and other allies stand ready to support the next phase of talks to end the war. A statement from No 10 said: 'At the meeting that will take place at the White House tomorrow, the Prime Minister, with other European partners, stands ready to support this next phase of further talks and will reaffirm that his backing for Ukraine will continue as long as it takes.' Yesterday, Sir Keir commended Mr Trump for bringing the conflict 'closer than ever' to an end. Mr Trump appeared to change his position on how to end the war in Ukraine following his meeting with the Russian president on Friday. Following the Alaska summit, the American leader suggested he wants to move straight to a full peace deal, rather than negotiating a ceasefire first. The shift appears to echo the Russians' refusal to agree to ceasefire before engaging in peace talks. Meanwhile Zelensky on Sunday rejected the idea of Russia offering his country security guarantees, after US and EU officials promoted the possibility. White House envoy Steve Witkoff earlier said Trump and his Russian counterpart Putin agreed to 'robust security guarantees' for Ukraine during a meeting in Alaska on Friday. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday hailed the proposal as an offer of NATO-style security guarantees from the United States. 'We welcome President Trump's willingness to contribute to (NATO) Article 5-like security guarantees for Ukraine, and the coalition of the willing, including the European Union, is ready to do its share,' von der Leyen said. Zelensky also welcomed the idea of US security guarantees - but was less positive about Russia's intentions. 'What President Trump said about security guarantees is much more important to me than Putin's thoughts, because Putin will not give any security guarantees,' he told a press conference in Brussels alongside von der Leyen. 'Security means a strong army, which only Ukraine can provide. I believe that only Europe can finance this army.' Von der Leyen and Zelensky also shared their thoughts on a possible meeting between Trump, Putin and the Ukrainian leader. 'So far, Russia gives no sign that the trilateral will happen and if Russia refuses, then new sanctions must follow,' Zelensky said.
The Guardian
3 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Rubio says both Russia and Ukraine ‘have to make concessions' for peace deal
In a combative series of interviews on Sunday, the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said that 'both sides are going to have to make concessions' for there to be a peaceful resolution to the war that erupted when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. 'You can't have a peace agreement unless both sides make concessions – that's a fact,' the Trump administration's top diplomat said Sunday on ABC's This Week. 'That's true in virtually any negotiation. If not, it's just called surrender. And neither side is going to surrender. So both sides are going to have to make concessions.' Rubio said the recent talks in Alaska between Russian president Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump toward ending the war had 'made progress in the sense that we identified potential areas of agreement – but there remains some big areas of disagreement'. 'We're still a long ways off,' Rubio added. 'We're not at the precipice of a peace agreement. We're not at the edge of one. But I do think progress was made and towards one.' He declined to go into specific areas of agreement or disagreement, or outline what Trump has described as 'severe consequences' for Russia if its aggression toward Ukraine continued. 'Ultimately, if there isn't a peace agreement, if there isn't an end of this war, the president's been clear – there are going to be consequences,' Rubio remarked. 'But we're trying to avoid that. And the way we're trying to avoid those consequences is with an even better consequence, which is peace, the end of hostilities.' Rubio agreed that no agreement was possible without both sides – including that of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy – being at the table. 'You're not going to reach a ceasefire or a peace agreement in a meeting in which only one side is represented,' Rubio told ABC News. 'That's why it's important to bring both leaders together – and that's the goal here.' Rubio confirmed that a ceasefire – or, as Trump now reportedly prefers, a straight-to-peace deal – 'is going to be difficult', despite the White House's openly demanding one. The war, he said, has been 'going on for three and a half years'. 'You have two very entrenched sides, and we're going to have to continue to work and chip away at it,' Rubio said. Separately, on NBC's Meet the Press, Rubio said a ceasefire was 'not off the table', though he added: 'It was agreed by all that the best way to end this conflict is through a full peace deal.' He said the US had advocated for a ceasefire, but 'unfortunately, the Russians as of now have not agreed to that. 'But the ideal here, what we're aiming for here is not a ceasefire,' he said. 'What we ultimately are aiming for is an end to this.' Nonetheless, Rubio said he doubted that a new set of western sanctions on Russia would force Moscow to agree to any deal. He also denied that Trump, as critics claim, had merely given the aggressor in the conflict, Putin, an unwarranted place on the world stage. 'Putin is already on the world stage,' Rubio said on ABC News. 'The guy's conducting a full scale war in Ukraine. 'That doesn't mean he's right about the war. That doesn't mean he's justified about the war. You're not going to end a war between Russia and Ukraine without dealing with Putin. That's just common sense. So people can say whatever they want.' On NBC's Meet the Press, the Democratic US senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut countered on Sunday that the Trump-Putin 'meeting was a disaster'. 'It was an embarrassment for the United States,' Murphy said. 'It was a failure. Putin got everything he wanted.' Murphy said that Trump had given Putin 'that photo-op' he wanted and to 'be absolved of his war crimes in front of the world. 'War criminals are not normally invited to the United States of America,' Murphy remarked. Secondly, he said, Putin had not been forced to give up anything. 'President Trump said he wanted a ceasefire – it appears the ceasefire wasn't even seriously discussed,' Murphy added. 'And then, third, there's no consequences. 'Trump said, 'If I don't get a cease fire, Putin is going to pay a price.' And then he walked out of that meeting saying, 'I didn't get a ceasefire. I didn't get a peace deal, and I'm not even considering sanctions.''
Spectator
33 minutes ago
- Spectator
The uncomfortable history of Narva
The Alaska talks between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin might have happened on American territory, but the symbolism of their location is a win for the Russian President. Alaska is considerably closer to Russia than it is to the rest of mainland America, and it was once a Russian territory. Putin was returning to a land previously conquered by his people. On Russia's opposite border, to the west, it is Russia's imperial past, and Putin's twisted view of shared history, that worries Europeans. Narva, Estonia's third largest city, is a strange place, and seems even stranger since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Narva river – from which the city gets its name – separates Estonia from Russia; two fortresses stand across each other imposing on the landscape, the 13th century Hermann Castle on the Estonian side and the 15th century Ivangorod Fortress on the Russian side. Two other symbols of Russian influence are hard to miss in the town: the Orthodox Church, and a now abandoned 19th century textiles factory that suffered in the years following the collapse of the USSR. Over 90 per cent of Narva's population speak Russian. This worries many Estonians, who think Putin could invade under the pretext of protecting this minority. For years, Estonia's Russian minority wasn't considered problematic. That has changed since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Estonia has begun phasing out Russian as a first language in education and it plans to remove the voting rights of foreign citizens in local elections. In Narva, long queues now form at the aptly named 'Friendship Bridge' – a 162 mile Soviet-era bridge that links Estonia to Russia. Vehicle travel was banned in 2024, and it can take hours to cross now. In recent weeks, Estonia has begun installing metal gates on the bridge for further deterrence. One-hundred-and-thirty miles away in Tallinn, Estonia's modern, bustling and charming capital, opposition to Russia is hard to avoid. The Russian Embassy is in the centre of town and the makeshift riot fences, protecting the building from protestors, are plastered with posters. 'Putin is a Killer' stands out among a sea of red handprints and pictures of the late Alexei Navalny. A smattering of protestors gather every week outside the embassy to protest. This isn't new. It started in 2008 following the Russian invasion of Georgia, but has grown in size since. There are many reminders of Estonia's Soviet past. One of the most imposing buildings on the Tallinn skyline is the high-rise Hotel Viru. The rectangular 1970s block is a prefab building built in 1972 that stands imposing on the outskirts of the old city walls. The hotel is still in use, but it's more popular for the secrets held on its top floor – once upon a time it was the unofficial headquarters of the KGB in Estonia. The floor was out of bounds and, with only foreign dignitaries and visitors allowed to stay in the hotel. It was an open secret that rooms were bugged. In the confusion of the early 1990s as the USSR fell, KGB operatives slowly snuck out of the hotel. Locals were so terrified that it was weeks before they accessed the top floors to discover the spying devices and records left behind. Earlier this year when I toured the building, my Estonian guide told me he felt he could say 'with certainty' that 'the USSR is back'. It sounded like hyperbole, but only this week Estonia declared a Russian diplomat persona non grata. The Baltic memory of Russian espionage runs deep. Estonia became an independent sovereign nation in 1991 for only the second time in its history; both times bookended by Russia, with the former being the collapse of the Russian Empire in 1919. The pattern is the same for its Baltic neighbours Lithuania and Latvia. This history of Russian interference in the Baltics is why Estonians are still uneasy. The Baltic governments of the post-Soviet era were determined not to repeat the mistakes of their first period of collective independence. The countries were swallowed up by the USSR during the second world war and debate still rages between the Baltics, who view it as an occupation, and the Russians, who argue they protected them from the Nazis. The violence and oppression across the Baltics at the hands of the Soviets was so bad that many citizens quietly celebrated when the Nazis occupied them for several years in the middle of the war, though this isn't something many would be keen to highlight. The post-war period heralded almost half a century of Soviet occupation. Once the USSR fell, the Baltic nations lobbied, and fiercely planned, to turn west – and, less than a decade later, they joined both the EU and Nato on the same day. This is what has set the three nations apart from other former parts of the USSR which have faced continuous Russian interference – namely Ukraine and Georgia. The Russian threat for the Baltics remains, however. Estonia and Latvia are vulnerable across their eastern borders with Russia; Lithuania's longest border is with Belarus; and the exclave of Kaliningrad (between Lithuania and Poland) is just 40 miles from the Russian-backed autocracy. An incursion across this strip, the Suwalki Gap, would cut the Baltic nations off from the rest of Europe in one fell swoop. Half a century of Baltic history was determined by the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact, the carving up of Europe between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. Many Europeans have long feared that Putin will seek to do similar with Trump. For Estonians, suddenly Alaska doesn't seem so far away.
