Zelensky urges Trump and Putin to include Ukraine in peace negotiations
The upcoming summit between Mr Putin and Mr Trump is scheduled for Friday in Alaska.
Mr Zelensky said that it is impossible to talk about Ukraine without Ukraine, expressing hope that the US president understands this.
Mr Trump had previously suggested the meeting could involve swapping of territories for the 'betterment' of both countries.
Watch the video in full above.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
4 minutes ago
- The Independent
Florida opening Deportation Depot at former prison to operate alongside Alligator Alcatraz
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is turning a shuttered state prison into another immigration detention center that can hold up to 1,300 people. While a federal judge considers whether to shut down another detention facility that Donald Trump's administration and Florida officials are calling Alligator Alcatraz in the Everglades, DeSantis on Thursday announced the state is moving forward with 'Deportation Depot.' 'This will be operational soon, it is not going to take forever, but we are also not rushing to do this right this day,' DeSantis said Thursday. The prison — located within a rural stretch of the state between Tallahassee and Jacksonville — will operate inside Baker Correctional Institution, joining a new wave of state-run detention centers working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to boost the president's mass deportation agenda. 'The reason for this is not to just house people indefinitely. We want to process, stage and then return illegal aliens to their home country. That is the name of the game,' DeSantis said. The prison first opened in 1978 with a capacity for 1,165 inmates in a mix of security levels, including for inmates who are considered high security risks. It closed in 2021 follow staffing shortages in the state's correctional facilities. The governor's announcement follows a federal court order to stop any new construction at Alligator Alcatraz following a lawsuit from environmental groups warning that the facility endangers surrounding wetlands and wildlife. That 3,000-bed detention center opened in south Florida last month within the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, roughly 43 miles from Miami in the middle of the Everglades. A federal lawsuit accuses the facility of blocking detainees from legal counsel and forcing people into 'overcrowded, unsanitary, and harsh conditions' with inadequate food, flood-prone cells, and 'excessive use of force' from guards that sent at least one man to a hospital. It's also unclear who is actually running the facility and who wants to take responsibility for it. Government lawyers could not immediately answer in court whether the federal government or Florida is responsible. In court filings, immigration officials claimed that the facility is operating through the federal 287(g) program, which allows local and state law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration law. ICE has inked nearly 800 such agreements covering 40 states. That makeshift facility is expected to cost roughly $450 million within its first year, at roughly $245 per inmate bed per night, according to Homeland Security. ICE spent roughly $187 per adult detainee per day in 2023. The incoming wave of state-run detention centers is expected to tap into $45 billion in new funding for ICE as part of Trump's 'big, beautiful bill.' That bill also allocates $30 billion for an aggressive recruitment campaign to hire another 10,000 ICE agents. boon to for-profit contractors and cash-strapped states looking to tap into billions of taxpayer dollars. This is a developing story
The Independent
4 minutes ago
- The Independent
Starmer and Zelensky say Alaska talks present a ‘viable chance' for Ukraine
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met in Downing Street on Thursday, affirming their 'strong resolve' to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. It comes ahead of a scheduled meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday to discuss a potential ceasefire in Ukraine. Downing Street said both Sir Keir and Mr Zelensky agreed that the Alaska talks 'present a viable chance to make progress as long as [Mr] Putin takes action to prove he is serious about peace'. However, there are concerns that the US and Russia might attempt to decide the war's conclusion without Ukraine's direct participation. Mr Trump has warned of "severe consequences" if the Russian leader does not agree to peace, while Mr Putin has hinted at discussions on nuclear arms control.
Glasgow Times
4 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Starmer and Zelensky ‘agree strong resolve' for peace ahead of Trump-Putin talks
The two leaders expressed cautious optimism about the prospect of a truce 'as long as Putin takes action to prove he is serious' about ending the war, as they met on Wednesday, a Downing Street statement said. In a separate statement, Mr Zelensky said there had been discussions about the security guarantees required to make any deal 'truly durable if the United States succeeds in pressing Russia to stop the killing'. The Prime Minister hosted the Ukrainian president for a private breakfast in No 10 on Thursday as Europe braces for the face-to-face meeting between the US president and his Russian counterpart in Alaska on Friday. European leaders are hopeful about the potential for a ceasefire after a joint call with Mr Trump on Wednesday, during which he reportedly told them his goal for the summit was to secure a ceasefire. But concerns linger over the prospect of Kyiv being excluded from negotiations over its own future, and pressured to cede territory, after the US leader suggested any agreement may need to involve 'swapping of land'. Ukraine has already rejected any proposal that would compromise its borders. In a readout of the morning meeting between Sir Keir and Mr Zelensky, a Downing Street spokesman said: 'They had a private breakfast, where they discussed yesterday's meetings. 'They agreed there had been a powerful sense of unity and a strong resolve to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.' Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after their meeting at 10 Downing Street (Jordan Pettitt/PA) On Wednesday, Sir Keir co-chaired a virtual meeting of the 'coalition of the willing' – a European-led effort to send a peacekeeping force to Ukraine to monitor any deal – where he said there was a 'viable' chance of a truce. Downing Street repeated that language on Thursday, with the caveat that it would require the Russian president to take 'action to prove he is serious about peace'. '(Sir Keir and Mr Zelensky) agreed to stay in close touch in the coming days,' the readout said. The Ukrainian president, who was warmly embraced by the Prime Minister, with a red carpet rolled out for his arrival in Downing Street, said the meeting had been 'good' and 'productive'. But he urged the UK to join PURL- Nato's Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List initiative, to provide weapons to Kyiv. 'It is important that, within the framework of the coalition of the willing, we should all be able to achieve effective formats for security cooperation,' he said. 'We also discussed the continuation of support programs for our army and our defense industry. Under any scenario, Ukraine will maintain its strength. 'Keir and I also talked about such mechanisms for weapons supplies as the PURL programme, and I urged the UK to join.' It comes as The Times newspaper reported that Britain was planning to scale back its plans for a military peacekeeping force in Ukraine. UK military chiefs are now said to be involving air reassurance over western Ukraine, training support to the Ukrainian military and the clearance of mines from the Black Sea. The Government has been contacted for comment. Further sanctions could be imposed on Russia should the Kremlin fail to engage and the UK is already working on its next package of measures targeting Moscow, he said. 'We're ready to support this, including from the plans we've already drawn up to deploy a reassurance force once hostilities have ceased,' Sir Keir told allies on Wednesday. 'It is important to remind colleagues that we do stand ready also to increase pressure on Russia, particularly the economy, with sanctions and wider measures as may be necessary.'
