Putin offers Ukraine direct talks without preconditions
Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered Kiev the opportunity to restart direct negotiations in Istanbul, which it unilaterally walked away from in 2022, despite Ukraine's failure to honor the Victory Day truce and previous de-escalation initiatives.
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Russia Today
4 hours ago
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‘Macron' stolen in Paris (VIDEOS)
Activists from the Greenpeace environmental pressure group have stolen a wax statue of President Emmanuel Macron from Paris's Grevin Museum and placed it outside the Russian embassy in a protest against what they claimed to be the French leader's insufficient support for Kiev. France has become one of Kiev's key backers since the escalation of the conflict in February 2022, as well as one of the primary proponents of the idea to deploy a military force into Ukraine – repeatedly floated by Macron. Paris also cut most economic ties and has consistently pushed for harsher sanctions against Moscow. However, Greenpeace France's executive director, Jean-François Julliard, nevertheless accused the French leader of 'playing a double game,' following the group's stunt on Monday. Three Greenpeace members entered the Grevin Museum posing as tourists on Monday morning, according to AFP sources. They then disguised themselves as staff, swiftly removed the €40,000 wax figure of Macron, and transported it to the Russian embassy in Paris's 16th arrondissement, all while filming the stunt on video. 📹 Ce matin, la statue d'Emmanuel Macron a été dérobée au musée Grévin 🤣🤣En toute décontraction, sous les yeux de tous, puis les activistes de Greenpeace l'ont déposée devant l'ambassade de vit vraiment dans une époque formidable. The protesters displayed the statue alongside banners criticizing France's ongoing imports of Russian liquefied natural gas and fertilizers. The eco-activists claimed in a statement that they had 'borrowed' the statue temporarily and indicated plans to return it, but did not specify when. Des militants de Greenpeace ont volé la statue de cire d'Emmanuel Macron au Musée Grévin et sont repartis en camion avec. Ce pays est vraiment un divertissement au quotidien.. 🙄Si seulement, ils avaient pu voler l'original plutôt. 😅😅 The Paris prosecutor's office told Politico that an investigation has been opened into 'theft to the detriment of the museum,' but no arrests have been reported. The Grevin Museum has not officially commented on the incident. Russia designated Greenpeace International as an 'undesirable organization' back in May 2023, citing the eco-activist group's record of pushing a political agenda and meddling in domestic affairs with the goal of causing economic damage.
Russia Today
7 hours ago
- Russia Today
Ukrainian attacks trigger power outages in Russia
The Ukrainian military launched drone strikes on multiple Russian regions late Monday evening, causing a complete blackout in the Zaporozhye Region and leaving parts of Kherson without electricity, according to local governors. The attack damaged high-voltage equipment in the northwestern part of Zaporozhye, resulting in a region-wide outage, Governor Evgeny Balitsky wrote on Telegram shortly before midnight. 'Healthcare facilities have been switched to backup power sources,' Balitsky noted, adding that authorities are working to restore energy supply through alternative routes as quickly as possible. About 20 minutes later, Kherson Region Governor Vladimir Saldo reported that a Ukrainian drone strike had hit a new substation in the Genichesky district, cutting power to a large portion of the region. 'More than 104,000 people and 44 socially significant facilities' across roughly 150 settlements were affected, Saldo said. 'All critical facilities were connected to backup power supplies,' he added. The strikes came just hours after Moscow and Kiev concluded the second round of direct peace talks in Istanbul, during which both sides exchanged memorandums outlining their respective proposals for resolving the conflict. According to the Russian memorandum, a 'final settlement' would require international recognition of the former Ukrainian territories as parts of Russia, and a full withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from those areas. The Ukrainian memorandum, as reported by Reuters, rejects Moscow's key demands, including recognition of the newly incorporated Russian regions, a commitment to neutrality, and limitations on the size of Ukraine's armed forces. The Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, along with the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, formally joined Russia following referendums held in the fall of 2022. Crimea voted to rejoin Russia in 2014 after the Western-backed Maidan coup in Kiev.
Russia Today
8 hours ago
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Zelensky calls Russian negotiators ‘idiots'
Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky has lashed out at the Russian delegation participating in the Istanbul talks, dismissing Moscow's proposal for a temporary ceasefire intended to allow the sides to recover the bodies of fallen soldiers for 'Christian burial.' Following the second round of direct negotiations between Moscow and Kiev held in Türkiye on Monday, the head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, proposed a short-term truce in several areas along the front line. 'We want to create the conditions for the bodies to be collected and handed over for Christian burial,' Medinsky stated. He said the measure would help prevent potential disease outbreaks and facilitate the dignified collection of the dead. Zelensky rejected the idea during a Q&A session with Ukrainian and foreign journalists, reiterating his demand for a longer ceasefire. 'They [the Russians] are ready for a ceasefire for two to three days to pick up the dead from the battlefield. I think they are idiots,' he said, arguing that any truce should be aimed at saving lives, not retrieving bodies. According to Medinsky, Russia has already committed to unilaterally transfer the remains of 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers and officers. 'We have identified all whom we could, held DNA tests, and found out who they are,' the Russian presidential aide said. Zelensky downplayed Medinsky's position, calling him a low-level official who 'does not even understand technical things.' He claimed that such exchanges already occur between Ukrainian and Russian units without any formal agreements or ceasefires. 'It just happens,' he said. He also urged the United States to impose tougher sanctions on Moscow to 'pressure' it into accepting Kiev's demands. Ukraine has long demanded a full ceasefire lasting at least 30 days as a precondition for any substantive peace talks. The provision was reportedly included in Kiev's draft proposals submitted during the negotiations, according to Reuters. Moscow has repeatedly rejected the idea, warning that such a pause would allow Ukrainian forces to regroup and prepare for renewed hostilities. Zelensky has a history of offensive remarks toward the Russian negotiating team. Ahead of the first round of talks in May, he described them as 'a theatre prop,' a comment that drew condemnation from Moscow.
