logo
Russian ally names ‘first step' towards Ukraine ceasefire

Russian ally names ‘first step' towards Ukraine ceasefire

Russia Today15 hours ago
The US could pressure Ukraine into halting long-range strikes against Russian territory as a first step toward achieving a comprehensive ceasefire, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday.
Lukashenko recently met with Keith Kellogg, a special envoy for US President Donald Trump. The meeting marked a rare diplomatic engagement between Washington and Minsk after years of limited contact.
The Belarusian leader said he shared his views with Kellogg on how the Ukraine conflict could be resolved, which he said were based on conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to Lukashenko, Putin wants an end to Ukrainian drones and Western-supplied cruise missiles being launched at Russian cities. 'Let them tell their client [Vladimir] Zelensky to stop strikes against Russia. Then we could agree,' Lukashenko stressed, characterizing Moscow's stance.
'That's the position I relayed to the American and asked him, 'Is there something wrong with it?' He said, 'We are working in that direction.' You do that. That would be a good first step toward stopping this fratricidal war,' he added. 'But I don't believe they want to end this war.'
Kellogg later said on X that 'at no point did I make comments related to Ukraine's prosecution of the war outside of a total ceasefire.'
Kiev has pushed for more US sanctions on Russia to punish Moscow for rejecting its calls for a comprehensive truce. Russia has accused Kiev of trying to stall and regroup its forces, and has stated its own conditions for ending hostilities. It has said Kiev can either withdraw troops from disputed territories or suspend mobilization and Western arms shipments. Zelensky has rejected both proposals.
Moscow has proposed several temporary de-escalation measures this year, including a one-month pause in attacks on energy infrastructure, a three-day ceasefire for Easter, and a ceasefire in commemoration of the end of World War II. Kiev refused some of the proposals and failed to fully honor the terms of others, according to Russia.
Belarus remains a key ally of Russia and a target of Western sanctions, which Lukashenko describes as a form of economic warfare aimed at a sovereign nation resisting long-standing external pressure.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Russiagate was political ploy to ‘screw Trump'
Russiagate was political ploy to ‘screw Trump'

Russia Today

time2 hours ago

  • Russia Today

Russiagate was political ploy to ‘screw Trump'

A US intelligence report on Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election, commissioned by then-President Barack Obama, was nothing but a deliberate manipulation, CIA Director John Ratcliffe has said, citing his agency's recent internal review. Known as the 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment on Russian Election Interference (ICA), the report kickstarted the Russiagate conspiracy, prompted special counsel Robert Mueller's inquiry, and 'ate up the first two years' of President Donald Trump's first term, Ratcliffe said in an interview with the New York Post published on Wednesday. The new CIA head ordered an internal review of the report in May. Obama ordered the ICA just six weeks before leaving office. According to the CIA review of its drafting and rushed release, declassified on Wednesday, then-CIA Director John Brennan, FBI Director James Comey, and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper were unusually and 'excessively involved' in the process. 'The rushed timeline to publish both classified and unclassified versions before the presidential transition raised questions about a potential political motive behind the White House tasking and timeline,' the review said, calling the work on the report 'chaotic,' 'atypical,' and 'markedly unconventional.' All the world can now see the truth: Brennan, Clapper and Comey manipulated intelligence and silenced career professionals — all to get Trump. Thank you to the career @CIA officers who conducted this review and exposed the facts. The CIA review found that Brennan effectively directed the compilation of the ICA and particularly insisted on including the later discredited Steele dossier. The dossier – a compilation of unverified rumors about Trump and his alleged links to Russia – was compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele and reportedly funded by the Hillary Clinton campaign. 'This was Obama, Comey, Clapper, and Brennan deciding, 'We're going to screw Trump,'' Ratcliffe said, commenting on his agency's findings. 'It was, 'We're going to create this and put the imprimatur of an IC assessment in a way that nobody can question it.' They stamped it as Russian collusion and then classified it so nobody could see it.' 'Brennan and Clapper and Comey manipulated [and] silenced all the career professionals and railroaded the process,' the CIA director added. American public opinion was further manipulated by constant media leaks and unnamed officials cited by The Washington Post, The New York Times, and other mainstream outlets. 'Before work on the assessment even began, media leaks suggesting that the IC had already reached definitive conclusions risked creating an anchoring bias,' the review noted. The ICA, as well as the FBI's 2016 'Crossfire Hurricane' investigation and the subsequent Mueller inquiry, cast a long shadow over Trump's first term, with allegations of 'Russian collusion' persisting in the media even after Mueller's report found no evidence to support them. Moscow has also repeatedly denied any election interference.

Trump threatens Hamas
Trump threatens Hamas

Russia Today

time3 hours ago

  • Russia Today

Trump threatens Hamas

US President Donald Trump has warned Hamas against rejecting a new American-backed ceasefire proposal, stating that the militant group's position will only deteriorate if it refuses to accept the deal, which has reportedly already been agreed upon with Israel. The warning was issued on Tuesday via Trump's Truth Social platform, following what he described as a 'long and productive meeting' between US and Israeli officials. 'Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War,' Trump wrote, thanking mediators Qatar and Egypt for their efforts. I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE. The exact details of the proposal, reportedly finalized during high-level US-Israeli consultations, remain unclear. The deal is believed to include a temporary pause in hostilities in Gaza in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages and broader humanitarian access to the enclave. Egyptian and Qatari mediators are expected to present the deal to Hamas leadership in the coming days. Trump's statement comes amid growing divisions within Israel's own government over the prospect of any ceasefire. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Monday that 'this war must end in a decisive victory… without agreements, without mediators.' The far-right official warned that halting operations would pose 'a greater danger' to Israel's future than continuing the war. Despite internal dissent, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has allowed talks on a possible pause in the fighting to proceed, under pressure from the US and in response to international concern over mounting civilian casualties in Gaza. Since the start of the war in October 2023, more than 56,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The conflict began after a surprise Hamas assault on southern Israel that left around 1,200 people dead and 250 taken hostage. Israel's response has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and triggered a severe humanitarian disaster in the Palestinian enclave. Washington has supported Israel's military campaign and supplied the IDF with arms while publicly presenting itself as a peacemaker urging restraint. In late May, the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operating aid corridors following a three-month Israeli blockade. However, over 400 Palestinians have reportedly been killed near aid distribution points since then, according to UN data and local health authorities. The Israeli military recently intensified its offensive following reports that around 20 hostages are still alive in Hamas custody. Israel has claimed a series of high-profile assassinations in recent weeks, including those of Hamas military commander Hakham Muhammad Issa Al-Issa and political leader Muhammad Sinwar. Hamas has denied placing its military infrastructure in civilian areas and has condemned the killings of non-combatants in the strikes.

Baku blocking consular access to jailed Russians
Baku blocking consular access to jailed Russians

Russia Today

time7 hours ago

  • Russia Today

Baku blocking consular access to jailed Russians

Azerbaijan has not granted the Russian citizens recently arrested in Baku access to consular services, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. A Baku court jailed at least ten Russian nationals on Tuesday for four months pending trial. Two senior journalists from the Sputnik Azerbaijan news agency, as well as at least eight other Russians, have been behind bars in the country since Monday. Moscow has slammed the arrests as 'unlawful,' and has demanded the Russians' immediate release. 'We have requested that employees of the embassy's consular department be allowed to visit the Russian citizens,' but access has so far 'not been granted,' Zakharova said in a press briefing on Wednesday. She demanded that 'those who want to spoil bilateral relations' cease attempts to further escalate the situation. A number of Azerbaijani news outlets have been spreading 'fake news,' she added. 'These steps cause serious damage to interstate relations,' the spokeswoman said. Earlier Azerbaijani reports about the possible closure of Russian-language schools in the country had been denied by Baku's Education Ministry, Zakharova added. Bilateral relations between Moscow and Baku have been strained as of late. The diplomatic downturn was sparked by a police raid in Russia's Yekaterinburg last week, which targeted an alleged ethnic crime ring composed of Russian nationals of Azerbaijani origin. It was part of an investigation into a series of murders dating back as far as 2001. Two elderly suspects died during the operation, at least one of whom suffered heart failure, according to preliminary information. The incident spurred outrage in Azerbaijani media and among local officials, who have accused Moscow of ethnic bias. Five of the six men arrested have been charged, after one turned state's evidence, Russian authorities reported on Wednesday. Top law enforcement officials from both sides are in direct discussions, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a briefing on Wednesday. When asked to comment on recent video reports that appeared to show bruises and traces of blood on a number of the Russian nationals detained in Azerbaijan, Peskov noted that Moscow had seen the footage and 'noted every detail.' Russia will 'defend the legitimate interests' of its citizens, and will 'use all available means' to that end, he said. The Russian embassy in Baku has confirmed that Russians in Azerbaijan have increasingly complained that they and their families have been subjected to violence.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store