Latest news with #Ukraine-Russia
Miami Herald
8 hours ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Ukraine delegation visits Washington as Senate mulls Russia sanctions
June 4 (UPI) -- Ukrainian officials were set to update U.S. senators on Wednesday on the war and discuss arms purchases and efforts to pressure Russia to negotiate a peace deal, including a tough new bipartisan sanctions bill due to come to the floor of the upper chamber next week. The delegation, which included Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, Deputy Defense Minister Serhii Boyev and Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak, arrived Tuesday, a day after a second round of Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Turkey broke up without a breakthrough. Yermak said in a social media post that the delegation was bringing a "comprehensive agenda" of issues that were important to Ukraine to actively promote to members of both parties and President Donald Trump's team. "We plan to talk about defense support and the situation on the battlefield, strengthening sanctions against Russia, including Senator [Lindsey] Graham's bill. We will also discuss the Agreement on the Establishment of the Reconstruction Investment Fund, which we signed earlier," wrote Yermak. He said the delegation would also raise the issue of getting back Ukrainian children deported by Russia and support for the process. The bill that Sen. Graham, R-S.C., plans to introduce in the Senate aims to ratchet up economic pressure on Russia, targeting its trade partners by slapping 500% tariffs on imports from countries that continue to purchase Russian products, including gas, oil and uranium. China and India are the two biggest markets for Russian energy exports. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Politico that he and Graham would host a closed-door meeting with the Ukrainians on Capitol Hill to which all Senators had been invited. He said support for the sanctions bill was gaining very strong momentum with 82 members of the Senate split down the middle of the aisle agreeing to co-sponsor it. Blumenthal said the secondary sanctions could be a "game changer." "It's a pivotal moment in Ukraine -- and crunch time for the Senate on this bill." He also pushed back on what he said was a growing but false belief that Ukraine was losing the war, saying recent offensive assaults deep into Russian territory, such as Sunday's so-called "Operation Spiderweb," in which Ukrainian drones destroyed 41 strategic Russian bomber aircraft, proved otherwise. Blumenthal argued that such feats could help shift the dial among the administration's foreign policy team, helping persuade them to bolster military and other assistance for Ukraine and to support the sanctions bill. That in turn would help overcome the reservations of some lawmakers, he said. "Events will move the White House -- and maybe some of the president's friends here [Capitol Hill]. Congress can move ahead. [Trump] doesn't have to support it." Current U.S. flows of arms and equipment to Ukraine are all under drawdowns on assistance packages approved under former President Joe Biden, with no fresh approvals since as the Trump administration shifts to a more mercantile approach under which Ukraine will buy the weapons rather than receiving them as aid. Copyright 2025 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ukraine delegation visits Washington as Senate mulls Russia sanctions
June 4 (UPI) -- Ukrainian officials were set to update U.S. senators on Wednesday on the war and discuss arms purchases and efforts to pressure Russia to negotiate a peace deal, including a tough new bipartisan sanctions bill due to come to the floor of the upper chamber next week. The delegation, which included Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, Deputy Defense Minister Serhii Boyev and Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak, arrived Tuesday, a day after a second round of Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Turkey broke up without a breakthrough. Yermak said in a social media post that the delegation was bringing a "comprehensive agenda" of issues that were important to Ukraine to actively promote to members of both parties and President Donald Trump's team. "We plan to talk about defense support and the situation on the battlefield, strengthening sanctions against Russia, including Senator [Lindsey] Graham's bill. We will also discuss the Agreement on the Establishment of the Reconstruction Investment Fund, which we signed earlier," wrote Yermak. He said the delegation would also raise the issue of getting back Ukrainian children deported by Russia and support for the process. The bill that Sen. Graham, R-S.C., plans to introduce in the Senate aims to ratchet up economic pressure on Russia, targeting its trade partners by slapping 500% tariffs on imports from countries that continue to purchase Russian products, including gas, oil and uranium. China and India are the two biggest markets for Russian energy exports. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Politico that he and Graham would host a closed-door meeting with the Ukrainians on Capitol Hill to which all Senators had been invited. He said support for the sanctions bill was gaining very strong momentum with 82 members of the Senate split down the middle of the aisle agreeing to co-sponsor it. Blumenthal said the secondary sanctions could be a "game changer." "It's a pivotal moment in Ukraine -- and crunch time for the Senate on this bill." He also pushed back on what he said was a growing but false belief that Ukraine was losing the war, saying recent offensive assaults deep into Russian territory, such as Sunday's so-called "Operation Spiderweb," in which Ukrainian drones destroyed 41 strategic Russian bomber aircraft, proved otherwise. Blumenthal argued that such feats could help shift the dial among the administration's foreign policy team, helping persuade them to bolster military and other assistance for Ukraine and to support the sanctions bill. That in turn would help overcome the reservations of some lawmakers, he said. "Events will move the White House -- and maybe some of the president's friends here [Capitol Hill]. Congress can move ahead. [Trump] doesn't have to support it." Current U.S. flows of arms and equipment to Ukraine are all under drawdowns on assistance packages approved under former President Joe Biden, with no fresh approvals since as the Trump administration shifts to a more mercantile approach under which Ukraine will buy the weapons rather than receiving them as aid.
UPI
9 hours ago
- Business
- UPI
Ukraine delegation visits Washington as Senate mulls Russia sanctions
June 4 (UPI) -- Ukrainian officials were set to update U.S. senators on Wednesday on the war and discuss arms purchases and efforts to pressure Russia to negotiate a peace deal, including a tough new bipartisan sanctions bill due to come to the floor of the upper chamber next week. The delegation, which included Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, Deputy Defense Minister Serhii Boyev and Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak, arrived Tuesday, a day after a second round of Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Turkey broke up without a breakthrough. Yermak said in a social media post that the delegation was bringing a "comprehensive agenda" of issues that were important to Ukraine to actively promote to members of both parties and President Donald Trump's team. "We plan to talk about defense support and the situation on the battlefield, strengthening sanctions against Russia, including Senator [Lindsey] Graham's bill. We will also discuss the Agreement on the Establishment of the Reconstruction Investment Fund, which we signed earlier," wrote Yermak. He said the delegation would also raise the issue of getting back Ukrainian children deported by Russia and support for the process. The bill that Sen. Graham, R-S.C., plans to introduce in the Senate aims to ratchet up economic pressure on Russia, targeting its trade partners by slapping 500% tariffs on imports from countries that continue to purchase Russian products, including gas, oil and uranium. China and India are the two biggest markets for Russian energy exports. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Politico that he and Graham would host a closed-door meeting with the Ukrainians on Capitol Hill to which all Senators had been invited. He said support for the sanctions bill was gaining very strong momentum with 82 members of the Senate split down the middle of the aisle agreeing to co-sponsor it. Blumenthal said the secondary sanctions could be a "game changer." "It's a pivotal moment in Ukraine -- and crunch time for the Senate on this bill." He also pushed back on what he said was a growing but false belief that Ukraine was losing the war, saying recent offensive assaults deep into Russian territory, such as Sunday's so-called "Operation Spiderweb," in which Ukrainian drones destroyed 41 strategic Russian bomber aircraft, proved otherwise. Blumenthal argued that such feats could help shift the dial among the administration's foreign policy team, helping persuade them to bolster military and other assistance for Ukraine and to support the sanctions bill. That in turn would help overcome the reservations of some lawmakers, he said. "Events will move the White House -- and maybe some of the president's friends here [Capitol Hill]. Congress can move ahead. [Trump] doesn't have to support it." Current U.S. flows of arms and equipment to Ukraine are all under drawdowns on assistance packages approved under former President Joe Biden, with no fresh approvals since as the Trump administration shifts to a more mercantile approach under which Ukraine will buy the weapons rather than receiving them as aid.
14 hours ago
- Business
Ukraine says only 'strong' US sanctions can break Russia peace talks impasse
LONDON -- With U.S.-brokered Ukraine-Russia peace talks still floundering despite another round of negotiations in Istanbul, Turkey, on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his top officials are applying more pressure on President Donald Trump to increase the cost of what they see as Russian obfuscation. Trump returned to office in January having vowed to end the war in 24 hours. But months of failed talks -- with Kyiv and Moscow clearly still far apart on their peace demands -- has left the president and his administration publicly frustrated. Trump has threatened both -- Ukraine with the withdrawal of all aid and Russia with more sanctions -- with punishment if his peace-making efforts fail. Both Ukraine and Russia have sought to frame the other as the main impediment to a peace deal. Ukraine aligned itself with Trump's May appeal for a full 30-day ceasefire, a proposal President Vladimir Putin has refused. In the weeks since, Zelenskyy has pushed Trump to meet Russia's obstinance with sanctions. Following Monday's talks -- which lasted just over an hour -- Kyiv embarked on a renewed push. "I want to thank all Americans, all Europeans who support this approach of pressuring Russia into peace -- it is extremely important," Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram on Tuesday night, following the latest round of deadly Russian drone and missile attacks on his country -- and after two headline-grabbing attacks by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) on Russia's strategic bomber fleet and the Kerch Strait Bridge. "Putin does not change his behavior when he does not fear the consequences of his actions," Zelenskyy added. "Russia must feel what war truly means. Russia must bear the losses from the war. They must really feel that continuing the war will have devastating consequences for them." The two sides did agree to further prisoner exchanges during the latest Istanbul talks. But both Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and Andriy Yermak -- the influential head of Zelenskyy's presidential office -- pushed back on the notion that the negotiations moved the needle toward a lasting ceasefire agreement. Yermak said in a post to social media that he spoke with Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff about the talks, telling him, "Russia's position remains unconstructive." "I emphasized that Russia is stalling and manipulating the negotiation process in an attempt to avoid American sanctions and has no genuine intention of ceasing hostilities," Yermak said. "Only strong sanctions can compel Russia to engage in serious negotiations. Sybiha said Russia "has not responded to our document outlining Ukraine's vision for ending the war," in a post on X summarizing Ukraine's official conclusions from the second round of talks. "Instead of responding to our constructive proposals in Istanbul, the Russian side passed a set of old ultimatums that do not move the situation any closer to true peace," he said. "This contradicts Russia's previous promises, including to the United States, that it would put forward something realistic and doable this week in Istanbul," Sybiha added, also calling for new U.S. sanctions on Moscow. Trump is also facing pressure at home. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham -- long influential in advising the president's foreign policy -- is among those pushing a sanctions bill through the Senate that would slap 500% tariffs on any country that buys Moscow's energy products. On Sunday, following a visit to Kyiv with Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Graham wrote on X, "Russia indiscriminately kills men, women and children. It's time for the world to act decisively against Russia's aggression by holding China and others accountable for buying cheap Russian oil that props up Putin's war machine." The Kremlin urged patience. "It would be wrong to expect any immediate decisions or breakthroughs here," spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday of the latest talks. "But work is ongoing. Certain agreements were reached in Istanbul, and they are important. Indeed, first and foremost, it is about people. These agreements will be implemented." But Dmitry Medvedev -- the former Russian president and prime minister now serving as the deputy chairman of the country's Security Council -- gave a darker read on the negotiations. The talks, he wrote on Telegram, "are not meant to achieve a compromise peace based on some imaginary and unrealistic conditions invented by others, but rather to secure our swift victory and the complete destruction" of Zelenskyy's government. Meanwhile, the long-range strikes that have unsettled Trump continued. Ukraine's air force reported 95 Russian drones launched into the country overnight, of which 61 were shot down or neutralized. Impacts were recorded in seven locations, the air force said. Russia's Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces downed seven Ukrainian drones overnight.
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Trump didn't know about Ukraine's drone strike on Russia's warplanes, White House confirms
U.S. President Donald Trump was not informed in advance about Operation Spiderweb, Ukraine's mass drone strike that damaged over 40 Russian bombers, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed on June 3. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) smuggled first-person-view (FPV) drones deep within Russia to coordinate attacks against four key air bases on June 1. Trump was not briefed ahead of the operation, Axios reported shortly after the operation, citing a Ukrainian security official. During a White House press briefing, Leavitt was asked whether Trump was informed by Ukraine about Operation Spiderweb in advance of the attack. "He was not," she said. The press secretary was also asked about Trump's view of the operation, given his uncharacteristic silence on the matter. "I would like to let the president speak on that himself," she said, then updated her answer by adding that Trump wants the war in Ukraine to end. "The president does not want to see this war prolonged. He wants this war to stop," Leavitt said. Leavitt praised Trump's efforts as a peacemaker, despite Russia's continued refusal to accept a ceasefire and the escalation of mass attacks against Ukraine. She noted the second round of direct Ukraine-Russia talks on June 2 in Istanbul as a sign of progress, calling the meeting "inconceivable" and crediting the step to Trump's intervention. "(President Trump) remains positive about the progress that we're seeing," Leavitt said. When asked whether Trump supports efforts by congressional Republicans to impose harsher sanctions against Russia, Leavitt did not answer directly, saying that lawmakers would take their cues from the president and trust his judgment as commander-in-chief. "(H)e has smartly kept this as a tool in his toolbox if necessary," Leavitt said, referring to additional sanctions. Leavitt also said that U.S. defense officials are looking into the implications of Operation Spiderweb for U.S. security and are working to ensure American aircraft are protected from the risks of internal drone strikes. Trump may take "some executive action" regarding the matter in the near future, she said. Operation Spiderweb is not the first time Ukraine has launched a major attack against Russia without first informing their American counterparts. The New York Times (NYT) reported in March that U.S. officials under former U.S. President Joe Biden reacted with "surprise" and "anger" when Ukraine sank the Mosvka, the flagship of Russia's Black Sea Fleet. Read also: Operation Spiderweb — everything we know about Ukraine's 'audacious' attack on Russia's heavy bombers We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
