Latest news with #UkrainianPresidentialPressService

RNZ News

a day ago

Politics
RNZ News

"Mum, I'm home!" Russia and Ukraine exchange prisoners of war

By Aleksandar Vasovic , Reuters Ukrainian prisoners of war wrapped in Ukrainian national flags hug each other following an exchange at an undisclosed location, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Photo: UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE / AFP Russia and Ukraine exchanged prisoners of war under the age of 25 in emotional homecoming scenes, the first step in a series of planned prisoner swaps that could become the biggest of the war so far. The exchange, announced by both sides, was the result of direct talks in Istanbul on 2 June that resulted in an agreement to conduct an exchange of at least 1200 POWs on each side and to repatriate thousands of bodies of those killed in the war. The return of POWs and the repatriation of the bodies of the dead is one of the few things the two sides have been able to agree on, even as their broader negotiations have failed to get close to ending Russia's war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year. Fighting has raged on, with Russia saying on Monday its forces had taken control of more territory in Ukraine's east-central region of Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv saying Moscow had launched its largest drone attack of the war. Officials in Kyiv said some of the Ukrainian prisoners who came home on Monday had been in Russian captivity since the beginning of the war. At a rendezvous point for the returning Ukrainian prisoners, soon after they crossed back into northern Ukraine, an official handed one of the freed men a cellphone so that he could call his mother, a video released by Ukrainian authorities showed. "Hi mum, I've arrived, I'm home!" the soldier shouted into the receiver, struggling to catch his breath because he was overcome by emotion. In a second video clip distributed by Ukrainian officials, one returned prisoner could be seen talking on the phone to a relative of another man still in captivity. For relatives of missing Ukrainians, returning prisoners can be the only source of news about their loved ones. "Don't worry, everything is okay with him," the soldier told the relative, a woman called Tania whose tearful voice could be heard on the other end of the call. Neither side said how many prisoners had been swapped on Monday, but the Russian Defence Ministry said in its own statement that the same number of military personnel had been exchanged on each side. Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky said at the weekend that a first list of 640 POWs had been handed to Ukraine. The Russian military said its returned servicemen were now in Belarus, a close Russian ally, where they were receiving psychological and medical assistance before being transferred to Russia for further care. Footage broadcast by Russia's RIA state news agency showed a group of freed Russian soldiers on board a coach raising their hands in the air and shouting: "Hurrah we're home." The same group was shown holding a Russian flag and chanting "Russia! Russia!" before boarding the coach. "It is very difficult to convey what I'm feeling inside now. But I am very happy, proud and grateful to everyone who took part in this process, in the exchange and bringing us home," said one freed Russian soldier. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country had received a first group of prisoners from Russia and that it would take several days to complete the swap. Both sides say the intention for this round of prisoner swaps is also to hand over people who are gravely ill or severely injured. The people seen being handed over so far on Monday appeared to be fit and well. "Today's exchange has begun. It will be done in several stages in the coming days," Zelensky said on the Telegram app. "The process is quite complex, with many sensitive details, and negotiations continue virtually every day. We count on the full implementation of the humanitarian agreements reached during the meeting in Istanbul. We are doing everything possible to bring back every single person." The Kremlin had said earlier on Monday that Russia was ready to honour agreements with Ukraine on the POW exchange and on the repatriation of dead soldiers despite what it said was Kyiv's failure to fully honour its side of the bargain. Ukraine had denied allegations of postponing the prisoner swaps. - Reuters

NATO's dilemma: how Zelenskiy can attend summit without provoking Trump

Straits Times

5 days ago

Politics
Straits Times

NATO's dilemma: how Zelenskiy can attend summit without provoking Trump

FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and U.S. President Donald Trump meet, while they attend the funeral of Pope Francis, at the Vatican April 26, 2025. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS BRUSSELS - Officials organising a NATO summit in The Hague this month are expected to keep it short, restrict discussion of Ukraine, and choreograph meetings so that Volodymyr Zelenskiy can somehow be in town without provoking Donald Trump. Though the Ukrainian president is widely expected to attend the summit in some form, NATO has yet to confirm whether he is actually invited. Diplomats say he may attend a pre-summit dinner but be kept away from the main summit meeting. Whether the brief summit statement will even identify Russia as a threat or express support for Ukraine is still up in the air. The careful steps are all being taken to avoid angering Washington, much less provoking any repeat of February's White House blow-up between Trump and Zelenskiy that almost torpedoed the international coalition supporting Kyiv. NATO's European members, who see Russia as an existential threat and NATO as the principal means of countering it, want to signal their continued strong support for Ukraine. But they are also desperate to avoid upsetting a volatile Trump, who stunned them at a summit seven years ago by threatening to quit the alliance altogether. If Zelenskiy does not attend in some form, it would be "at least a PR disaster", acknowledged a senior NATO diplomat. Since Russia's invasion three years ago, Zelenskiy has regularly attended NATO summits as the guest of honour, where alliance members pledged billions in weapons and condemned Russia for an illegal war of conquest. Leaders repeatedly promised that Ukraine would one day join NATO. But since Washington's shift under Trump towards partly accepting Russia's justifications for the war and disparaging Zelenskiy, the 32-member alliance no longer speaks with a single voice about Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two. Trump has taken Ukraine's NATO membership off the table, unilaterally granting Moscow one of its main demands. After dressing down Zelenskiy in the Oval Office in February, Trump cut vital U.S. military and intelligence support for Ukraine for days. Since then, the two men publicly mended fences in a meeting in St Peter's Basilica for the funeral of Pope Francis. But mostly they have spoken remotely, with Zelenskiy twice phoning the White House on speakerphone while surrounded by four friendly Europeans -- Britain's Keir Starmer, France's Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Friedrich Merz and Poland's Donald Tusk. SPENDING BOOST Trump is expected to come away from The Hague with a big diplomatic victory as NATO members heed his longstanding complaints that they do not spend enough on defence and agree a much higher target. They are expected to boost their goal for traditional military spending to 3.5% of economic output from 2%. A further pledge to spend 1.5% on related expenses such as infrastructure and cyber defence would raise the total to 5% demanded by Trump. But the summit itself and its accompanying written statement are expected to be unusually short, minimising the chances of flare-ups or disagreements. A pledge to develop recommendations for a new Russia strategy has been kicked into the long grass. Meanwhile, Zelenskiy may have to be content with an invitation to a pre-summit dinner, hosted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander, diplomats say. Unlike at NATO's previous two annual summits, the leaders do not plan to hold a formal meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, the official venue for talks between the alliance and Kyiv. The senior NATO diplomat said a working dinner with either foreign ministers or defence ministers could instead serve as an NUC. 'PROPERLY REPRESENTED' On Wednesday, NATO boss Mark Rutte said he had invited Ukraine to the summit, but sidestepped a question on whether the invitation included Zelenskiy himself. After meeting Rutte on Monday, Zelenskiy said on X that it was "important that Ukraine is properly represented" at the summit. "That would send the right signal to Russia," he said. U.S. and Ukrainian officials did not reply to questions about the nature of any invitation to Ukraine. Some European countries are still willing to say in public that they hope to see Zelenskiy invited as the head of the Ukrainian delegation. Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur said he would like to see a "delegation led by President Zelenskiy". Asked about an invitation for Zelenskiy, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said "I, for my part, strongly welcome the invitation" without giving further details. But diplomats have tried to play down the importance of the formal status of Zelenskiy's role: "Many allies want to have Zelenskiy at the summit, but there is flexibility on the precise format that would allow his presence," said a second senior NATO diplomat. A senior European diplomat said: "We should not get stuck on 'NUC or no NUC'. If he comes to the leaders' dinner, that would be the minimum." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

A double challenge is putting Trump's credibility on the line

Egypt Independent

19-05-2025

Politics
Egypt Independent

A double challenge is putting Trump's credibility on the line

CNN — Donald Trump this week faces two challenges — one at home and the other abroad — that will test his self-crafted mythology as a master dealmaker and his capacity to achieve real and enduring change. The president is heaping pressure on the brittle Republican House majority to overcome internal divides to pass the 'big, beautiful bill' that contains his top domestic priorities. And his so-far failed effort to bring peace to Ukraine will reach a new pivot point during a telephone call Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has snubbed Trump's initiative despite the administration's deferential treatment. Trump's spending bill is his best chance to transform the country — at least using conventional and constitutional means — because changing the law will be more enduring than his blitz of executive orders. He means to cut taxes, fund his mass deportation plans and add tens of billions of dollars to defense spending. But steep cuts to Medicaid and food assistance demanded by fiscal conservatives are alienating more moderate Republicans on whose seats the GOP majority depends. The fight therefore cuts right along the fault lines of the Trump coalition and could require a more forceful presidential intervention later this week. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, center, meets with US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Rome on May 18, 2025. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service via Reuters The world may soon learn about the extent of Trump's sincerity in Ukraine initiative It's also a crunch time for a peace plan in Ukraine that promised everything but has so far delivered very little. Even Trump has considered whether Putin is stringing him along in a peace effort that has so far consisted mainly of the new US administration squeezing the victim of the war — Ukraine — and choreographing the process to reward the aggressor. After Putin snubbed a proposed summit in Turkey last week that Trump all but ordered Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to agree to attend, the US president declared that there'd be no progress until he personally sat down with the Russian leader, who launched an unprovoked and illegal invasion three years ago. Monday's planned call will therefore be the most serious examination of Trump's credibility and sincerity in the Ukraine negotiations, as well as his willingness to impose even the slightest pressure on Russia. There have been signs recently that the White House is growing frustrated. Vice President JD Vance, who berated Zelensky in the Oval Office in February, met the Ukrainian leader in Rome over the weekend, days after warning that Russia is 'asking for too much.' Trump's belief that only he can influence Putin — a trait he shares with several previous presidents — could be exposed if Moscow doesn't budge. 'If he can't do it, then nobody can,' Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff said Sunday on ABC News' 'This Week.' But this is a questionable premise: The president has often excused Putin over his recalcitrance and vouched for his commitment to peace despite murderous attacks on Ukrainian civilians. And Witkoff has sometimes emerged from meetings with Putin reinforcing Russia's position. Still, at this point, with negotiations going nowhere, there may be merit in testing Trump's claim that he can make a difference. Putin could be wary, for instance, of defying the US president to his face. If Trump turned hints on new sanctions into real threats, he might narrow Russia's options. He could change Putin's calculations further were he to offer new weapons shipments to Kyiv. Still, the idea that Putin, for whom the conflict may be existential, will suddenly fold because of Trump's magnetism is far-fetched. Even an agreement for the formal presidential summit that Trump has long craved would likely be the precursor to a lengthy process during which Russia would continue to fight. A confrontation boils inside the House GOP Trump's big, beautiful bill is an attempt to enshrine sharp changes in the direction of government policy. It includes at least $1.5 trillion in spending cuts to pay for extending his first-term tax cuts and to expand it to cover promises he made on the campaign trail, including exempting income from tips and overtime pay and raising standard deductions. The bill would catalyze a shipbuilding program amid an escalating rivalry with China and make a down payment on a space-based 'Golden Dome' anti-missile shield. The stressed air traffic control system would get billions of dollars for upgrades. And the legislation throws cash at border security and detention facilities to prop up Trump's hardline immigration plan. But the bill will exact a heavy cost — one that will complicate its prospects even if it passes the full House this week and will contour the political climate ahead of 2026 midterm elections. It imposes spending reductions and new limitations on Medicaid and federal food assistance. And some analysts warn that whatever most taxpayers gain from tax breaks, they will have already lost from price increases caused by Trump's tariff wars. House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to reporters at the Capitol on May 15, credibility is on the line alongside Trump's The implications of the legislation are weighing on House Speaker Mike Johnson's tiny House majority and led to emotional confrontations in committee after months of grueling negotiations. Johnson forged a workaround to appease hardliners and managed to force the bill through the House Budget Committee on Sunday night after a tense weekend of negotiations. But the measure must pass other key hurdles this week ahead of a vote in the full House. And every step taken to ease its path in the House could make it harder to pass the Senate. And Democrats say tougher Medicaid requirements mean Trump broke pledges to working Americans. History suggests that the documentation process Medicaid recipients must go through to certify work requirements could also lead to eligible recipients losing coverage. Changes made to please conservatives could also anger more moderate members whose seats depend on swing voters and who also want adjustments to protect a cap on deductions of state and local taxes. Trump has largely been willing to trust Johnson to enact his agenda. Still, he can be expected to crank up pressure on holdouts from either wing of the party as he wants a big bill to sign by the July 4 holiday — a hugely ambitious timeline. The president's patience is limited: 'We don't need 'GRANDSTANDERS' in the Republican Party. STOP TALKING, AND GET IT DONE!' he warned on Truth Social last week. Trump's hold on the GOP grassroots means he can lean on GOP lawmakers who must answer to MAGA supporters at home. And during the confirmation process for controversial Cabinet nominees, he showed his willingness to unleash pressure campaigns by pro-Trump media personalities. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent appears on CNN's 'State of the Union' Sunday, May 18, 2025. CNN Bessent defends the bill on CNN Some provisions of the bill, including big tax cuts and a hike in defense spending, have raised concerns that it would worsen the nation's fiscal situation, which Trump repeatedly insists he is trying to fix. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that the bill, if passed in its current form, would add between $3.3 trillion and $5.2 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. And critics point out that Trump's first-term tax cuts sent deficits booming. But Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on 'State of the Union' on Sunday that the bill would create sufficient economic activity to defuse such concerns. 'There is the growth, the potential growth of the debt. But what's more important is that we grow the economy faster,' Bessent told CNN's Jake Tapper. 'And so, we are going to grow the GDP faster than the debt grows, and that will stabilize the debt-to-GDP.' Democrats, grappling for an effective attack on the new administration, are seizing on Medicaid cuts, which they claim will benefit the wealthiest Americans. 'There is nothing wrong with us bringing the government in balance,' South Carolina Democratic Rep. James Clyburn told Tapper. 'But there is a problem when that balance comes on the back of working men and women. And that's what is happening here.' Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy blasted the bill as an 'absolute disaster' that would deprive the neediest Americans of health care. 'We're standing in the way of … the most massive transfer of wealth from the poor and the middle class to the rich in the history of the country,' he said on NBC's 'Meet the Press.' Still, since Republicans control both chambers of Congress, Democrats have little power to halt the legislation — even if it might provide a base for their future campaigns. The internal dynamics of the Washington GOP might be complex, but they pale in comparison to the task that Trump faces with Putin — who, unlike Republican lawmakers, has no real incentive to make the president look good. But Witkoff insisted on ABC that Trump was equal to the task, pointing to 'the art, the elegance' of his dealmaking. 'The president is the master at this. … I've said many times that I follow his tactics because they work.' Yet early in Trump's new term, there is not much evidence in his so-far fruitless peace brokering in the Middle East or Ukraine to support the administration's incessant puffing up of the president. And until the 'big, beautiful bill' lands on his desk, his legislative record is looking as unimpressive as it did during his first term.

Carney reaffirms Canada's 'absolute support' for Ukraine

Ya Libnan

18-05-2025

Politics
Ya Libnan

Carney reaffirms Canada's 'absolute support' for Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney attend a meeting in Rome, Italy May 17, 2025. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Saturday reaffirmed the country's support for Ukraine in his first face-to-face meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy since winning the election. 'Canadian people will stand in steadfast and unwavering support … we underscore that there can be no peace without the full support and participation of Ukraine, and that you have our absolute support,' Carney told Zelenskiy. The leaders met while in Rome to attend the inaugural mass of newly elected Pope Leo on Sunday at the Vatican. U.S. President Donald Trump has said he would speak to the presidents of Russia and Ukraine on Monday. Carney also met other world leaders, including his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, President of Italy Sergio Mattarella and European Commission President Ursula von de Leyen ahead of the G7 summit in Canada in June. Reuters

Four European leaders aim to speak with Trump before his call with Putin, Merz says

The Star