Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump lashes out at ‘boasting’ Zelensky after claiming US peace deal is close
‘He can have peace or he can fight for another three years before losing the whole country,’ US president claims
Donald Trump has hit out at Volodymyr Zelensky for saying Ukraine would not recognise Russia's occupation of Crimea.
"This statement is very harmful to the peace negotiations with Russia," the US president said in a social media post, adding that a US brokered peace deal is on the horizon.
“He has nothing to boast about! The situation for Ukraine is dire — He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country,” Mr Trump wrote.
It comes as high-level peace summit in London to discuss the terms of a Ukraine peace deal on Wednesday was abruptly downgraded after Mr Trump’s most senior diplomat snubbed the meeting.
Foreign ministers from France and Germany abandoned plans to travel to the UK for the talks after US secretary of state Marco Rubio announced he would not attend, citing “scheduling issues”.
Trump says he 'thinks he has a deal' on Russia and Ukraine
Donald Trump has said that he thinks he has a deal with both Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky.
The US president told reporters at the White House on Wednesday that he believes he has made a deal to settle the war in Ukraine, Reuters reports.
He also, however, implied that a deal with Zelensky remained elusive - adding that the Ukrainian leader had been more difficult to deal with than Putin.
US's 2018 Crimea Declaration – the full text
Chechnya leader's son, 17, becomes head of Chechen security council
The teenage son of Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia's Chechnya region and close ally of Vladimir Putin, has been appointed secretary of the region’s security council.
Adam Kadyrov turned 17 in November 2024. It is the fourth time he has been appointed to an official position since 2023, when he was 15. He already serves as his father’s top bodyguard, is a trustee of Chechnya's Special Forces University, and an observer in a new army battalion.
ICYMI: Putin compares Trump ally Elon Musk to Soviet space hero
How Ukraine’s 2.5-bn-year-old rock deposit became central to helping stop Russia
Ukraine’s minerals have become central to global geopolitics, with the US president, Donald Trump, seeking a deal with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky to access them.
Munira Raji reports:
How a 2.5bn-year-old rock deposit became central to helping stop Russia’s invasion
Immediate ceasefire a 'fundamental' part of peace deal, Ukraine says
A Ukrainian government source has said there are a “few fundamental points” to securing a peace deal.
“The first is that while people are dying every day, it is extremely strange to focus on anything other than an immediate full and unconditional ceasefire,” the source told Sky News.
“Especially since Easter showed that this is possible, because the intensity of the fighting decreased and there were no air strikes when Putin ordered it.
“Second, we are ready to discuss everything else in any format after the ceasefire,” the source said, adding that it was against Ukraine’s constitution to recognise Crimea as Russian.”
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