Ukraine-Russia war latest: US to lead talks in Saudi Arabia as Trump warns Ukraine ‘may not survive’

Volodymyr Zelensky is headed to Saudi Arabia to satisfy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman right this moment, forward of talks between Ukrainian and US officers amid a dramatic push from Washington to finish the conflict by any means.

Mr Zelensky is anticipated to satisfy Mohammed bin Salman, whose Saudi Arabia has performed numerous mediating roles since Russia’s 2022 invasion, together with brokering prisoner exchanges and internet hosting talks between Russia and the USA final month.

The talks right this moment between US and Ukrainian officers – the primary official assembly since a disastrous Oval Workplace encounter between Mr Zelensky and Donald Trump – are anticipated to give attention to a bilateral minerals deal and tips on how to finish the conflict.

Mr Zelensky has mentioned he won’t attend the talks with US officers and that the Ukrainian delegation will embody his chief of employees, his overseas and defence ministers and a prime navy official within the presidential administration.

“On our aspect, we’re absolutely dedicated to constructive dialogue, and we hope to debate and agree on the mandatory choices and steps,” Mr Zelensky mentioned in a put up on X.

“Sensible proposals are on the desk. The bottom line is to maneuver rapidly and successfully.”

The USA, as soon as Ukraine’s predominant ally, has upended its wartime insurance policies in its said pursuit of a speedy finish to the preventing, partaking instantly with Moscow whereas chopping off navy help and intelligence sharing for Kyiv.

Russian firefighters are battling a big hearth in a warehouse in Novokuibyshevsk in Russia’s Samara area, Ukraine authorities and media mentioned on Monday.

“There aren’t any accidents,” the emergency ministry mentioned on the Telegram channel, citing preliminary particulars. The RIA information company mentioned a warehouse was on hearth.

It additionally cited the area’s governor as saying Ukraine launched an in a single day drone assault focusing on enterprises within the area.

Ukrainian forces are profitable small patches of land and managed to stall the Russian offensive on the japanese sector of its frontline, its troopers and navy analysts have mentioned.

The state of affairs has improved as Ukraine is ready to discover modern methods to compensate for its scarcity of troops, Michael Kofman, a senior fellow on the Carnegie Endowment for Worldwide Peace in Washington, instructed The New York Occasions.

He defined that Putin’s troops and their offensive effort in Donetsk have been stalled in latest months on account of “poor climate, exhaustion amongst Russian forces, and efficient Ukrainian adaptation to the best way Russian troops have been preventing”.

Russian forces recaptured three extra settlements in Russia’s western Kursk area, the defence ministry mentioned, a part of an operation to evict Ukrainian troops holding chunks of territory seven months after a cross-border incursion.

The ministry assertion, posted on the Telegram app, adopted studies by Russian bloggers that Russian particular forces had crept for miles by a gasoline pipeline close to the city of Sudzha in an try to shock Ukrainian forces.

The three settlements now below Russian management based on the ministry – Malaya Lokhnya, Cherkasskoye Porechnoye and Kositsa — all lie north of Sudzha.

“The Russian Federation’s armed forces are persevering with to rout teams of the Ukrainian military on the territory of Kursk area,” the assertion mentioned.

Ukraine has not confirmed the lack of territory in its day by day replace.

A press release from Ukraine’s airborne assault forces mentioned that Russian troopers had used the pipeline in an try to achieve a foothold, however the Russians have been promptly detected and attacked with rockets, artillery and drones.

The Ukrainian navy’s Normal Employees in a late afternoon report mentioned its forces repelled 15 Russian assaults in Kursk area, with six armed clashes nonetheless ongoing. It additionally reported 12 Russian air strikes on their positions.

One concern to be addressed in Jeddah is the destiny of a minerals deal between the US and Ukraine, with Kyiv wanting to incorporate a US safety assure in trade for entry to sure mineral assets in Ukraine.

Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump had been slated to signal that accord throughout Mr Zelensky’s Washington go to. However after the White Home blowup between the 2 males, it was not signed.

Since then, each side have expressed a renewed willingness to signal the deal, however no signing has but occurred. Mr Trump yesterday mentioned he thought Ukraine would signal it, with a caveat that he needed Mr Zelensky’s authorities to indicate that it needed peace.

“They’ll signal the minerals deal however I would like them to need peace… They have not proven it to extent they need to,” he mentioned.

A delegation of Ukrainian and American officers are assembly in Saudi Arabia right this moment to debate tips on how to deliver an finish to the conflict with Russia.

American officers will use the talks to determine whether or not Kyiv is fascinated about a “real looking” peace deal, considered one of them instructed Reuters, in addition to repairing the injury to relations with the US after Donald Trump’s Oval Workplace conflict with Volodymyr Zelensky.

The US will probably be represented by secretary of state Marco Rubio, nationwide safety adviser Mike Waltz and Donald Trump’s Center East envoy, Steve Witkoff.

“You possibly can’t say ‘I would like peace,’ and, ‘I refuse to compromise on something,'” one of many US officers mentioned of the upcoming talks.

“We need to see if the Ukrainians have an interest not simply in peace, however in a sensible peace,” mentioned the opposite official. “If they’re solely fascinated about 2014 or 2022 borders, that tells you one thing.”

The Ukrainian officers will probably be led by Andriy Yermak, Mr Zelensky’s chief of employees.

In his nightly video tackle yesterday, Mr Zelensky mentioned will journey to Saudi Arabia right this moment to “proceed to work for the sake of peace”.

Elon Musk says the “complete frontline” in Ukraine would collapse if he selected to show off his Starlink web system.

Starlink terminals have performed an important position in securing communications within the conflict in Ukraine, with most battlefield positions outfitted with their very own terminal.

Final 12 months, Ukraine mentioned round 42,000 terminals have been in operation throughout the navy, hospitals, companies and support organisations.

Posting on X, Musk mentioned Starlink was the “spine of the Ukrainian military” and the “complete entrance line would collapse if I turned it off”.

He mentioned he was “sickened by… years of slaughter in a stalemate that Ukraine will inevitably lose”.

Donald Trump has declined to criticise Vladimir Putin for persevering with to assault Ukraine on the time when his administration is making an attempt to dealer a peace deal.

On being requested by a Washington Submit reporter if he felt Mr Putin was “disrespecting” him by attacking Ukraine whereas he was making an attempt to make a peace deal, Mr Trump mentioned: “What did he do? Is he disrespecting me? Who’re you with.”

“You’ve misplaced plenty of credibility,” he then instructed the reporter with the main day by day.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Poland’s overseas minister Radoslaw Sikorski of “making issues up” and prompt on Sunday he was ungrateful.

Poland pays for Kyiv to make use of the providers of Elon Musk’s Starlink, which gives essential web connectivity to Ukraine and its navy.

Musk, a high-profile determine within the administration of US President Donald Trump, mentioned in a put up on his X social media platform on Sunday that Ukraine’s “complete entrance line would collapse if I turned it (Starlink) off”.

He mentioned he was “sickened by years of slaughter in a stalemate that Ukraine will inevitably lose”.

The US authorities has already revoked some entry to satellite tv for pc imagery for Ukraine and paused intelligence sharing, piling strain on Kyiv as Trump seeks a swift finish to the conflict, now in its fourth 12 months after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

US negotiators urgent Kyiv for entry to Ukraine’s vital minerals have raised the potential for chopping the nation’s entry to the service, sources accustomed to the matter instructed Reuters in February.

“Starlinks for Ukraine are paid for by the Polish Digitization Ministry at the price of about $50 million per 12 months,” Sikorski wrote on X in a while Sunday.

“The ethics of threatening the sufferer of aggression aside, if SpaceX proves to be an unreliable supplier we will probably be compelled to search for different suppliers.”

Rubio hit again at Sikorski, saying in a put up on X that he was “making issues up” and that “No-one has made any threats about chopping Ukraine off from Starlink”.

“And say thanks as a result of with out Starlink Ukraine would have misplaced this conflict way back and Russians could be on the border with Poland proper now,” Rubio added.

Musk later mentioned he would “by no means” reduce Starlink off regardless of disagreeing with Ukraine.