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U.S. and European diplomats went on a flurry of calls in the hours after U.S. President Donald Trump offered on Monday to join prospective Ukraine-Russia talks later this week, trying to find a path that would bring an end to the war in Ukraine. Trump's surprise offer to join the talks on Thursday in Istanbul came a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in a fresh twist to the stop-start peace talks process, said he would travel Turkey and wait to meet President Vladimir Putin there. -snip- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks late on Monday with his Turkish...

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan have been carrying out intense diplomacy in the past few days following increased hopes for the resumption of talks between Russia and Ukraine in Türkiye. Erdoğan will receive NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on May 13 in Ankara before the latter chairs the informal NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Antalya on May 14 and 15. Erdoğan and Rutte are expected to discuss the agenda of the NATO meeting and the efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. Erdoğa spoke with Zelensky on late May 12 and emphasized the significance...

I picked a J6 case at random to review because I wanted to see how bad it was. And let me tell you the random one I picked did not disappoint. This defendant went into the capital and walked down the corridor. He was not accused of violence. He did not break anything. He did not hurt anybody. He was sentenced by a jury to 19 months in prison he was overcharged by the prosecutor to the point where it should be called malicious prosecution, and a judge rubber stamped every single thing the prosecutor asked for. The most egregious...

Putin could reject his own offer to Zelensky. UKRAINE is now piling the pressure on Russia as Vladimir Putin stays silent on his own offer to meet for peace talks on Thursday. Moscow's bungle has seen Volodymyr Zelenksy take up Vlad's offer to for a face-to-face meet in Istanbul for long-awaited negotiations between the two leaders. But the Kremlin has gone deathly silent as Putin weighs rejecting the offer he sent to the Ukrainians. Zelensky has filled the dead air and now said he will definitely go to Istanbul - but will only meet with his counterpart Putin and not...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a law ratifying the agreement on mineral resources between the United States and Ukraine, APA reports, citing Unian. It should be noted that on May 1, Washington and Kyiv signed an agreement granting the US access to Ukraine’s mineral reserves. The Ukrainian Parliament later ratified the deal.

US President Donald Trump has described the upcoming May 15 meeting between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul as "very important," APA reports. Speaking to journalists, Trump expressed hope for a positive outcome from the talks between Moscow and Kyiv representatives. "The Thursday meeting with Russia and Ukraine is very important. I’ve been very insistent on making this meeting happen. I believe something good could come out of it," he said.

Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed he will personally attend landmark peace talks on Thursday with Russia in a direct ultimatum to Vladimir Putin. Writing on social media on Sunday afternoon, Ukraine's President said he "will be waiting" in Istanbul for his Russian counterpart to sit down and negotiate.

Vladimir Putin’s top security official has vanished during efforts to end the war in Ukraine, amid swirling health rumours and claims he could be caught up in a corruption probe. Sergei Shoigu, 69, is a Russian army general and currently the secretary of the powerful Russian Security Council. He served as defence minister for most of the war in Ukraine before being replaced one year ago, and is a very well-known member of Putin's entourage. Speculation is swirling in Moscow after he missed the Red Square parade on Friday amid claims his absence was health-related. But an explanation that he...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call, according to Türkiye’s Presidential Communications Directorate, News.Az reports. It was noted that the parties discussed Turkiye-Russia relations, regional and global issues. Erdogan expressed his satisfaction with Putin's statement on the resumption of Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul, and stressed that Turkiye is ready to host the discussions. The Turkish President also noted that a window of opportunity for peace has opened, and that ensuring a ceasefire will create the necessary environment for peace talks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday welcomed Russia’s offer for direct peace talks, but insisted there must be a full, temporary ceasefire in place before negotiations can start. Zelenskyy, writing on X, called Russian President Vladimir Putin’s counter-offer to start talks without a ceasefire a “positive sign,” and said that “the entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time.”

President Donald Trump suggested imminent progress in peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in a post to Truth Social early on Sunday, saying he would "continue to work with both sides" to end Moscow's 3-year-old invasion of its neighbor. "A potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine!," Trump wrote. "Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end. It will be a whole new, and much better, WORLD." "I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens." Trump continued. "The USA wants...

Ukrainian President Zelensky and the leaders of several NATO countries spoke on Saturday with President Trump and stressed they are ready for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting Monday, Ukraine's foreign minister said. -snip- Trump called for a 30-day ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war earlier this week. While Ukraine agreed, the Kremlin hasn't given a clear answer so far. -snip- The leaders of France, U.K., Germany and Poland visited Kyiv on Saturday and met with Zelensky to discuss the ceasefire plan. At the end of the meeting Zelensky and the European leaders called Trump and briefed him on their position. "Ukraine...

The leaders of four European countries, Ukraine, and the United States are urging Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire to initiate peace talks. Dmitry Medvedev has already responded to the politicians in a vulgar manner. -snip- "Macron, Merz, Starmer, and Tusk were supposed to discuss peace in Kiev. Instead, they are blurting out threats against Russia. Either a truce for the respite of Banderite hordes or new sanctions. You think that’s smart, eh? Shove these peace plans up your pangender ar**s!" Medvedev wrote on the X platform.

European leaders have called US President Donald Trump to discuss proposals for a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine from Monday while on a visit to Kyiv. The call came after leaders of the so-called "coalition of the willing" held a meeting to discuss advancing peace talks. The leaders of France, Germany, the UK and Poland were hosted in person by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, while others joined remotely. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the coalition backed a "full and unconditional" ceasefire - originally mooted by Trump - and that the EU was ready to "impose further...

Iran is preparing to deliver in the near future launchers for short-range ballistic missiles that the U.S. said Tehran sent to Russia last year for use against Ukraine, according to two Western security officials and a regional official. The delivery of the Fath-360 launchers - if it occurs - would help support Russia's grinding assault on its neighbor and reaffirm the deepening security ties between Moscow and Tehran. With a 75-mile (120-km) range, the Fath-360 would give Moscow's forces a new weapon to fire at Ukrainian frontline troops, nearby military targets, and population centers close to the border with Russia,...

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday slammed U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies and sweeping tariffs, saying they harm multilateralism as he met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow. -snip- "The latest decisions by the U.S. president to unilaterally put tariffs on trade with all countries in the world undermine the great idea of free trade and strengthening multilateralism," Lula said during a bilateral meeting with Putin. The leftist leader said he intends to strengthen Brazil's strategic partnership with Russia, citing "political, commercial, cultural, scientific and technological interests" as he sees room to increase trade.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping sat for one-on-one talks over tea on Thursday as they continued meetings in Moscow. The Kremlin released a video of Putin serving the drink to Xi after wider talks with their delegations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping called President Donald Trump's plan for a "Golden Dome" air defense system "deeply destabilizing," after in-person talks between the two leaders. Trump's vision for the Golden Dome is that the military will create a multi-layered defense shield that would be able to protect the continental United States to deter and even intercept any aerial attack against the homeland. "The recently announced large-scale program 'Golden (Iron) Dome for America' is also deeply destabilizing in nature," a joint statement from Xi and Putin said.

Putin and Xi say they 'intend' to play a role in US-Iran nuclear negotiations. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin met for formal talks on Thursday for the first time since President Donald Trump exacerbated the U.S.-China trade war last month. In a statement at the top of the meeting, Xi pledged to stand by his anti-Western ally against "power politics" and "bullying on the international stage." "Eighty years ago, the peoples of China and Russia made tremendous sacrifices to secure a great victory, contributing an indelible chapter to the cause of world peace and human progress,"...

Chinese President Xi Jinping has told Russian leader Vladimir Putin that his country will stand with Moscow against “unilateralism and hegemonic bullying” during a visit to the country to commemorate the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. -snip- “In the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying behaviour, China will work with Russia to shoulder the special responsibilities of major world powers,” Xi told Putin. -snip- Xi said that China and Russia would jointly defend the “correct view” of the history of WWII, protect the “authority and status” of the United Nations, and defend the...