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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky lamented during a Wednesday press conference with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that his country’s war with Russia is no longer top of mind for U.S. officials. “Iran is the No. 1 issue for the United States, and only after that comes Ukraine,” Zelensky said in Kyiv. “Unfortunately, we are in the queue of these wars.” Rutte arrived in Ukraine on an unannounced visit one day after a Russian drone and missile attack killed at least 13 people and injured more than 100. In the United States, members of the House of Representatives are forcing a...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday said he is still hoping to land a major deal to buy advanced US military drones, saying it would be a potentially “huge’’ game-changer in the war. His comments came as he warned that Ukraine was set to be brutally pummeled by Russia by air again for the second week in a row. Zelensky argued that fusing the dramatic advancements Ukraine has made with its drone technology because of its battlefield experience against Moscow with America’s remarkable military capabilities would be “huge” and beneficial for both countries. “American technological companies, they have a lot...

Polish President Karol Nawrocki has announced plans to strip Volodymyr Zelensky of the Order of the White Eagle, Poland’s highest honour, after the Ukrainian president named a military unit after a group that led massacres of ethnic Poles during World War Two. However, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose government regularly clashes with the opposition-aligned president, has sought to calm emotions, warning that the only one to benefit from conflict between Poland and Ukraine is Russia. Zaproponowałem, aby jednym z punktów było odebranie prezydentowi Zełenskiemu Orderu Orła Białego – Prezydent RP @NawrockiKn. pic.twitter.com/4NaOAIjO3C — Kancelaria Prezydenta RP (@prezydentpl) May 29,...

Volodymyr Zelensky has demanded that Ukraine be granted full membership of the European Union. Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, had called for the country to be given a special half-in, half-out relationship, which would mean it could participate in European summits and ministerial meetings – but not cast a vote. Mr Zelensky criticised the “associate membership” concept, branding it an “unfair” move that would leave Ukraine “voiceless”. The Ukrainian president urged the EU to commit to his country’s full entry in a letter addressed to Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of...

The Prime Minister sought to reassure the Ukrainian leader as questions remain about UK sanctions on Russian oil, which critics say have been watered down. Downing Street said the Prime Minister had “reaffirmed the UK’s steadfast support for Ukraine” in his call with Mr Zelensky and “set out our ongoing commitment to do everything possible to debilitate and degrade Putin’s war machine”. Sir Keir told Mr Zelensky that the UK’s efforts meant there would be “less Russian oil on the market, with Russia weaker as a result”, a spokesperson added. The call followed criticism of a “short-term” trade licence issued...

Riding a wave of political momentum in 2019, Volodymyr Zelensky, a showman turned wartime leader, could have hardly imagined the path his presidency would take. Some argue that Zelensky's 2019 election was less of an endorsement of his political platform, a populist one, rather a rejection of the old entrenched elite seen as ineffective and corrupt. Years later, Zelensky still faces the domestic challenges that confronted his predecessors — issues he once promised to resolve. On the international stage, however, he has amassed significant support for Ukraine, actively working to maintain global backing as his country defends itself against a...

President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he considered visits by US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow but not Kyiv "disrespectful". The pair visited the Russian capital late last year as ceasefire talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine gained pace, and again in January. Witkoff, who has been to Moscow eight times, met Vladimir Putin on many occasions. Neither he nor Kushner, however, has ever visited Kyiv in an official capacity. "It's disrespectful [for them] to come to Moscow and not Kyiv, it's just disrespectful," Zelensky said in an interview with a Ukrainian outlet. "I understand we...

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted the war in Iran has taken the focus away from Russia’s aggression against his country, telling CNN it was a “big risk” to think that efforts to end the fighting in Ukraine can’t restart until the conflict in Iran ends. Speaking to CNN’s Christiane Amanpour from the presidential office in Kyiv, Zelensky said Wednesday that while technical talks with the United States are still happening, he doesn’t “see the opportunity to meet … until the question, the case of Iran will be closed.” Zelensky pointed out that it was a “challenge” that the same team...

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned a US decision to extend the period during which Russia is allowed to sell oil despite Western sanctions. The move means countries can purchase Russian oil and petroleum products already loaded on vessels at sea until 16 May. The US argues that the waiver is meant to ease the energy supply crunch sparked by the US-Israel war with Iran. But in his remarks on Sunday, Zelensky said "every dollar paid for Russian oil is money for the war" in Ukraine. Widespread sanctions have been in place against Russia since President Vladimir Putin launched his...

Volodymyr Zelensky has claimed the UK must rejoin the EU if the US leaves NATO, as US President Donald Trump has threatened to pull away if the pact does not support his Middle East war. Trump, a fierce critic of the defence bloc, has been left unimpressed by fellow members and their refusal to get involved in his war with Iran. The Ukrainian leader said that in order to bolster Europe's defence against Russia, the UK ought to reset relations with the continent. Zelensky said on Friday: 'If the United States truly thinks about withdrawing from NATO, then European security...

U.S.-mediated peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have not reached a dead end, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 30 in response to a question from the Kyiv Independent, arguing that negotiations are merely postponed. The comments come as diplomacy appears stalled, with the U.S. now focused on the war in Iran and no new Kyiv-Moscow-Washington talks scheduled. Despite the pause, Zelensky sought to project momentum, even as fundamental disagreements — particularly over territory — remain unresolved. "The trilateral meeting must take place; it is undoubtedly being postponed because the U.S. is currently focused on Iran," Zelensky said about a...

In an interview with NBC News’ Raf Sanchez, President Zelenskyy says that he hopes President Trump cares about the future of Ukraine, but “they care about the United States more.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on March 27 that President Volodymyr Zelensky's claims about Ukraine withdrawing from the Donbas region in exchange for security guarantees are untrue. "That's a lie. And I saw him say that, and it's unfortunate he would say that, because he knows that's not true and that's not what he was told," Rubio told reporters. "What he was told is the obvious: Security guarantees are not going to kick in until there's an end to the war, because otherwise you're in — you're getting yourself involved in the war." In an interview with Reuters...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a surprise visit to Saudi Arabia on Thursday amid a wider effort to lend Ukraine’s drone defense expertise to the U.S. and Gulf States. Zelensky had offered his country’s expertise in defense against kamikaze drone attacks, cultivated in its grinding war against Russia, just days after the war began. These promised personnel arrived in the Middle East recently, with Zelensky saying last week that 201 personnel had been deployed, and another 34 were on their way. Drones were at the top of the agenda of Zelensky’s visit. In a post on X, he stated that...

Ukraine should not hold elections this year, officials from the country’s electoral commission have concluded, setting Kyiv on a collision course with the United States. Members of the official working group on elections were due to present draft legislation to parliament late last month, but told The Times they had yet to resolve key questions on how to secure fair elections free from Russian attacks or interference. They plan to continue deliberating on the issue until at least the end of May. The group has agreed, however, that Ukraine should only enter a campaign period at least six months after...

Volodymyr Zelensky today appeared to tacitly attack Donald Trump for easing sanctions on Russian oil to cut prices hammered by his attack on Iran. The Ukrainian president used a speech in Parliament to thank the UK for keeping up pressure on 'wealthy madman' Vladimir Putin despite fresh fighting in the Middle East. Last week Trump signed a one-month sanction waiver allowing countries to buy Russian oil currently floating around in tankers unable to dock anywhere. It was designed to ease prices that spiked when Iran put a block on shipping transiting the Straits of Hormuz off its south coast. In...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged Donald Trump and Sir Keir Starmer to meet and find common ground, after the US president's repeated criticism of the UK prime minister. In an exclusive interview with the BBC after talks with Sir Keir, the Ukrainian president said that while he would not tell Trump what to do, the pair should meet to "re-load the relationship". A war ignited by US and Israeli strikes on Iran has spilled into a diplomatic row after Trump's reprimanding of the Nato allies and Starmer's supposed lack of military action. Zelensky warned against division among western leaders...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused European allies of seeking to "blackmail" Kyiv into reopening a pipeline transporting Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia. He said restoring the flow of Russian crude oil through Ukraine into the European Union (EU) would be like lifting economic sanctions on Moscow. Ukraine says the Soviet-era Druzhba oil pipeline was damaged by Russian air strikes in January and has yet to be repaired. Hungary depends on Russian energy and is blocking both fresh EU sanctions on Moscow and a vital €90bn ($103bn; £78bn) loan for Kyiv until the pipeline is reopened. The EU has...

Robert Fico 🇸🇰@RobertFicoSVKREACTION OF THE PRIME MINISTER OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC, ROBERT FICO, TO THE BLACKMAILING BEHAVIOR OF UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT ZELENSKYYI express full solidarity with the Prime Minister of Hungary, @PM_ViktorOrban. If the Ukrainian president continues like this, it may happen that other EU member states will also block the 90-billion loan for Ukraine.And I officially ask all the highest representatives of the European Union and I will be very specific: 👉🏻 the President of the European Commission, @vonderleyen👉🏻 the President of the European Council, @eucopresident👉🏻 and also the so-called EU foreign affairs chief, @kajakallas☝🏻 to distance themselves from these...

March 1 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday that the changes in Iran ‌brought about by U.S. and Israeli strikes ‌should be "used properly" to benefit the country's people who had ​withstood violence from their authorities. Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address, said Iran's authorities had killed "tens of thousands of people in the last couple of ‌months alone," referring ⁠to a crackdown on protests. Iran, he said, had "predetermined the way it is treated" ⁠by supplying attack drones to Russia in Moscow's four-year-old conflict in Ukraine and had also "fomented wars ​in the ​region." "It...