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The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Tuesday that both the United States and Russia reaffirmed their "commitment to the success" of the upcoming Alaska summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Following a telephone conversation between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the ministry issued a statement, saying that the officials also talked about "certain aspects of preparations for the upcoming meeting" between the leaders, set to take place in Alaska on August 15.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reaffirmed on Tuesday that a trilateral meeting between the presidents of the United States, Russia, and Ukraine – Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Volodymyr Zelensky, respectively – might happen sometime in the future. Speaking at a press conference, Leavitt explained that the upcoming meeting in Alaska would be between Trump and Putin only as it was the president of Russia who invited his US counterpart to an in-person encounter through Washington's Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. She underscored that Trump's goal is to "walk away with a better understanding" of how...

Russian President Vladimir Putin shared the information on his upcoming meeting with his United States counterpart Donald Trump in a telephone call with North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, the Kremlin announced on Tuesday. According to the Kremlin's statement, Putin and Kim discussed the bilateral relations between their countries and their comprehensive agreements. Putin also thanked Kim for North Korea's help in what was described as the liberation of the Kursk region from the Ukrainian military. More to come...

Russian presidential advisor Dmitri Suslov revealed that Russia and the US could reach a bilateral agreement, excluding Ukraine and Europe. -snip- “The agreement is between us and the United States, excluding Ukraine and Europe,” he noted. From Suslov’s perspective, the plan could include the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Donbas. The Russian army should withdraw from the Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv regions, while the front line should remain unchanged in the other areas. Another essential element of the potential agreement, listed by Suslov, is Kiev’s commitment not to join the North Atlantic Alliance. The Russian advisor specified that the final...

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian commented on Tuesday on the upcoming meeting between United States President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating that China is "glad to see" that the US and Russia are keeping in contact and improving their relations. Lin reiterated China's support for a peaceful settlement to the war in Ukraine. "We hope all parties concerned and stakeholders will take part in the negotiation process in due course and reach a fair, lasting and binding peace agreement acceptable to parties concerned at an early date," he said, without commenting on the absence of Ukrainian...

One of President Trump’s core objectives heading into negotiations with Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin will be to prevent a third invasion of Ukraine, according to Sen. Lindsey Graham. “I am here to tell you that President Trump will end this war in a way to prevent a third invasion and not to entice China to take Taiwan,” Graham (R-SC), who went golfing with Trump on Saturday, told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “We’re not out to humiliate Putin, we’re out to get a deal to make sure there’s no third invasion.” -snip- “Militarily, we need to keep Ukraine strong, keep flowing...

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva spoke with Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Saturday for about 40 minutes, the Brazilian presidential palace said, adding that Putin shared information about his discussions with the United States and "recent peace efforts between Russia and Ukraine." -snip- Lula has been in a public spat with Trump since the U.S. imposed a 50% tariff on the imports of Brazilian goods, which Trump linked to an alleged "witch hunt" against his ally and Brazil's former right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro. U.S. imports of some Brazilian products, such as orange juice and aircraft, received a lower...

We welcome President Trump’s work to stop the killing in Ukraine, end the Russian Federation’s war of aggression, and achieve just and lasting peace and security for Ukraine. We are convinced that only an approach that combines active diplomacy, support to Ukraine and pressure on the Russian Federation to end their illegal war can succeed. We stand ready to support this work diplomatically as well as by upholding our substantive military and financial support to Ukraine, including through the work of the Coalition of the Willing, and by upholding and imposing restrictive measures against the Russian Federation. We share the...

A newly built Russian Navy tugboat, Kapitan Ushakov (Project 23470), sank on August 9 near the pier of the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg during final outfitting works, according to Russian media outlet Fontanka. The incident occurred in the evening of August 8 when the vessel developed a list to starboard. Emergency services and shipyard personnel attempted to stabilize the tug throughout the night but were unable to prevent it from capsizing. By morning, the vessel had settled on the bottom alongside the pier. The Baltic Shipyard’s press office stated that the pier was leased by the Yaroslavl Shipbuilding Plant,...

President Vladimir Putin has presented US President Donald Trump's special envoy with an award to pass on to a senior CIA official whose son was killed fighting with Russia in Ukraine. Putin gave the Order of Lenin to Steve Witkoff during his trip to Moscow this week to discuss a plan to end the Ukraine war, sources familiar with the matter told the BBC's US partner CBS. Michael Gloss, 21, who was killed in Ukraine last year, was the son of Juliane Gallina, who is the CIA's deputy director for digital innovation. Reports of the award emerged as it was...

European powers and Ukraine responded to Vladimir Putins cease-fire plan on Saturday with a counterproposal that they say must serve as a framework so that upcoming talks between President Trump and the Russian leader can gain traction, according to two European officials familiar with the talks. -snip- The European proposal includes demands that a cease-fire must take place before any other steps are taken. It also says that territory can be exchanged only in a reciprocal manner—meaning that if Ukraine pulls out of some regions, Russia must withdraw from others. “You can’t start a process by ceding territory in the...