Free Republic

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...