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Sir Keir Starmer and Nato chief Mark Rutte said more pressure – including through sanctions – must be heaped on Vladimir Putin to engage with peace talks. It comes as US President Donald Trump has threatened stronger sanctions against Russia after it carried out the largest aerial attack on Ukraine since the war began. Sir Keir hosted Mr Rutte at Downing Street on Wednesday afternoon, after the Nato Secretary General joined a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG). A Downing Street spokeswoman said: “Turning to Ukraine, the leaders reflected on the situation on the frontline and underscored the...

President Donald Trump said he was ready to sanction Russia after Moscow launched its largest air attack against Ukraine since the start of the war on Sunday, setting Kyiv’s government headquarters on fire and killing at least five, including one infant.Forty-four more were injured in the attack that the Ukrainian Defense Department said included over 800 Shahed-type strike drones, 9 Iskander-K cruise missiles, and 4 Iskander-M ballistic missiles, which hit residential apartments and set ablaze the main government building where ministers meet.It was the second mass Russian drone and missile attack to target Kyiv in as many weeks, and comes...

Two wars — Ukraine and Gaza — are killing civilians, destabilizing allies, and draining American power. At their core stand Russia and Iran, two regimes that cannot survive without Beijing’s support. If America wants to end these conflicts on terms that serve U.S. interests, it must compel China to use its leverage — or face consequences. Only Donald Trump has the toughness and pragmatism to make that happen. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has leveled cities, created Europe’s largest refugee crisis since World War II, and cost American taxpayers tens of billions in aid. Hamas’s assault on Israel and the regional...

Putin also said he doesn't see the need for foreign troops after a peace deal.Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that his country's military would consider any foreign troops that appear on Ukrainian territory, especially before an agreed-upon ceasefire, to be "legitimate targets."His remarks came after European leaders said they finalized a plan outlining potential postwar security guarantees for Ukraine at a meeting in Paris on Thursday."As for possible military contingents in Ukraine, this is one of the primary reasons for Ukraine's involvement in NATO. Therefore, if any troops appear there, especially now, during the course of hostilities, we assume...

Fourth Turnings never fizzle out. They build to a crescendo of death and destruction. Is there any indications whatsoever that we are not on a course towards all-out war? 🇷🇺🇺🇦🇬🇧 Dmitry Medvedev: “The United Kingdom has sent Ukraine $1.3 billion obtained as profit from the use of frozen Russian assets. This was said by the English idiot Lammy. Well, this means one thing: British thieves have handed over Russian money to the neo-Nazis. The… pic.twitter.com/PcCfPw6kbj — DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) September We gave categorical assurances to Gorbachev that if a United Germany could remain in NATO, NATO would not be moved...

The attack comes as Russia suffers fuel shortages following Ukrainian attacks that have cut 20 percent of Russia's oil refining capacity. Ukraine struck several Russian oil facilities overnight Friday, including one if its largest refineries and an oil depot, worsening the country’s crippling fuel shortages. Ukrainian drones targeted facilities including Russia's largest Rosneft refinery in Ryazan and an oil depot in occupied Luhansk Oblast, according to Ukraine's chief drone warfare commander Robert Brovdi. Images of the attack on social media that appeared to show a massive fireball erupting immediately after the strike.

Diplomatic efforts to end the largely deadlocked war in Ukraine have focused on Western guarantees of Ukraine’s future security. But the Kremlin says it must obtain its own “security guarantees” before laying down arms. What President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia says is protection, however, would drastically limit Ukraine’s sovereignty, leaving it vulnerable to a renewed Russian attack and, many of its supporters believe, effectively turning it into a client state of Moscow. That tension over “security guarantees” — and the different ways in which the term is interpreted by the Kremlin and by the West — underlines the fundamental...

Following the meeting, which was attended by Zelensky, the Petit Napoleon Macron, pushing to conquer Russia, said that 26 countries – including the UK and France – have pledged to deploy troops in Ukraine as a “reassurance force” in the event of a ceasefire. They know what they are doing. This is the prelude to a false flag to realize their dream to finally conquer Russia, grab the $75 trillion in assets, and refund the European Union, which cannot last much beyond 2028. The two countries that may need an IMF bailout are France and Britain. It’s no surprise that...

Russian leader says Trump asked him to meet with Zelenskyy at August meeting in Alaska…..

Speaking in China at the end of a visit there, Putin said that he perceived "a certain light at the end of the tunnel" given what he said were sincere efforts by the United States to find a settlement to Europe's biggest land war since World War Two. "It seems to me that if common sense prevails, it will be possible to agree on an acceptable solution to end this conflict. That is my assumption," he told reporters in Beijing. "Especially since we can see the mood of the current U.S. administration under President Trump, and we see not just...

The expansion of this influential formation, which is accused of harboring extremist ideologies, will have an impact on any future peace deal Over the last several weeks, Russia’s 51st Combined Arms Army has achieved a penetration of the Ukrainian defenses northeast of Pokrovsk, seeking to isolate the Ukrainian forces defending the city. To seal off the penetration, Ukrainian forces committed a large number of formations, spearheaded by the 1st “Azov” National Guard Corps. While the results of fighting are still uncertain at the time of this writing, the presence of an entire “Azov” Corps and its sister Corps in the...

The background issues highlight the inevitability of the latest developments. Before talking specifically about Ukraine, let’s first consider the individual parties within the so-called “coalition of the willing,” Great Britain, France and Germany.All three major European economies are in trouble, along with the aggregate economy in Brussels which is heavily influenced by Germany, France and Italy.Within Great Britain, Prime Minister Kier Starmer is in a hot mess. “Starmer faces populists both left and right, with Brexit veteran Nigel Farage’s Reform UK consistently ahead in the polls. Inflation has ticked up. Unpopular tax rises loom. Starmer’s backbenchers are nervous about planned...

Ukrainian forces struck Russian targets in northern Crimea on the morning of August 30, 2025, destroying a Federal Security Service (FSB) border outpost and damaging patrol boats near Armyansk. Ukrainian outlet Militarnyi reported that the attack was carried out with Flamingo cruise missiles, correcting earlier claims cited by media that it was Neptune missiles. Footage circulating on Telegram shows a triple launch at sunrise from the coast of Ukraine. Low-resolution satellite imagery from the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem suggests that the main outpost building was hit, and the surrounding areas were scorched. However, image quality prevents a more detailed damage...

Europe is drawing up “pretty precise plans” for a multinational troop deployment to Ukraine as part of post-conflict security guarantees that will have the backing of US capabilities, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the Financial Times in an interview published on Aug 31. “President Trump reassured us that there will be (an) American presence as part of the backstop,” Dr von der Leyen told the FT, adding that “That was very clear and repeatedly affirmed.” -snip- European leaders, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte and von der Leyen are...

Ukraine expects to receive around 1.8 million artillery shells by the end of the year as part of the Czech ammunition initiative. The statement was made by Ukraine`s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha during a joint press conference in Kyiv with his Czech counterpart Jan Lipavský, Ukrinform correspondent reported on August 12. “Czechia is making practical contributions to our shared security and defense. Thanks to the Czech ammunition initiative launched in 2024, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are to receive about 1.8 million artillery shells by the end of this year,” Sybiha stated.

American private military firms could be deployed to Ukraine as part of a long-term peace plan. Donald Trump is in talks with European allies about allowing armed contractors to help build fortifications to protect American interests in the country. The plan is being devised as a workaround after the US president promised that American troops would not be stationed in Ukraine. US contractors could be deployed to help rebuild Ukraine’s front-line defences, new bases and protect US businesses.

Peace talks are a moot point between Russia and Ukraine. Security guarantees for Ukraine have been at the forefront of Ukraine’s discussions but they are actually a premise to determine how other nations will officially enter the war. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni proposed an ambitious security guarantee that would require allies to decide within 24 hours whether to deploy troops to Ukraine if Russia attacks. “Allies” could use any excuse to send their men and women to the battlefield under this premise. Zelensky has been urging for Article 5 protection—an attack on one is an attack on all—despite Ukraine...

Amid increasingly belligerent Russian rhetoric against NATO, tiny Estonia has assumed the role of David standing up to Goliath. In recent months, Tallinn has intensified its signaling that in the case of an imminent Russian invasion, it would not hesitate to strike first. The world is now seeing the country’s logic. In a September 2024 interview with the Estonian public broadcaster ERR, Estonian General Vahur Karus stated that if Moscow showed signs of preparing for an attack, Estonia would strike the Russians first: “Our capability to neutralize the enemy on its own territory is crucial.” In the subsequent months, Estonia...

The Trump administration on Thursday authorized a major weapons shipment to Ukraine to aid the country in its fight against Russian invasion, intensifying pressure on Moscow to end its war on Kyiv. The State Department notified Congress that Ukraine is using funding from allies, in addition to U.S. foreign military financing, to pay Washington for $825 million worth of weapons, including 3,350 Extended Range Attack Munition missiles and 3,350 GPS units, along with military training and technical support. “This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a...

A package of U.S. cruise missiles is among the first shipments of purchases by NATO allies to be sent to the embattled country.Europe has begun buying American weapons for Ukraine in earnest, only weeks after President Trump struck a deal with NATO allies to do so.The latest sale, announced by the State Department on Thursday, will send 3,500 extended-range cruise missiles and GPS navigation kits to Ukraine once Congress formally approves it, as expected. They cost $825 million, paid for by Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway, with some unspecified financial assistance from the Pentagon.The missiles can be fired from fighter...