Ukraine-Russia conflict newest: Trump welcomes Putin’s provide of Victory Day ceasefire in ‘very good’ cellphone name | EUROtoday

Donald Trump made the baseless declare that Ukraine is “militarily defeated” on Wednesday after a cellphone name with Vladimir Putin.

Speaking to reporters as he met with astronauts from the Artemis II mission within the Oval Office, the US president mentioned he mentioned a short lived Ukraine ceasefire to mark the anniversary of the top of World War Two subsequent month.

He went on to say that Kyiv had been “militarily defeated”, with no proof. Ukraine is continuous to withstand the Russian aggression throughout the frontline, with no important features made by Moscow in current months.

“We had a good talk, I’ve known him a long time,” mentioned Trump. The two leaders had their final publicly reported cellphone name on ⁠March 9, though Trump has indicated ​they ⁠converse repeatedly.

During a cellphone name with Donald Trump final night time it was Vladimir Putin who proposed a short lived ceasefire to mark 9 May and the defeat of Nazi Germany within the Second World War, the Kremlin mentioned.

Kremlin ⁠aide Yuri Ushakov mentioned the phone name lasted greater than an hour and a half and was “conducted in a friendly manner, candid and business-like”.

“Trump actively supported this initiative, noting that the holiday ‌marks our common victory over Nazism in World War Two,” he mentioned.

He ​added: “Donald Trump believes that a deal to put an end to the ‌conflict in Ukraine is already close.”

He ⁠mentioned Putin advised the US president that Russian forces in Ukraine “hold the ⁠strategic initiative and are pressing on enemy positions”.

Putin, Ushakov mentioned, “clearly said that Kyiv was resorting to openly terrorist ‌methods by attacking civilian ​sites on Russian territory,” a reference to frequent ‌Ukrainian strikes on key infrastructure, ​notably in Russia’s oil sector.

EU members want to compile a bundle of short-term advantages for Ukraine because the prospect of giving Kyiv fast-track full membership seems more and more unlikely.

Interim perks may embody larger market entry and deeper participation in EU programmes and establishments, 4 diplomats advised Politico.

This comes after Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the concept of being given “symbolic” membership of the bloc, one thing advised by German chancellor Friedrich Merz and French president Emmanuel Macron.

One of the diplomats mentioned the EU is “accelerated gradual integration”, beneath the EU would convey Ukraine into shared markets, funding schemes and political establishments in a phased manner.

Another methodology being pushed suggests Kyiv be given some type of “acceding state” standing to point out that it’s firmly on observe to hitch the EU, Politico reported citing the Lithuanian proposal.

EU leaders in March rejected the European Commission’s “reverse enlargement” proposals that might enable Ukraine to hitch the bloc with out finishing main reforms.

“From the moment of the dinner … member states have been clear it would be very difficult to see membership in the short term,” one of many diplomats mentioned. “But we need to have a positive offer for how we can better move forward together before then.”

Ukraine is manufacturing a surplus of as much as 50 per cent of some sorts of weapons, president Volodymyr Zelensky has mentioned, as a part of the nation’s defence cooperation with the Middle East, the Gulf, Europe and the Caucasus.

These offers embody the manufacturing and provide of drones and missiles together with the expertise and software program, he mentioned.

Kyiv has handed a proposal to the US for cooperation on drones, defence methods and different sorts of weapons to be used within the air, on land and at sea, Zelensky mentioned yesterday.

President Donald Trump couldn’t say whether or not the conflict he launched towards Iran in February would finish earlier than the four-year-old Russian conflict towards Ukraine – and even confused the 2 international locations.

The president instantly started a question-and-answer session that veered from UFOs to a current dialog with Russian president Vladimir Putin that had centered on the Ukraine and Iran wars.

“I talked about Ukraine, and I talked a little bit about Iran. I talked about few different subjects, mostly about Ukraine, and we had a very good conversation. I think we’re going to come up with a solution relatively quickly,” he mentioned yesterday.

Trump mentioned Putin would “like to be involved” with resolving Iran’s possession of enriched uranium – one thing the United States opposes – and remarked that he’d advised Putin in flip that he’d desire he be “involved with ending the war with Ukraine”.

US president Donald Trump mentioned he mentioned a attainable ceasefire within the four-year conflict in Ukraine in a cellphone name with Russian president Vladimir Putin.

He spoke after the Kremlin reported the ⁠two leaders mentioned a short lived Ukraine ceasefire to mark the anniversary of the top of the Second World War subsequent month.

“We had a good talk, I’ve known him a long time,” mentioned Trump. The two leaders had their final publicly reported cellphone name on ⁠9 March, though Trump has indicated ​they ⁠converse repeatedly.

Trump, chatting with reporters as he met with astronauts from the Artemis II mission within the Oval Office, mentioned he advised “a little ⁠bit of a ceasefire” within the conflict in Ukraine in his cellphone name ​with ⁠the Russian chief.

“And I think ‌he might do that,” Trump mentioned, then requested reporters whether or not Putin had already introduced a ceasefire.

Putin introduced an analogous truce final 12 months that lasted ‌three days however was not agreed with Kyiv.

Trump ‌has a historical past of constructing optimistic feedback about Putin and sharply criticising Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky for not agreeing to make a cope with Russia to finish the conflict.

The ​European Union is contemplating imposing stricter situations on ⁠its €90bn mortgage to Ukraine, together with ⁠making ​some ⁠payouts depending on the introduction ⁠of an unpopular ​tax ⁠change for companies, ‌Bloomberg News reported right now, ‌citing folks accustomed to ‌the matter.

The plan would have an effect on ⁠€8.4bn in so-called macro-financial help anticipated to be granted this 12 months beneath the ‌program, the report ​mentioned.

A Ukrainian drone strike sparked a “massive” hearth at a Russian oil refinery in Tuapse on Tuesday, as Kyiv stepped up its marketing campaign to focus on a important generator of funding for Vladimir Putin’s conflict chest.

It was the third assault on the Black Sea port facility in lower than two weeks because the Ukrainian navy sought to disrupt the Russian oil and gasoline trade, which accounts for a giant slice of Moscow’s federal funds.

After the Ukrainian navy claimed duty for the newest strike, Russia’s president Vladimir Putin mentioned in remarks that had been broadcast on Russian tv that “drone attacks against civilian ⁠infrastructure are becoming more frequent”. “The latest example is the strike against ​energy ⁠facilities in Tuapse,” he added, “which could potentially cause serious environmental consequences.”