Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in
Germany warns US it ‘should not engage with Putin’s stalling tactics’
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
The likelihood of the US successfully brokering a Ukraine peace deal in the next few months has plummeted, according to senior Trump administration official.
Despite boasting that he would end the war in 24 hours once he entered office, Donald Trump had privately set a target of securing a ceasefire in Ukraine by April or May, two senior Washington sources told Reuters. But neither that nor a lasting peace deal seems imminent, they admitted.
Washington officials have acknowledged that Vladimir Putin is actively resisting their attempts to strike a ceasefire and discussed what, if any, economic or diplomatic punishments could push Russia closer to a deal, the sources said.
The Kremlin will look to bring Trump back onside with Putin envoy Kirill Dmitriev reportedly set to visit Washington for a meeting with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff this week, according to CNN.
Meanwhile, Moscow and Kyiv continued trading drone fire overnight on Wednesday, with the Ukrainian military reporting 74 drones were launched by Putin’s forces, who said they had in turn shot down 93 Ukrainian drones.
Ahead of talks in Brussels between Nato foreign ministers this week, Germany‘s Annalena Baerbock warned that Mr Trump “should not engage with Putin’s stalling tactics”.
A US visit by Vladimir Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev is “possible”, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.
Contacts between Moscow and Washington are continuing, a Kremlin spokesperson added.
Reuters reported that Dmitriev is expected in Washington this week for talks with Donald Trump’s administration.
Two people have been arrested after allegedly plotting to blow up a police station in the western city of Lviv on Russian instructions, Ukrainian authorities said.
The suspects were carrying out the “instructions of a Russian representative in exchange for a monetary reward”, Ukrainian prosecutors said on Telegram.
They “arrived in Lviv and retrieved explosives hidden in a bag at specific coordinates”, authorities said. “The defendants were set to plant the concealed explosives in an administrative building at a Lviv police station as part of their prearranged plan.”
One of the perpetrators was a 22-year-old woman and resident of Kyiv who had been looking to ear “easy money” through Telegram channels.
After recruitment by Russian intelligence she was tasked with a “test” assignment, posting Russian propaganda leaflets around Kyiv, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
Russia and Ukraine have agreed to stop attacking ships in the Black Sea after intense negotiations with the US in Saudi Arabia.
It is not the full ceasefire Donald Trump is continuing to push for three years into Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, but the move is seen as progress by the White House.
A US delegation held separate talks with counterparts from Russia and Ukraine over three days into Tuesday.
The talks with Kyiv came on either side of a marathon 12-hour discussion with Kremlin representatives on Monday, which was described by a Russian official as “challenging” but “useful”.
Rachel Clun reports:
More from Volodymyr Zelensky, who called for a global response following Russia’s overnight drone attack.
In a direct message to Western allies, Mr Zelensky says “new and tangible pressure” is needed on Moscow to bring the war to an end.
The US and European countries must not wait until April 11, when it will be a month since Russia rejected the US ceasefire proposal, he added.
“This systematic and constant nature of Russian strikes clearly indicates that Moscow despises the diplomatic efforts of partners,” Mr Zelensky wrote on X. “Putin does not even want to ensure a partial ceasefire.
“We should not wait until April 11, when it will be a month since Russia said ‘no’ to the American proposal for a ceasefire. Action must be taken as soon as possible.”
Kyiv is ready to work with partners from the US and Europe to achieve a “dignified and lasting peace”, he added.
Three children were injured during the 74-drone attack on Ukraine by Russian forces, Volodymyr Zelensky added in his X post.
Kharkiv was the most heavily targeted area in the attack, facing at least 14 drones. The attack involved 54 Iran-made Shahed drones in total, the Ukrainian president added.
All the wounded are receiving the “necessary assistance” he said.
Russian attacks damaged multiple energy facilities in Ukraine, president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday.
Facilities in the Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk regions were damaged, with electricity cut to nearly 4,000 consumers, Mr Zelensky wrote on X.
A drone hit a substation in the northeastern Sumy region andn artillery fire damaged a power line in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, he said.
Kyiv and Moscow had agreed with the US to a pause on energy infrastructure attacks, but both side has accused the other of violating this truce.
The Ukrainian military recorded 176 clashes with Russian forces over the past day, 64 of which took place on the eastern Pokrovsk front.
Vladimir Putin’s forces have been steadily advancing near Pokrovsk, a strategic Ukrainian town which serves as a supply hub for other areas of the frontline. Russia has aimed to cut supply lines to and from Pokrovsk to other Ukrainian-controlled areas.
Clashes were also recorded on the fronts in Kharkiv, Kupiansk, Lyman, Toretsk, Kursk and others.
The grinding war of attrition in eastern Ukraine has seen Russia send large masses of troops charging towards stretched Ukrainian defences, claiming incremental territorial gains at the cost of large manpower losses.
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in