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Steve Witkoff has hailed latest talks in Florida as ‘productive and constructive’ without announcing any major breakthroughs
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Vladimir Putin’s top foreign policy official has rejected the latest amendments to a Donald Trump-backed peace plan – despite admitting that he hasn’t actually read them.
Yuri Ushakov, who played a key role in drafting the original version of the plan that was widely dismissed as being too pro-Russia, also played down the prospect of a three-way summit between the US, Moscow and Kyiv
“I am sure that the proposals that the Europeans and Ukrainians have made or are trying to make definitely do not improve the document and do not improve the possibility of achieving long-term peace,” Yuri Ushakov said.
The senior Kremlin official said he had not seen the exact proposals and that his criticism was “not a forecast”.
His remarks came after Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said he held “productive and constructive” talks in Florida over the weekend with Ukrainian and European negotiators.
“Our shared priority is to stop the killing, ensure guaranteed security, and create conditions for Ukraine‘s recovery, stability, and long-term prosperity.
“Ukraine remains fully committed to achieving a just and sustainable peace,” Trump’s envoy added.
Ukraine’s military hit a Tamanneftegaz oil terminal in Russia’s Krasnodar region in an overnight attack, causing explosions and a fire, the Ukrainian General Staff said on Monday.
It said in a statement on the Telegram app that the oil terminal was part of Russia’s energy infrastructure that supported financing and logistics of Russian troops fighting in Ukraine.
The French presidency has welcomed Russia’s willingness to hold talks with Emmanuel Macron.
Russian president Vladimir Putin’s willingness to speak with Macron is “welcome”, the Elysee Palace said, adding that Paris will decide on the details “in the coming days”, reported French broadcaster BFMTV.
The remarks came shortly after Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Saturday said Putin is ready to engage in dialogue with Macron.
On Friday, Macron had said it would “become useful again” for him and the Europeans to speak with Putin.
“I think that we, Europeans and Ukrainians, have an interest in finding a framework to re-engage in these discussions properly. Otherwise, we end up talking among ourselves, with negotiators who go off on their own to talk with the Russians, which is not optimal,” Macron said.
Russia is reportedly developing a new anti-satellite weapon specifically designed to target Elon Musk’s Starlink constellation, according to intelligence findings from two Nato nations.
These reports, seen by The Associated Press, indicate the so-called “zone-effect” weapon aims to flood Starlink orbits with hundreds of thousands of high-density pellets.
Such a weapon could potentially disable multiple satellites at once, but also carries the risk of catastrophic collateral damage to other orbiting systems. The alleged objective behind this development is to curb Western space superiority, which has played a crucial role in aiding Ukraine on the battlefield.
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Russia’s pipeline exports of natural gas to China are expected to have risen by a quarter this year, a source familiar with the data told Reuters news agency on Monday, as Moscow ramps up sales to Asia and cements ties with the world’s largest energy consumer.
However, this will not offset the fall in revenue from the loss of the European gas market, Reuters calculations showed.
Russia has re-routed most of its oil to India and China since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022 as Moscow and Europe – once its main commodity export market and source of revenue – severed ties.
It’s proven harder to divert gas flows eastwards and painstaking talks to bring more Russian gas to China have yielded limited results.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to talk to media, said Russian energy giant Gazprom GAZP.MM expects gas exports to China via the Power of Siberia Pipeline to reach around 38.6-38.7 billion cubic metres this year, up from 31 bcm in 2024 and exceeding the pipeline’s planned annual capacity of 38 bcm.
Russia is ready to confirm in a legal agreement that it has no intention of attacking either the European Union or the US-led NATO military alliance, Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday, the state RIA news agency reported.
It comes after reports that US intelligence had concluded Russia’s ultimate goal was to take over the entirety of Ukraine and parts of other neighbouring countries which were once part of the Soviet Union.
Russian troops hit port and energy infrastructure in an overnight attack on Ukraine’s Odesa region, a senior Ukrainian official said on Monday.
The strikes caused a fire at a major port and disrupting electricity supplies to tens of thousands of people, he added.
Ukraine’s Black Sea ports are crucial for its export-driven economy and their security and functionality have been vital for the country’s economic survival.
“Russia is attempting to disrupt maritime logistics by launching systematic attacks on port and energy infrastructure, deputy prime minister Oleksiy Kuleba said on the Telegram app. “Last night, ports and energy facilities were targeted again.”
Mr Kuleba said that following the attacks, a fire had broken out in the port of Pivdennyi and about 30 containers of flour and vegetable oil were on fire. Port workers and emergency services were tackling the blaze.
Because of damage to the energy infrastructure, electricity supplies were disrupted to more than 120,000 customers in the Odesa region, he said. One person had been hurt in the attack, the interior ministry said.
The icy ground crackling under their feet, members of an elite Ukrainian drone-hunting team set up for a long night.
Antennas and sensors are clipped to a light stand. Monitors and controls are pulled from hard cases, and a game-changing new weapon is readied for deployment.
The Sting, shaped like a flying thermos, is one of Ukraine’s new homegrown interceptors.
The unit’s commander says the interceptors can effectively counter Russia’s fast-evolving suicide drones, which are now flying faster and at higher altitudes.
“Every destroyed target is something that did not hit our homes, our families, our power plants,” said the officer, known only by the call sign “Loi”, in line with Ukrainian military protocol.
“The enemy does not sleep, and neither do we.”
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Russia’s Defence Ministry said it had captured Vilcha in Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported on Monday.
The Independent could not immediately verify the report.
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