Donald Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine has claimed that the country could be partitioned like Berlin after the Second World War as part of a peace deal – as the US president urged Russia to “get moving” on a ceasefire.
Keith Kellogg told The Times that British and French troops could adopt zones of control in the west of the country, forming a “reassurance force”, while Russia’s army could remain in the occupied east – separated by Ukrainian forces and a demilitarised zone.
The Anglo-French-led force west of the Dnipro river – which bisects Ukraine from north to south – would “not be provocative at all” to the Kremlin, said Mr Kellog, who was excluded from peace talks last month because Russia complained that he was “too close” to Kyiv.
It came as four people were injured in Kyiv and Kharkiv during an overnight barrage of Russian drone strikes, which damaged residential buildings and sparked fires, also hitting the Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions.
Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin for talks on a “Ukrainian settlement” in St Petersburg lasting four hours on Friday.
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Key points
- US envoy suggests dividing up Ukraine like post-war Berlin
- Four injured in Russian drone strikes in Kyiv and Kharkiv, officials say
- Trump urges Putin to 'get moving' on ceasefire deal
- Moscow calls meeting with White House envoy 'productive'
- US officials say Chinese fighting for Moscow are mercenaries
Russia preparing renewed assault in Kharkiv despite no attacks on Friday, Ukrainian soldiers say
14:08
,
Andy Gregory
Russia’s forces are regrouping and preparing to launch a renewed assault in Kharkiv, a Ukrainian military grouping has warned.
The Kyiv Independent reported the Khortytsia group as saying that, while no offensive actions had been carried out by Russian troops towards Kharkiv over the past 24 hours, Moscow’s forces are actively replenishing their units and preparing to resume their offensive.
Russia’s Lavrov claims Trump understands much more about Ukraine conflict than any European leader
13:39
,
Andy Gregory
Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has claimed that Donald Trump seems to understand much more about what is happening in Ukraine than any European leader.
Speaking at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in southern Turkey, Mr Lavrov reiterated that Mr Trump understood the need to address the root causes of the conflict in Ukraine to resolve it, a phrase repeatedly used by Moscow.
Republicans called White House to complain after Trump envoy's interview on Ukraine, report says
13:10
,
Andy Gregory
Mutiple Republican members of the US congress were so alarmed by Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff’s remarks about Russia’s war during an interview with Tucker Carlson that they called the White House national security adviser and secretary of state Marco Rubio to complain, a source has told Reuters.
During the interview last month, Mr Witkoff praised Mr Putin as “super smart” and not “a bad guy”, while claiming the “central issue” and “elephant in the room” in peace negotiations is whether Ukraine can cede four regions – which he was unable to name – to Russia.
According to the report, some US officials worry that Moscow is taking advantage of Mr Witkoff’s – a former real estate mogul – lack of experience at the negotiating table.
“Witkoff must go, and Rubio must take his place,” Eric Levine, a major Republican donor, said in a letter sent on 26 March to a group including fellow donors to the party.
Trump’s envoy ‘tells him quickest way to end war is for Ukraine to cede four regions to Russia’
12:42
,
Andy Gregory
Shortly after dining with a Russian negotiator in Washington last week, Donald Trump’s envoy to Moscow is reported to have told the US president that the quickest way to end the war would be to support a strategy handing Vladimir Putin the four Ukrainian regions he sought to illegally annex seven months into his full-scale invasion.
Steve Witkoff, a former real estate mogul, who met with Mr Putin on Friday, was said to have made the remarks by two US officials and five people familiar with the situation, Reuters reported. Mr Witkoff has previously been unable to name all four regions to which he referred.
However, Mr Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg is claimed by two sources to have pushed back against Mr Witkoff, saying that Ukraine would never agree to completely hand over all four territories to Russia.
The meeting is reported to have ended without Mr Trump making a decision to change Washington’s strategy.
Turkey and Russia’s top diplomats discuss Ukraine ceasefire efforts, source says
12:13
,
Andy Gregory
Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan have discussed efforts to secure a ceasefire in the Ukraine war, a Turkish diplomatic source has told Reuters.
The pair also discussed energy cooperation issues and bilateral relations during a meeting on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in southern Turkey, the source said.
Russia accuses Ukraine of attacking its energy infrastructure five times in past 24 hours
11:52
,
Andy Gregory
Russia's defence ministry has claimed that Ukraine had carried out five attacks on Russian energy infrastructure over the past day, in an alleged violation of a US-brokered moratorium on such strikes.
Ukraine and Russia agreed to pause strikes on each other's energy facilities last month, but both sides have repeatedly accused each other of breaking the moratorium.
It was not possible to verify Russia’s claims, and Moscow has repeatedly made false claims about Ukrainian attacks since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Opinion | It’ll take more than a ‘reassurance force’ to fill the US-sized hole
11:46
,
Andy Gregory
Our associate editor Sean O’Grady writes:
There’s a terrible sense of poignancy – if not doom – around all the meetings of the “coalition of the willing”, impressive as the grandiloquent words, the formidable roll call of nations and the glittering array of military uniforms might be.
To be brutally frank, and with the best will in the world, these capable, dedicated ministers and generals may be wasting their time.
The problem is American resistance to the whole idea. The danger is that if Vladimir Putin doesn’t like the COTW reassurance force – and everything suggests that he hates it – and obstructs Donald Trump’s peace deal, then Trump will agree.
The best Putin will accept so far is a conventional UN peacekeeping force, ie the kind of thing that so recently proved useless and was humiliated by Israel in Lebanon. No Nato members, under any flag, will be allowed in. If nothing is agreed, Putin will carry on, likely with Trump’s acquiescence – because it seems to me that Trump is basically a coward.
Ukraine can nearly produce full range of weapons it needs, says Zelensky aide
11:15
,
Andy Gregory
Ukraine can nearly supply its armed forces with the full range of military equipment if requires, an adviser to Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
In remarks reported by the Kyiv Independent, Oleksandr Kamyshin told a briefing marking Ukraine’s Gunsmith Day, in which it was said that Ukraine had developed a total of 324 types of weapons domestically between 2022 and 2024: “Today, according to various estimates, 30 per cent to 40 per cent of what our troops use on the front lines is made in Ukraine.
“It’s not only about war — it’s about our economy. As of last year, defence manufacturing made up a significant share of our GDP. After our victory, I’m confident we’ll be exporting Ukrainian-made weapons to the world.”
Ukraine's domestic missile production grew eightfold in 2024, minister says
10:56
,
Andy Gregory
Kyiv’s domestic production of cruise missiles has increased eightfold in 2024, Ukraine’s strategic industries minister has said.
According to the Kyiv Independent, Herman Smetanin said Ukraine had only able to manufacture a single type of cruise missile, the Neptune, back in 2022. “Last year, we introduced many new models, allowing us to grow production eightfold compared to 2023,” he said. A total of 324 new types of weapons had been developed in Ukraine by the end of 2024.
Ukraine also more than doubled its production of long-range drones in 2024 compared to the previous year, which marks a 22-fold increase compared to 2022.
In total, Ukraine produced $9bn worth of arms in 2024, and the defence industry is on track to nearly quadruple that amount by the end of 2025, said Mr Smetanin. “By the end of 2025, we will have the capacity to produce $35bn worth of military equipment domestically.”
Russia suffers 1,240 casualties as nearly 150 frontline clashes reported, Ukraine says
10:34
,
Andy Gregory
Ukraine’s military has reported nearly 150 clashes along the frontline on Friday, as it claimed that Russia had carried out more than 100 air strikes in multiple regions and suffered 1,240 casualties.
The general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said Russia had fired more than 6,400 artillery shells and deployed 2,789 kamikaze drones over the same period.
Watch: Prince Harry meets Ukraine war victims in surprise visit
10:12
,
Andy Gregory
Romanian election favourite pledges to stop potential US troop withdrawal
09:48
,
Andy Gregory
Romanian hard-right opposition leader George Simion, who is the favourite to win a presidential election re-run, has claimed he is the only candidate who could stop a potential withdrawal of US troops from the country.
Romania will repeat the two-round election on 4 and 18 May after the Constitutional Court voided the initial ballot in December over accusations of Russian interference, which Moscow denied.
There are wider concerns in Romania over a potential cut in US troop numbers in Europe and the future of Nato, amid reports that Washington is drawing up plans to cut troops in eastern Europe.
"No longer having American troops in Romania seems dangerous to me and I am the only candidate who can stop that," said Mr Simion, leader of the opposition Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR), during a marathon news conference late on Friday which lasted more than five hours.
“We are the natural allies, we are ideologically aligned with the Republican Party, the Maga movement.”
A critic of the current European Union leadership, Mr Simion has also said he would stop military aid to Ukraine, which borders Romania. He has opposed Holocaust education and gay marriage. On Friday, he said he backed increasing defence spending provided it boosted Romanian industry.
Trump envoy says Ukraine could be carved up like post-war Berlin
09:31
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukraine could be partitioned like Berlin after the Second World War as part of a peace deal, US president Donald Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia has suggested.
Retired lieutenant general Keith Kellogg said in an interview with The Times that UK and French troops could adopt zones of control in the west of the country, forming a “reassurance force”.
Russia’s army could remain in the occupied east, and between the two would be Ukrainian forces and a demilitarised zone, said Gen Kellogg, who was previously national security adviser to vice-president Mike Pence.
Jane Dalton has more.
Four injured in Russian drone attack
09:26
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
At least four people were injured and multiple buildings damaged in an overnight Russian drone attack on Ukraine.
Ukraine's air defences shot down 56 of the 88 Russian drones, its air force said, adding that 24 drones were "lost" as the military used electronic warfare to redirect them.
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitchko said that three people were injured in the capital as a result of the drone attack.
Drone debris also destroyed a private house and damaged several commercial buildings, causing large fires in different parts of the capital, city officials said.
One more person was wounded in the city of Kharkiv in the northeast, mayor Ihor Terekhov said.
Poland's Duda says Trump best chance for Ukraine ceasefire
09:18
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Poland's outgoing president Andrzej Duda said Donald Trump has the best chance of ending the war, but any peace must be "fair and lasting".
"If anyone is able to force the end of Russia's war, it is most likely only the President of the United States," he told Sky News.
"The question is whether he will be determined enough to do that in a way - because it is also very important here in Europe being a neighbour of Russian aggression against Ukraine - that the peace is fair and lasting."
Russia launches 88 drones on Ukraine, says Kyiv
07:27
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukraine's air defences shot down 56 of 88 drones launched by Russia in an overnight attack, Ukraine's air force said this morning.
At least 24 drones were "lost" as the military used electronic warfare to redirect them, the air force said.
Damage was reported in five Ukrainian regions in the centre, east and south of the country.
Russia using bilateral talks with US to delay negotiations on war, says think tank
07:10
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russia's delay in accepting Washington’s proposal has frustrated Donald Trump and fueled doubts about whether Vladimir Putin really wants to stop the fighting while his bigger army has momentum on the battlefield.
“Russia continues to use bilateral talks with the United States to delay negotiations about the war in Ukraine, suggesting that the Kremlin remains uninterested in serious peace negotiations to end the war,” the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington think tank, said in an assessment.
Washington remains committed to securing a peace deal, even though four weeks have passed since it made its ceasefire proposals, state department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
“It is a dynamic that will not be solved militarily. It is a meat grinder,” Ms Bruce said about the war, adding that “nothing else can be discussed … until the shooting and the killing stops.”
Zelensky sanctions Russian journalists
06:00
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukrainian president Vladimir Zelensky has imposed 10-year sanctions on 18 companies and 130 people, including Russian journalists.
Alexander Sladkov, a military correspondent for the Rossiya-1 TV channel; Arina Sharapova, a TV host on Channel One; Andrey Norkin, a talk show host on NTV; Iskander Khisamov; editor-in-chief of the Ukraine.ru website, are among the journalists targeted, Russian news agency TASS reported.
The list includes 59 people from the alleged shadow fleet, a network of ships that Moscow allegedly uses to circumvent Western sanctions to export oil and gas.
"We are increasing pressure on war propagandists and those who justify Russia," Mr Zelensky said. He added that more sanctions were expected soon.
Zelensky honours 19 people killed
05:46
,
Jane Dalton
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has told how he honoured the memory of 19 people killed by a Russian ballistic missile strike – exactly one week ago.
“19 people were killed by a Russian missile, including 9 children,” he wrote on his website.
“I’m now in a shelter at the very school where three of those children studied – tragically, they were killed.
“That same day, there was also a Shahed drone attack, which claimed even more lives. Eternal memory to them all.”
Ukraine hires American law firm for US mineral deal - report
05:30
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukrainian justice ministry has reportedly hired American law firm Hogan Lovells to present Kyiv’s position in negotiations on a mineral deal with the US.
Kyiv is seeking the help of consultants and lawyers "to protect the national interests of Ukraine and to formulate the position of Ukraine", by taking into account American and Ukrainian legislations, a government document said.
The funds will be distributed across the economy and justice ministries, the document said, with the aim of hiring consultants with experience in public debt management and external borrowing, and those from leading international law firms, by a 15 April deadline.
Deputy prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Monday that Ukraine will send a team to Washington this week to advance negotiations on the draft strategic agreement.
Trump urges Putin to 'get moving' on ceasefire deal
04:52
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
US president Donald Trump has urged the Russian president to "get moving" on a ceasefire in Ukraine as Vladimir Putin met White House envoy Steve Witkoff in Russia.
The focus of the meeting, which lasted over four hours, was "aspects of Ukrainian settlement", the Kremlin said.
The Izvestia news outlet earlier released video of Mr Witkoff leaving a hotel in St Petersburg, accompanied by Kirill Dmitriev, Mr Putin's investment envoy.
Mr Dmitriev called the talks on Friday "productive".Mr Trump said in a post on Truth Social: "Russia has to get moving. Too many people (are) DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war - A war that should have never happened, and wouldn't have happened, if I were President!!!"
The Russian leader has said he is ready in principle to agree to a full ceasefire, while emphasizing that crucial implementation details remain unresolved and what he describes as the war's root causes have yet to be addressed.
US officials say Chinese fighting for Moscow are mercenaries
04:39
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Over 100 Chinese citizens fighting for the Russian military against Ukraine are mercenaries who do not appear to have a direct link to China's government, officials said.
Chinese military officers have, however, been in the theatre behind Russia's lines with Beijing's approval to draw tactical lessons from the war, a former Western intelligence official told Reuters.
The head of US forces in the Indo-Pacific, Admiral Samuel Paparo, confirmed on 9 April that Ukrainian forces had captured two men of Chinese origin in eastern Ukraine after Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said his country had information about 155 Chinese citizens fighting there on Russia's behalf.
China, which has declared a "no-limits" partnership with Russia and has refrained from criticising Moscow's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, had called Mr Zelensky's remarks "irresponsible" and said China was not a party to the war.
Two US officials told the news agency that Chinese fighters appear to have minimal training and are not having any discernable impact on Russia's military operations.
Russia claims to have destroyed 13 Ukrainian drones
04:31
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russia's Defence Ministry said air defence units had destroyed 13 Ukrainian drones within 30 minutes.
A ministry statement said that between 10pm and 10.30pm, nine drones were destroyed in the Rostov region on Ukraine's eastern border and four in the Kursk region, on Ukraine's north border.
Moscow calls meeting with White House envoy 'productive'
04:13
,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russian investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev described as "productive" talks between Russian president Vladimir Putin and US envoy Steve Witkoff.
"Welcome to Saint Petersburg, Russia!" Dmitriev, who attended the talks, wrote on X in English. "Productive discussions with @SteveWitkoff."
Mr Putin was shown on state TV greeting Witkoff in St Petersburg's presidential library at the start of the negotiations and state news agencies later said the talks lasted more than four hours.
"The theme of the meeting is aspects of a Ukrainian settlement," the Kremlin said in a statement after the meeting concluded.
Mr Witkoff has emerged as a key figure in the on-off rapprochement between Moscow and Washington amid talk on the Russian side of potential joint investments in the Arctic and in Russian rare earth minerals.
