Donald Trump said Ukraine may or may not lose its sovereignty to Russia while claiming that the war-hit nation had “essentially agreed” to a rare earth minerals deal with the US.
"They may make a deal. They may not make a deal. They may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday.
“But we’re going to have all this money in [Ukraine] and I say, I want it back," the president said in an interview with Fox News.
"I told them that I want the equivalent of like $500 billion worth of rare earths, and they’ve essentially agreed to do that.”
His remarks came as Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said it would not be possible to reach a peace deal if Mr Trump undermined Mr Putin’s fundamental aims.
“Without solving the problems which were the root causes of what is happening, it will not be possible to reach an agreement,” he said.
“So variations and half-measures are not the path we are prepared to go along.”
Key Points
- Trump says ‘Ukraine may be Russian someday'
- All of Putin’s conditions must be met before peace deal finalised, his minister says
- Trump envoy headed to Ukraine soon
- Russia sending wounded forces to North Korea for free treatment
Emergency restrictions in Ukraine after Russia pounds gas infrastructure
09:00
,
Alexander Butler
Ukraine's energy minister has introduced emergency restrictions after Russia hit gas infrastructure overnight.
"Another attack on Ukraine's energy system is under way," German Galushchenko said in the early hours of the morning.
"At night, the enemy attacked the gas infrastructure. As of this morning, the energy sector is still under attack."
Russia has consistently targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure in a bid to economically cripple Kyiv and bring down morale.
Ukraine’s leading rapper is now leading drone warfare against Russia
08:37
,
Alexander Butler
Trump aides to visit Ukraine for first time, Zelensky says
08:35
,
Alexander Butler
"Serious" members of Trump's team will travel to Ukraine for the first time this week, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late last night.
He also confirmed plans to meet Vice President JD Vance at the Munich conference, which begins on Friday.
Zelenskyy said his team were attempting to organise a meeting with Trump.
"This week, some people from the Trump team, serious ones, will be in Ukraine - even before the Munich conference," he said.
Poland activates aircraft after Russian strikes on Ukraine
08:07
,
Alexander Butler
Polish and allied aircraft were activated early on Tuesday to ensure safety in areas bordering the threatened zones after Russia launched air strikes on Ukraine, the Operational Command of the Polish armed forces said.
"The Operational Command of the Armed Forces is monitoring the current situation, and its forces and resources remain in full readiness for immediate response," the Command said on X.
Trump says ‘Ukraine may be Russian someday'
07:40
,
Arpan Rai
Donald Trump has said Ukraine may or may not lose its sovereignty to Russia.
The US president has also repeated his pitch for compensation from the war-hit country in return for the aid provided by the US, irrespective of how the war ends.
"They may make a deal. They may not make a deal. They may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday. But we’re going to have all this money in (Ukraine) and I say, I want it back," Mr Trump said in an interview with Fox News’s Bret Baier.
Trump says Ukraine 'essentially agrees' to rare earth deal worth billions
07:33
,
Arpan Rai
Donald Trump has claimed that Ukraine has "essentially agreed" to a $500b resource deal.
"I told them that I want the equivalent of like $500 billion worth of rare earth (minerals), and they’ve essentially agreed to do that," the US president said.
Zelensky says Trump aides to visit Ukraine for first time this week
07:15
Volodymyr Zelensky has said that "serious" members of US president Donald Trump's team would travel to Ukraine this week for the first time, as diplomatic efforts to end the war with Russia intensify.
"This week, some people from the Trump team, serious ones, will be in Ukraine - even before the Munich conference," he said in a video released by the UNIAN news agency.
Mr Zelensky also confirmed that he planned to meet US vice president JD Vance at the Munich conference and that his team was trying to set up a meeting with Mr Trump.
"Our teams are also working on dialogue and a meeting with president Trump," he said, days after the US president said he would "probably" meet with Mr Zelensky this week.
Poland activates aircraft after Russian strikes on Ukraine
06:55
,
Arpan Rai
Polish and allied aircraft were activated early today to ensure safety in areas bordering the threatened zones after Russia launched air strikes on Ukraine, the Operational Command of the Polish armed forces said.
"The Operational Command of the Armed Forces is monitoring the current situation, and its forces and resources remain in full readiness for immediate response," the Command said on X.
Kremlin claims relations with US ‘are balancing on the brink of a breakup’
06:45
,
Tom Watling
White House officials ready to meet with Zelensky in Munich
06:23
,
Arpan Rai
President Donald Trump's senior advisers are expected to meet with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky this week on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference to discuss the path toward ending Russia's nearly three-year war in Ukraine.
Retired Lt Gen Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, said that the White House is ironing out details of the highly anticipated talks during the annual summit for international security discussions.
US vice president JD Vance, secretary of state Marco Rubio and Mr Kellogg are among the Trump administration officials traveling to Germany for the summit, and all could be involved in the critical talks with Zelenskyy and his team on the sidelines of the event.
"Knowing how the process works, it would probably be better for Zelensky if we all met together and talked through it as a group," Mr Kellogg said in an interview.
Mr Trump yesterday said he'd "probably" speak with the Ukrainian president this week.
Ukraine rolls out power restrictions after Russia's attacks on gas infrastructure
06:08
,
Arpan Rai
Ukraine imposed emergency power restrictions after overnight and morning attacks by Russia on gas infrastructure, said Ukraine energy minister, German Galushchenko.
"The enemy launched an attack on gas infrastructure overnight," Galushchenko said in a post on social media. "As of this morning, the energy sector continues to be under attack."
To minimize possible consequences for the energy system, emergency power restrictions were being imposed, he said.
Weapons cleared by Biden still flowing to Ukraine, says US special envoy
02:50
,
Arpan Rai
Shipments of arms and ammunition previously approved by former president Joe Biden are still flowing into Ukraine, the US special envoy to Ukraine said.
The US always likes selling weapons made in America because it strengthens our economy, retired lieutenant general Keith Kellogg told Reuters in an interview.
"There's not necessarily any need in the next 24 hours to it any different," he said.
Mr Biden approved more than $65bn in security assistance to Ukraine during his time in office, including billions in the final months of his administration.
As Russian bombards key Ukraine stronghold – hope lives underground
02:00
,
Tom Watling
Where are Ukraine's mineral resources and why does Trump want them?
01:00
,
Tom Watling
Pope Francis reminds armies to ‘always respect international law’
00:00
,
Tom Watling
Trump says Ukraine Russia war is going to end after Putin phone call
Monday 10 February 2025 23:00
,
Tom Watling
Why Trump wants Ukraine’s rare earths
Monday 10 February 2025 22:00
,
Tom Watling
Mapped: Ukraine’s new attack into the Russian Kursk region explained
Monday 10 February 2025 21:00
,
Tom Watling
Kremlin claims relations with US are ‘on the brink of a breakup’
Monday 10 February 2025 20:00
,
Tom Watling
A Russian spy ship caught fire off Syria’s coast, officials say
Monday 10 February 2025 19:01
,
Tom Watling
Ukraine’s leading rapper is now leading drone warfare against Russia
Monday 10 February 2025 18:00
,
Tom Watling
says Trump aides to visit Ukraine this week
Monday 10 February 2025 17:17
,
Tom Watling
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that “serious people” from US president Donald Trump's administration will visit Ukraine this week.
In a video released by Ukrainian media outlet UNIAN, Mr Zelensky said the visit would take place before the annual Munich Security Conference this weekend where he said he plans to have a meeting with US vice president JD Vance.
China's foreign minister to visit Britain on Thursday for talks
Monday 10 February 2025 16:34
,
Tom Watling
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is due to visit Britain on Thursday to hold talks with his British counterpart David Lammy in a sign that relations between the countries are normalising after years of tensions.
Issues to be discussed include international security and the war in Ukraine, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesman told reporters.
Lammy and Wang will revive the UK-China Strategic Dialogue, a forum last held in 2018 to discuss bilateral issues.
That dialogue was paused during the COVID-19 pandemic and after Britain restricted some Chinese investment on worries over national security and over a crackdown on freedoms in Hong Kong.
The Labour government, in power in Britain since July, has made improving ties with China one of its main foreign policy goals after a period under successive Conservative governments when relations plunged to their lowest level in decades.
British finance minister Rachel Reeves visited China last month in a bid to revive economic and financial talks that had been frozen since 2019.
British embassy employee accused of assaulting journalist in Russia
Monday 10 February 2025 16:00
,
Tom Watling
US funding freeze threatens investigations of alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine
Monday 10 February 2025 15:16
,
Tom Watling
The Trump administration's freeze of foreign funding has begun impacting an international effort to hold Russia responsible for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, according to eight sources and a Ukrainian document seen by Reuters, halting dozens of jobs and tens of millions of dollars in aid.
Ukraine has opened more than 140,000 war crime cases since Moscow's February 2022 invasion, which has killed tens of thousands, ravaged vast swathes of the country and left behind mental and physical scars from occupation. Russia consistently denies war crimes have been committed by its forces in the conflict.
US-funded international initiatives such as the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group for Ukraine (ACA) have provided expertise and oversight to Ukrainian authorities. Kyiv has been praised by its Western partners for probing alleged crimes while the war is still raging.
At stake are six US-funded projects at the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) valued at $89 million, according to a Ukrainian document on the US funding and cuts seen by Reuters.
Funding for at least five of those projects has already been frozen, according to five sources directly involved, who cited interruptions in payments. The affected worked on issues ranging from the preservation of evidence from the battlefield to anti-corruption initiatives and reform of Ukraine's prosecution system.
Two of the listed projects were funded by USAID, three by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement and one directly by the Department of State, the document showed.
Of that funding, $47 million was directly allocated to war crimes accountability, the document showed.