Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff has rejected Keir Starmer's peace plans for Ukraine as “a posture and a pose” as he praised Vladimir Putin as a “smart guy”.
The British prime minister suggested a “coalition of the willing” of several European and Nato nations keen on providing military assistance and boots on the ground to Ukraine after a ceasefire.
"I think it's a combination of a posture and a pose and a combination of also being simplistic. There is this sort of notion that we have all got to be like Winston Churchill. Russians are going to march across Europe. That is preposterous by the way. We have something called Nato that we did not have in World War Two,” Mr Witkoff told Tucker Carlson in an interview.
He also praised Mr Putin, saying he “liked” the Russian president.“I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy. He’s super smart,” Mr Witkoff told far-right commentator Tucker Carlson. "I just don't see that he wants to take all of Europe,” Mr Witkoff said, calling it a much different situation than the Second World War.
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Key Points
- Trump envoy dismisses Starmer plan for Ukraine
- As Trump pushes for deal by Easter, what is being discussed in Riyadh?
- Firefighters battle blaze at oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar for fifth day
Firefighters battle blaze at oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar for fifth day
02:54
,
Arpan Rai
Firefighters continued for the fifth day to fight a fire at an oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar region, sparked last week by a drone attack that authorities blamed on Ukraine, the regional administration said.
"One of the tanks and oil products inside the facility are burning," the administration said in a post on the Telegram yesterday.
“As of 1700 GMT on Sunday, the area of the fire at the depot near the village of Kavkazskaya was around 2,000sqm (21,500sqft)”, the administration said on Telegram.
The fire area nearly doubled the night before following an oil products spill.
The Russian foreign ministry said the incident amounted to a violation of an agreement to halt attacks on energy infrastructure under efforts to secure a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine.
Local authorities had brought in firefighting trains loaded with water to help to battle the blaze till yesterday.
The depot is a rail terminal for Russian oil supplies for a pipeline to Kazakhstan.
Watch moment Russia ‘bombs’ own crucial gas pipe near Kursk
02:00
,
Holly Evans
Russian drone pilots hunting down Ukrainian civilians on the streets: ‘Like playing a computer game’
00:00
,
Holly Evans
The electronic hum in the sky above told him that the Russians were on a hunting safari and that he was the prey. Leaping from his bicycle, Oleksandr left its wheels spinning as he bolted through a hole in a fence hoping to find cover.
Horrified to discover he was still in the open air, he threw himself against the fence, hoping to blend in, to somehow hide. The drone tracked sideways, hung above him, and dropped its bomb.
The explosion tore a chunk of his leg away.
Read the full article here:
What will be discussed in Saudi Arabia as Trump pushes for truce by Easter?
Sunday 23 March 2025 23:13
,
Andy Gregory
Officials from Ukraine and Russia are holding ceasefire talks in Saudi Arabia, as US president Donald Trump reportedly pushes to secure a truce in time for Easter.
Kyiv’s delegation sat down with Washington’s team in Riyadh on Sunday night, with Moscow set to separately follow suit on Monday – in what are believed to be the first such parallel peace talks since the early days of Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion.
Here, The Independent takes a look at what to expect from the US-led talks in Saudi Arabia, which came just hours after Russia killed seven people – including a five-year-old child – in overnight drone strikes on Kyiv, and four people in Donetsk:
Putin’s top security adviser arrives in North Korea amid dramatic advances in security ties
Sunday 23 March 2025 23:00
,
Holly Evans
Russian president Vladimir Putin's top security adviser Sergei Shoigu has landed in North Korea and plans to meet its leader Kim Jong Un, the TASS news agency reported on Friday, his latest visit amid dramatic advances in security relations between the two countries.
The TASS report did not provide further details and North Korea's state media did not report on Mr Shoigu's arrival.
Mr Shoigu, Russia’s defence minister until last May and secretary of the Security Council since then, had earlier made visits to Pyongyang as North Korea allegedly geared up to deploy soldiers to fight for Russia in its war against Ukraine.
Read the full article here:
Full report: Trump envoy claims Ukraine relenting territory is ‘elephant in the room’
Sunday 23 March 2025 22:53
,
Andy Gregory
In remarks that will do little to assuage European fears that the White House is increasingly parroting Kremlin propaganda, Donald Trump’s special envoy has claimed that the “elephant in the room” in peace talks is whether Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky can acknowledge Moscow’s claimed right to Crimea and four “Russian-speaking” regions in eastern Ukraine.
Despite being unable to name two of the four mainland regions – which Mr Putin partly occupies, and attempted to illegally annex following sham referenda in September 2022 – and using the Russian name for a third, Steve Witkoff said he believed the “central issue” in the conflict was whether Ukraine would relent control of them to Moscow.
Claiming an “overwhelming majority” of residents in the contested regions had indicated a preference for Russian rule, despite reports of ballots being cast at gunpoint, Mr Witkoff went on to claim that “the Russians are de facto in control of these territories”.
Many thousands of Ukrainians have given their lives to defend territory in Donetsk and Luhansk since 2014, and in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson since Russia’s full-scale invasion three years ago. While Moscow currently controls most of Donetsk and Luhansk, they hold minimal territory in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, with fierce fighting still ongoing in all four regions.
Read the full report here:
Talks in Saudi Arabia with US were constructive, Ukraine’s defence minister says
Sunday 23 March 2025 22:46
,
Andy Gregory
Ukraine’s defence minister Rustem Umerov said talks with the US delegation in Saudi Arabia on Sunday were “constructive and meaningful”.
“We discussed key issues, particularly the energy sector,” Mr Umerov said in a post on social media.
Mr Umerov led the Ukrainian delegation for the talks on Sunday, which will be followed by a meeting between Russian and US officials on Monday – marking the first such parallel peace talks since the early days of Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion.
Ed Davey: Trump’s a bully, Farage is his bootlicker and the Tories can’t fix a church roof
Sunday 23 March 2025 22:00
,
Holly Evans
At the this moment of peril for our continent, it has never been more important for politicians to say what we really think.
So when I give my speech to Liberal Democrat conference, it won’t surprise you that I’ll be talking a lot about Donald Trump and Nigel Farage. But it might surprise you that I’m also going to talk about church roofs. (Stay with me on this please… I know it sounds weird, but I am a Liberal Democrat.)
I know what you’re thinking and you’re right. It’s easy for me to criticise Trump, since I’m not the prime minister and I don’t have to sit across from him in the Oval Office. But let me tell you something: week after week I look at the Labour benches as I tell Keir Starmer that Donald Trump is an unreliable ally, and I see most of the cabinet trying desperately not to nod in agreement.
Read the full article here:
Ukrainian and US delegation to meet on Sunday to discuss technicalities of ceasefire
Sunday 23 March 2025 21:00
,
Holly Evans
The Ukrainian delegation at Sunday's meeting with the U.S. will be led by defence minister Rustem Umerov. President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier said this fact would allow Kyiv to act in a "very quick and very substantive" way.
However, Ukrainian officials have said they still see Sunday's meeting in Riyadh as purely technical.
Heorhii Tykhyi, foreign ministry spokesperson, said on Friday the Ukrainian and American sides were due "to clarify the modalities, the nuances of possible different ceasefire regimes, how to monitor them, how to control them, in general, what is included in their scope".
Last Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to Trump's proposal for Russia and Ukraine to stop attacks on each other's energy infrastructure for 30 days and ordered the Russian military to cease them.
The agreement fell short, however, of a wider agreement that the U.S. had sought, and which Kyiv backed, for a blanket 30-day truce in the war.
Russian official thanks North Korea’s Kim Jong Un for Ukraine war support
Sunday 23 March 2025 20:00
,
Holly Evans
Russia’s Security Council secretary Sergei Shoigu thanked Kim Jong Un for North Korea’s ongoing support in its war against Ukraine during a visit today, Russian state-owned news agency Tass reported.
North Korea has supplied vast amounts of weapons to Russia including artillery and ballistic missiles, and has sent up to 12,000 troops to support Russia’s army in its war with Ukraine, according to intelligence officials from the US, South Korea and Ukraine.
In late February, South Korea's spy agency said North Korea appeared to have sent additional troops to Russia. South Korean media put the number of newly sent North Korean soldiers at about 1,000 to 3,000.
Read the full article here:
Ukrainians dismiss notion of Putin sticking to ceasefire after drone attack
Sunday 23 March 2025 19:00
,
Holly Evans
Ukrainians at the scene of the attacks in Kyiv surveyed the damage done to their homes and neighborhoods on Sunday morning.
Many were disparaging of the upcoming ceasefire talks, pointing to the burned out homes destroyed in the drone attack, saying these were more indicative of Russia's true intentions.
In an old multistory building on Kyiv's left bank that was damaged in the overnight attack, Dmytro Zapadnya, 37, said he had no faith in Russia upholding any ceasefire agreement.
"There is no point in signing anything (with Russians), because it will not be worth the cost of paper where you put this signature. Well, the only thing that is not very pleasant is that now the United States seems to have little understanding of our situation," he said.
Trump story about ‘surrounded’ Ukraine troops contradicted by his own intelligence, report reveals
Sunday 23 March 2025 18:00
,
Holly Evans
Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have both insisted that Ukraine’s forces in Kursk are surrounded by Russian troops and are in imminent danger, but U.S. intelligence reports have contradicted those claims.
A trio of U.S. and European officials familiar with intelligence details of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine told Reuters that the situation on the ground does not reflect the comments made by Trump and Putin.
One of the U.S. officials also said that the White House was briefed on the actual situation in Ukraine, so it’s unclear why Trump has and continues to claim that Ukrainian troops in Russia's Kursk region are surrounded.
Read the full article here:
Which Ukrainian nuclear power plants could Trump take as part of the ceasefire deal?
Sunday 23 March 2025 17:00
,
Holly Evans
Donald Trump has floated the idea of taking control of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, in a phone call with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
The conversation on Wednesday was described as positive by both sides and was mainly aimed at securing a truce between Ukraine and Russia on aerial attacks against one another’s energy infrastructure.
Mr Zelensky suggested the call had focused on the US takeover of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is under Russian control.
Read the full article here:
If Ukraine hits energy again, Putin may speak to Trump, says spokesperson
Sunday 23 March 2025 16:01
,
Holly Evans
Putin and Trump may have another phone call if Ukraine continues strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, Peskov said.
Putin agreed to the suspension of such attacks in a phone call with Trump last week. Kyiv, which has said it would be willing to take part in such a partial ceasefire if a document setting out its terms is agreed, has accused Russia of not abiding by Putin's order, something Moscow denies.
"While the Russian side has been sticking to its word for several days now, the word that the president gave, and to the president's command, which immediately came into force and was immediately implemented, and is still being implemented, the same cannot be said of the Kyiv regime", Peskov said.
Russia and Ukraine accused each other on Friday of blowing up a Russian gas pumping station in a border area where Ukrainian troops have been retreating. Russia said on Saturday that it reserves the right to a "symmetrical response" to Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy facilities.
Asked if Ukraine's violation of the agreement may become a reason for another Putin-Trump call, Peskov said: "Absolutely. The presidents confirmed their intention to continue contacts as necessary."
Putin and Trump may have spoken more than twice, Kremlin says
Sunday 23 March 2025 15:00
,
Holly Evans
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump may have had more contacts than the two publicly announced telephone calls over recent months, the Kremlin said in video footage published by state television on Sunday.
Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly said that he wants the three-year conflict in Ukraine to end and has warned of the risks of it escalating into a world war between the United States and Russia.
There have so far been two announced phone calls between Putin and Trump this year - on 12 February and on 18 March - though there has been speculation about much more frequent contact, and also reports that they spoke before Trump was elected last year.
When asked by the most prominent Kremlin correspondent for state television about remarks by Trump that indicated there may have been more than two calls, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said information had been released about those calls he knew of.
"Listen, we inform you about the conversations that we are aware of. But we can't rule out everything else," Peskov said with a smile.
Map shows sabotage across Europe that has been blamed on Russia and its proxies
Sunday 23 March 2025 14:00
,
Holly Evans
Western officials have accused Russia and its proxies of staging dozens of attacks and other incidents across Europe since the invasion of Ukraine three years ago, according to data collected by The Associated Press.
They allege the disruption campaign is an extension of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war, intended to sow division in European societies and undermine support for Ukraine.
The AP documented 59 incidents in which European governments, prosecutors, intelligence services or other Western officials blamed Russia, groups linked to Russia or its ally Belarus for cyberattacks, spreading propaganda, plotting killings or committing acts of vandalism, arson, sabotage or espionage since the Feb. 24, 2022, invasion.
Read the full article here:
Where is key Russian gas pumping station hit by huge explosion
Sunday 23 March 2025 13:00
,
Holly Evans
Trump envoy dismisses Starmer plan for Ukraine
Sunday 23 March 2025 12:35
,
Holly Evans
Donald Trump’s special envoy has dismissed Sir Keir Starmer’s plan for an international force which could include British troops to support a ceasefire in Ukraine as “a posture and a pose”.
Steve Witkoff told pro-Trump commentator Tucker Carlson that the idea was based on a "simplistic" notion of the UK prime minister and other European leaders thinking "we have all got to be like Winston Churchill".
He said: "I think it's a combination of a posture and a pose and a combination of also being simplistic. There is this sort of notion that we have all got to be like Winston Churchill. Russians are going to march across Europe. That is preposterous by the way. We have something called Nato that we did not have in World War Two."
Witkoff, who met with Putin 10 days ago, said he “liked” the Russian autocrat, and said: "I don't regard Putin as a bad guy," he said. "He's super smart."
Japan host talks with China and South Korea
Sunday 23 March 2025 12:00
,
Holly Evans
Foreign ministers from Japan and its two neighboring Asian powers China and South Korea held a meeting Saturday to seek common ground on areas like low birth rates, natural disasters and cultural exchanges at a time of growing tensions.
The meeting on Saturday focuses on plans for a trilateral summit later this year.
The three-way meetings are an accomplishment for Japan, which has historical and territorial disputes with both China and South Korea. An earlier trilateral meeting was held in South Korea last year.
Read the full article here:
Oil products spill spreads fire at Russian oil depot
Sunday 23 March 2025 11:21
,
Holly Evans
An oil products spill occurred at the oil depot that caught fire in southern Russia's Krasnodar region after a drone attack last week, regional officials said on Sunday.
The area of the fire at the depot near the village of Kavkazskaya increased to 2,000 square metres from the 1,250 square metres previously reported, said state news agency TASS.
There were no casualties and other buildings and tanks at the depot were not damaged, regional officials wrote on messaging app Telegram.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said this week that the attack amounted to violation of an agreement to halt attacks on energy infrastructure as part of efforts to secure a broader ceasefire in the war in Ukraine.
Local authorities had brought in firefighting trains loaded with water to help to battle the blaze on Saturday.
The depot is a rail terminal for Russian oil supplies for a pipeline to Kazakhstan.
Russia accuses an 'unfriendly state' of planning the 2004 Moscow concert hall assault
Sunday 23 March 2025 11:00
,
Holly Evans
One year since the Moscow concert hall attack killed 145 people, Russian officials asserted Saturday that it was planned and organized by "the special services of an unfriendly state.”
The aim, according to a a statement by Svetlana Petrenko, the representative of the Russian Investigative Committee, was to "destabilize the situation in Russia.”
Though she did not specify the “unfriendly state,” she noted that “six Central Asians” currently outside of Russia had been charged in absentia and placed on Russia’s wanted list for allegedly recruiting and organizing the training of four of the suspected perpetrators.
Read the full article here:
Zelensky says deadly drone attacks are a 'daily reality' for Ukrainians
Sunday 23 March 2025 10:32
,
Holly Evans
In a statement on social media, Mr Zelensky said attacks such as the one in Kyiv were a daily occurrence for Ukraine.
"This week alone, more than 1,580 guided aerial bombs, almost 1,100 strike drones and 15 missiles of various types were used against our people," he said.
"New solutions are needed, with new pressure on Moscow to stop both these strikes and this war."
Last night, Russia attacked Ukraine using nearly 150 strike drones. As of now, ten people are reported injured, including a child. In Kyiv, the attack claimed three lives, among them a father and his five-year-old daughter. Yesterday in Zaporizhzhia, three people were killed—a… pic.twitter.com/xbvUF8TGRT
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 23, 2025
Russian drone pilots hunting down Ukrainian civilians on the streets: ‘Like playing a computer game’
Sunday 23 March 2025 10:00
,
Holly Evans
The electronic hum in the sky above told him that the Russians were on a hunting safari and that he was the prey. Leaping from his bicycle, Oleksandr left its wheels spinning as he bolted through a hole in a fence hoping to find cover.
Horrified to discover he was still in the open air, he threw himself against the fence, hoping to blend in, to somehow hide. The drone tracked sideways, hung above him, and dropped its bomb.
The explosion tore a chunk of his leg away.
Read the latest dispatch from Sam Kiley here:
Explosions heard throughout the night in Ukraine as drones shot down
Sunday 23 March 2025 09:39
,
Holly Evans
Extended sounds of explosions were heard in the early hours of the night across Ukraine as the air raid blared for over five hours.
Russian drones and debris from shot-down drones, which were flying at lower altitudes to evade air defenses, fell on residential buildings.
Two residential buildings in the district of Dnipro caught fire due to falling drone debris, according to Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko.
A fire broke out on the top floors of a 9-storey building, killing one woman, the State Emergency Service said.In the district of Podil, a fire broke out on the 20th floor of a 25-storey building.
In Holosiivskyi, fires broke out in a warehouse and office building, killing one person, according to the State Emergency Service.
Also on Sunday, Russia's Ministry of Defense said it had shot down 59 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 29 over the region of Rostov and 20 more over southwestern Astrakhan. In Rostov, one person was killed and a car caught fire due to the Ukrainian drone attack, according to the area's temporary governor, Yuri Slyusar.
US aims for Russia-Ukraine truce agreement by April 20, Bloomberg News reports
Sunday 23 March 2025 09:17
,
Holly Evans
The Kremlin said that a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump was "a step towards a face-to-face meeting", adding that Russia-U.S. talks in Riyadh scheduled for Monday would also be such a step, Interfax news agency reported.
Meanwhile, it has been reported in Bloomberg that the U.S. hopes to reach a broad ceasefire in Russia's war in Ukraine within weeks, targeting a truce agreement by April 20, citing people familiar with the planning.
Trump says efforts to temper Russia-Ukraine war 'somewhat under control'
Sunday 23 March 2025 08:50
,
Holly Evans
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that efforts to stop further escalation of the Russia-Ukraine war are "somewhat under control."
"Rational discussions" and having good relationships with presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia and Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine are key to negotiating an end to the war, Trump told Clay Travis, the founder of sports website Outkick, during an interview on Air Force One.
Trump had separate discussions with Putin and Zelensky last week aimed at ending the war that began when Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Russia's smaller neighbor in 2022.
The talks, which fell short of Trump's aim to secure a full 30-day ceasefire, resulted in Putin agreeing to stop Russian attacks on energy infrastructure for 30 days and Zelensky saying he would also accept such a pause.
Analysis: The evil genius detail in Putin’s ‘deal’ with Trump reveals Russia’s true plans
Sunday 23 March 2025 08:00
,
Namita Singh
The Russian president has figured out a way to get Trump’s attention and distract him to such effect it delivers what Russia really wants. By reducing Ukraine to business deals and minerals, there is something much deeper and darker going on, writes Owen Matthews.
Zelensky meets military commanders to discuss upcoming talks with US in Saudi Arabia
Sunday 23 March 2025 07:45
,
Namita Singh
President Volodymyr Zelensky said yesterday that he had met top military commanders in the country's northeast to discuss the frontline in Ukraine's war with Russia, as well as meetings with US officials set to take place in Saudi Arabia today.
Mr Zelensky was shown on the media platform X with commanders in Ukraine's second largest city, Kharkiv, a frequent target of Russian attacks.
He said he had discussed frontline sectors in eastern Ukraine, as well as in Russia's western Kursk region, where Ukrainian troops remain seven months after a cross-border incursion.
Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky during a meeting with officers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces at an undisclosed location in the Donetsk region
"We also prepared for the meeting between the Ukrainian and American delegations, that will take place tomorrow in Saudi Arabia," the president wrote.
In Washington, a source familiar with the planning of the meetings in Saudi Arabia with Ukrainian and Russian officials said the US delegation would be led by Andrew Peek from the National Security Council and Michael Anton from the State Department.
The group will meet the Ukrainians on Sunday night and the Russians on Monday.
Russia launched 147 drones on Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's air force says
Sunday 23 March 2025 07:23
,
Namita Singh
Russia launched 147 drones overnight targeting several Ukrainian regions, Ukraine's air force said this morning.
Ukrainian air defence units destroyed 97 of the drones, while 25 did not reach their targets, the air force said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
Pictures: Russian drone strike on Kyiv kills 3
Sunday 23 March 2025 07:19
,
Namita Singh
Russia downs 59 Ukrainian drones overnight, Russian defence ministry says
Sunday 23 March 2025 07:08
,
Namita Singh
Russian air defence units destroyed 59 Ukrainian drones overnight, Russia's defence ministry said this morning.
Twenty-nine of the drones were destroyed over the southern region of Rostov, 20 over the Astrakhan region and the rest over the Voronezh, Volgograd, Kursk and Saratov regions, as well as over Crimea, the ministry said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
The attack comes as three Ukrainians are killed in Russian drone strike on Kyiv.
Ukraine and US to hold talks in Saudi Arabia ahead of US-Russia meeting
Sunday 23 March 2025 06:53
,
Namita Singh
Ukrainian officials will meet a US technical team in Riyadh on 23 March, a day before the US is set to hold separate discussions with Ukrainian and Russian delegations.
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the meeting, clarifying an earlier announcement in which he had stated that US-Ukraine talks would take place on 24 March.
The Ukrainian delegation will be led by defence minister Rustem Umerov and Pavlo Palisa, deputy head of the President's Office, according to an undisclosed Ukrainian source cited by Sky News. Both officials were also present at US-Ukraine discussions in Jeddah earlier this month.
Mr Zelensky said Ukraine is dispatching "technical teams" to outline the specifics of a possible partial ceasefire with Russia. However, Kyiv has stressed that there will be no direct talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials in Riyadh
Five-year-old among killed in Russia drone attack on Kyiv as roll rises to three
Sunday 23 March 2025 06:25
,
Namita Singh
Death toll in Russian drone attack on Kyiv has risen to three, with a five-year-old among those killed, Ukraine’s internal ministry said.
"A massive enemy drone attack on Kyiv," Mayor Vitali Klitschko posted on the Telegram messaging app.
The scale of the overnight attack was not immediately clear. Reuters witnesses heard several blasts in what sounded like air defence systems in operation.
The state emergency service posted photos showing firefighters fighting blazes at night, including high in an apartment building.
A woman died after drone debris sparked a fire in a high-rise residential building in Dniprovskyi district, the emergency service said on Telegram, while at least 27 people were evacuated from the building.
Another person died in the Holosiivskyi district, the service said.
China weighs joining European-led peacekeeping coalition for Ukraine ceasefire
Sunday 23 March 2025 05:58