Ukraine and the USA/Russia peace talks

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Infact trump wants Zelensky to give back every cent in aid - $350 billion
https://www.news.com.au/world/north-ame ... 4581891df0

The Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a research institute in Germany, tracks international military, financial and humanitarian assistance allocated and committed to Ukraine since 2022. It estimates the total international assistance committed to Ukraine by the US and European countries since 2022 is approximately €366 billion (about $383 billion)—about one-third of which has come from the US.

Yeah but trump always makes up stuff, exaggerated for effect.

So now we can see why Zelensky is using the EU to block trump's plans.

Yeah but trump always makes up stuff, exaggerated for effect.

A U.S. effort to sink a draft U.N. resolution condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine failed Monday after European countries and Kyiv marshaled support for strong language against Moscow.

The United Nations General Assembly passed the resolution with 93 countries voting in favor. The U.S. and Russia both voted against it.

Monday’s resolution — which was introduced by Ukraine, the United Kingdom and most members of the European Union — holds Russia directly responsible for the three-year-old conflict. The Trump administration had lobbied allies to vote against it, arguing that condemnations of the invasion wouldn’t be productive in securing peace between the two countries. It convinced a handful of countries to withdraw their sponsorship, including Hungary and Costa Rica, but the efforts did not change the final outcome of the vote.

Kyiv and its allies also managed to sabotage a separate U.S.-led resolution that advocated for peace but made no reference to Russia’s role in launching a full-scale military campaign against Ukraine. The General Assembly passed amendments to that document to include condemnations of Russia which narrowly passed. As a result, the U.S. abstained from voting on its own resolution.

While the measures will have no direct impact on the war between Russia and Ukraine, it’s a sign of European countries being increasingly willing to break with the U.S. on the world stage, particularly when it comes to the conflict in Ukraine. U.S. outreach to Russia, coupled with bellicose rhetoric from President Donald Trump and top administration officials in recent weeks, have alienated Ukraine and European allies.

All eyes were on Moscow on Wednesday after American and Ukrainian officials said they would be willing to enforce a 30-day ceasefire in the country's three-year war — and made it clear the ball was in Russia’s court.

The Kremlin said it was wary of "jumping the gun" following the talks, and that it would wait to hear from Washington directly about the possibility of a call between presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin this week.

“We are carefully studying the statements,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, adding that officials in Moscow were familiarizing themselves with the joint statement issued after breakthrough talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials.

Peskov did not rule out a conversation between Trump and Putin later, which the U.S. president said Tuesday was in the cards.

Peskov's comments come after a summit Tuesday between Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security adviser Mike Waltz and their Ukrainian counterparts in the Saudi city of Jeddah.

The 7-hour negotiations did not identify specifics about how the war might end, but concluded with both sides agreeing in principle to a monthlong ceasefire.

Rubio said Wednesday his team "will have contact" with Russia later that day "and we'll see what their response is."

"We’re going to bring it to them directly. We’re going to say that Ukraine is prepared to stop all battlefield activity and begin an immediate process of negotiating an enduring end of the war," Rubio told reporters during a layover in Ireland’s Shannon Airport, on the way back to Washington, D.C.

"If their response is 'yes,' then we know we've made real progress, and there's a real chance of peace. If their response is 'no', it will be highly unfortunate, and then it'll make their intentions clear."

Putin has so far offered zero concessions to end the war, nor has he been asked for any by Trump, who by contrast has suggested Ukraine may have to give up the fifth of its territory controlled by Russia, while agreeing never to join NATO.

"If Russia "says 'yes,' one thing we will have to determine is who both sides trust to be on the ground monitoring small arms fire," Rubio said Wednesday.

Russia has a well-documented history of violating numerous ceasefires with Ukraine over the past decade. Putin says he does want a truce, but only on terms that amount to little more than Ukrainian surrender.

Nevertheless, French President Emmanuel Macron was among the Western leaders to welcome "the progress made in the talks" on Wednesday, writing on X that "the ball is now clearly in Russia’s court."

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called it an "important moment for peace in Ukraine." He said in a statement that "Russia must now agree to a ceasefire and an end to the fighting too."

Some hardline voices in Moscow, however, appeared wary or outright hostile toward the deal hashed out by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security adviser Mike Waltz, and the Ukrainians in the Saudi city of Jeddah. Those pro-war figures fear that a ceasefire will allow Ukrainians to regroup and rearm — something Ukrainians also fear from the Russian military.

Russia’s position would not be determined “abroad due to some agreements or efforts of some parties,” Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said. Rather, she told the state-run Radio Sputnik station, “The establishment of the position of the Russian Federation happens within the Russian Federation.”

The “ceasefire agreement will not work,” said Alexander Dugin, an ultranationalist philosopher sometimes referred to as 'Putin’s Rasputin' thanks to his long beard and ties to the Kremlin.

“Putin will not accept a ceasefire as Russia many times clearly said before, without discussing the conditions of solid peace. Trump this time is wrong,” Dugin wrote in a post on X.

Rubio and Waltz emerged with the proposal after around 7 hours of talks with Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Andrii Sybiha, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and Andriy Yermak, the chief of Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s presidential office.

They agreed to resume the flow of U.S. aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine. Ukrainian officials also said they would be willing to enforce an immediate 30-day ceasefire.

Rubio said it would be up to Moscow whether to accept.

“We’re going to tell them this is what’s on the table: Ukraine is ready to stop shooting and start talking. And now it’ll be up to them to say yes or no,” the Secretary of State told reporters Tuesday. “If they say no, then we’ll unfortunately know what the impediment is to peace here.”

President Donald Trump said that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed during their phone conversation Tuesday on an "immediate" ceasefire on all energy and infrastructure in Ukraine.

Trump said on Truth Social that he and Putin agreed to the ceasefire "with an understanding that we will be working quickly to have a Complete Ceasefire and, ultimately, an END to this very horrible War between Russia and Ukraine."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later signaled an openness to talk about “next steps” with Trump, while requesting more details and involvement in the discussions

The White House had said in an official readout of their conversation that Trump and Putin agreed that the process to reach a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine would begin with an energy infrastructure ceasefire.

Trump and Putin agreed that the movement to peace "will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire, as well as technical negotiations on implementation of a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, full ceasefire and permanent peace. These negotiations will begin immediately in the Middle East," the White House said.

The Kremlin told the Russian state outlet TASS that Putin has agreed to halt strikes on energy infrastructure for 30 days. The Kremlin also said that the key condition to prevent an escalation in its war in Ukraine would be the suspension of foreign military aid and foreign intelligence to the Ukrainian government.

Zelenskyy said during a news conference Tuesday that his country would support a proposal aimed at ending the war and establishing lasting peace.

“We will support any proposals that lead to a sustainable, just peace. But for this we must understand what is at stake," Zelenskyy said, adding that efforts to "negotiate without Ukraine, in my view, will not be productive.”

Zelenskyy also urged Trump to initiate a conversation with him by phone to identify next steps.

"We will give support, but in order to support something we need to understand what specifically it is. If President Trump can find time — he is a busy man — if he has time he can phone at any time, we are ready to pick up. We are ready to discuss the next steps with him," Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian leader has warned that he doesn't trust Putin to stick to a ceasefire because Russia hasn't abided by previous agreements with Ukraine.

The White House also signaled that the Trump administration wants to improve relations between the U.S. and Russia, saying in its statement: "The two leaders agreed that a future with an improved bilateral relationship between the United States and Russia has huge upside. This includes enormous economic deals and geopolitical stability when peace has been achieved."

The call between Trump and Putin began around 10 a.m. ET and lasted at least an hour and a half.

A Kremlin aide later wrote in a post on X that it was "a PERFECT call." He may have been referring to the infamous phone conversation Trump held with Zelenskyy in 2019 in which Trump asked the Ukrainian president to investigate Hunter Biden and suggested that the U.S. would withhold aid if Zelenskyy didn't cooperate. Trump later said it was a "perfect call," though the House, then controlled by Democrats, impeached the president for the first time later that year.

The president has intimated that the Zaporizhzhia power plant, Europe’s biggest nuclear facility, as well as land — Ukraine controls part of the Russian region of Kursk, while Russia holds several regions of Ukraine — will be up for discussion.

He told reporters in Washington on Monday that Ukrainian soldiers in the Kursk region were “in deep trouble,” according to Reuters, adding that his administration’s temporary suspension of military and intelligence assistance to Kyiv was an attempt to "get Ukraine to do the right thing.”

The Trump administration and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that Ukraine has agreed to move forward with a partial ceasefire with Russia, which President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin had discussed a day earlier.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump national security adviser Mike Waltz said that after Trump spoke to Zelenskyy by phone Wednesday morning, the two leaders agreed "on a partial ceasefire against energy," according to a joint statement released by the White House.

Zelenskyy wrote in a lengthy post on X, "One of the first steps toward fully ending the war could be ending strikes on energy and other civilian infrastructure. I supported this step, and Ukraine confirmed that we are ready to implement it."

Rubio and Waltz's statement, however, did not mention that the ceasefire would apply to civilian infrastructure as Zelenskyy suggested, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt refused to answer questions at an afternoon White House news briefing asking for clarification about the discrepancy in details.

Leavitt also dodged a question about whether Trump is still considering ramping up U.S. sanctions on Russia.

Asked whether the possible minerals deal between the U.S. and Ukraine was still on the table, Leavitt suggested that both sides have moved on from it because now the conflict is advancing toward a potential longer-term peace agreement.

The White House also rejected Kremlin demands that the U.S. stop sending intelligence and weapons to Ukraine. Leavitt said Wednesday said all intelligence sharing between the U.S. and Ukraine will continue.

These developments came after Moscow and Kyiv accused each other of air attacks on civilian targets and infrastructure overnight, less than 24 hours after Putin told Trump that he would halt attacks on Ukraine's energy system for 30 days.

Zelenskyy said in his statement that he and Trump have instructed their teams "to resolve technical issues related to implementing and expanding the partial ceasefire" and will meet in the coming days in Saudi Arabia to "continue coordinating steps toward peace."

According to Rubio and Waltz, Zelenskyy asked Trump for the U.S. to provide additional air defense systems to protect civilians in Ukraine, including Patriot missile systems.

"President Trump agreed to work with him to find what was available, particularly in Europe," the two officials said in their statement.

Rubio and Waltz said Trump and Zelenskyy also discussed Ukraine's electrical supply and nuclear power plants. Trump said "the United States could be very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise. American ownership of those plants would be the best protection for that infrastructure and support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure," the secretary of state and national security adviser said.

Their statement also said Trump fully briefed Zelenskyy on his call with Putin on Tuesday, and he and Zelenskyy "reviewed the situation in Kursk and agreed to share information closely between their defense staff as the battlefield situation evolved."

The statement noted several times that Zelenskyy thanked Trump for his leadership and expressed gratitude for the administration's support provided to Ukraine. Zelenskyy clashed with Trump and Vice President JD Vance during a meeting in the Oval Office late last month, in which the president and vice president chastised Zelenskyy for not doing enough to thank the U.S.

Zelenskyy had a “very good telephone call,” which lasted about an hour. Trump said much of their discussion was “based on the call made yesterday with President Putin in order to align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs.”

“We are very much on track, and I will ask Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, to give an accurate description of the points discussed,” Trump wrote.

In a long phone call with Trump on Tuesday, Putin declined to endorse a 30-day ceasefire endorsed by Trump and accepted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. But, according to a Kremlin readout of their conversation Tuesday, Putin did agree “to mutually refrain from strikes on energy infrastructure for 30 days.”

This differed slightly from Trump's post on Truth Social and a White House readout which said Russia had agreed to an “energy and infrastructure” ceasefire.

At a news conference on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said, “Putin’s words are very, very different from reality,” adding that around 120 strike drones and six missiles struck Ukraine, including its energy facilities, overnight. These came, he said, after Putin “gave the order” to stop attacking Ukraine’s “energy sector.”

In earlier comments late Tuesday, Zelenskyy said Russia fired dozens of Iranian-made Shahed drones at “civilian infrastructure” in several regions across Ukraine and that one had hit a hospital in the city of Sumy, in the country’s northeast.

“It is precisely such night attacks by Russia that destroy our energy, our infrastructure, the normal life of Ukrainians,” Zelenskyy said. “And the fact that this night was no exception shows that we must continue to put pressure on Russia for the sake of peace.”

UkrZaliznytsia, Ukraine’s national railway company, said Wednesday that Russia “struck the railway power system” in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region with drones.

Ukraine's air force said that it shot down 72 drones overnight and that Russia had also launched at least two ballistic missiles.

Russian authorities accused Ukraine of launching drones and said an oil depot had caught fire because of crashed debris in the southwestern city of Krasnodar.

“The pipeline between the tanks was damaged,” the region’s emergency headquarters said in a statement early Wednesday. “The automatic fire extinguishing and cooling system was engaged,” the statement read, adding there were no casualties.

Later, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov accused Ukraine of trying to sabotage the agreements made by Trump and Putin with the attacks on Krasnodar. He added that the leaders understood each other.

It is unclear if both Kyiv and Moscow intended to strike energy targets.

Still, despite the verbal agreement on the limited ceasefire by Putin, Ukrainians near the front line appear to have no faith in his word.

Outside of Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine, in a mobile command center that his team built, Ivan Kravchenko, a sergeant in the Reconnaissance Battalion of the 92nd Assault Brigade, told NBC News that “Russia wants to play its game and they are interested in the truce only in order to increase their military power.”

His unit commander, Leonid Maslov, who worked as a tax lawyer before the war, agreed.