.png)
1 week ago
20
Zelenskyy says 'we must do everything' to strengthen defence against 'wicked Russian attacks'
Ahead of the talks in Geneva, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post this morning that Russia has continued to attack residential buildings, civilian infrastructure and energy facilities across Ukraine over the past week, launching over 1,050 drones and nearly 1,000 glide bombs.
Announcing the end of a search and rescue mission, he said six children were among 33 people killed in a Russian attack on blocks of flats in the western city of Ternopil on Wednesday morning.
Zelenskyy added in his post on X that six people are still missing after the deadly airstrike, which was one of the deadliest in the region since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. He also listed other Russian attacks, including in Dnipro and Nikopol.
Zelenskyy wrote:
Already today, our advisors will be working in Switzerland with representatives of the United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. But in parallel with the diplomatic track, we must do everything to strengthen our defense against such wicked Russian attacks.
It is extremely important to speed up the implementation of all our agreements with partners regarding air defense systems and missiles for them. I thank everyone who helps protect lives. I thank everyone who works for peace.
Key events Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature
Amid the diplomatic flurry, the war continues. According to Russian Telegram media channels, Ukraine struck a heat and power station in the Moscow region on Sunday with drones, triggering a major fire and cutting off heating for thousands of people.
Ukrainian drones struck the Shatura Power Station about 120 km (75 miles) east of the Kremlin, Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyov said.
“Some of the drones were destroyed by air-defence forces. Several fell on the territory of the station. A fire broke out at the facility,” Vorobyov said, adding that efforts are underway to restore heat supply for the affected population. We have not been able to independently verify any of this information yet.
No information was immediately available on how much damage was caused from the reported attack or whether or not there were any casualties from it.
Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff arrive in Geneva as Europe races to influence deal
The US secretary of state Marco Rubio and US special envoy Steve Witkoff have arrived in Geneva for talks to discuss Washington’s draft plan to end the war, the Reuters news agency has just quoted an American official as having said.
As a reminder, France, the UK and Germany will have national security advisers at the Geneva talks, and the Ukrainian delegation will be represented by Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s head of office Andriy Yermak, among others.
Zelenskyy says 'we must do everything' to strengthen defence against 'wicked Russian attacks'
Ahead of the talks in Geneva, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post this morning that Russia has continued to attack residential buildings, civilian infrastructure and energy facilities across Ukraine over the past week, launching over 1,050 drones and nearly 1,000 glide bombs.
Announcing the end of a search and rescue mission, he said six children were among 33 people killed in a Russian attack on blocks of flats in the western city of Ternopil on Wednesday morning.
Zelenskyy added in his post on X that six people are still missing after the deadly airstrike, which was one of the deadliest in the region since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. He also listed other Russian attacks, including in Dnipro and Nikopol.
Zelenskyy wrote:
Already today, our advisors will be working in Switzerland with representatives of the United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. But in parallel with the diplomatic track, we must do everything to strengthen our defense against such wicked Russian attacks.
It is extremely important to speed up the implementation of all our agreements with partners regarding air defense systems and missiles for them. I thank everyone who helps protect lives. I thank everyone who works for peace.
In a joint statement issued at the G20 summit in South Africa yesterday, a number of Ukraine’s western allies said the draft proposal “would leave Ukraine vulnerable to attack” if left unchanged.
In a joint statement they said the draft “includes important elements that will be essential for a just and lasting peace”, but it is “a basis which will require additional work”. They were clear that “borders must not be changed by force”.
The statement was signed by the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Finland, Norway, and of the EU, as well as the prime ministers of Canada and Japan (you can read more about the summit here).
The US did not send a delegation to the summit in Johannesburg, with Donald Trump saying he was boycotting it after accusing the South African government of allegedly allowing minority white Afrikaner farmers to be persecuted and attacked, a claim the country’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, has strongly denied.
The plan, which endorsed some of Russia’s key demands, emerged after Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev reportedly spent three days with his American counterpart Steve Witkoff in Miami.
Dmitriev is a key Putin ally and head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, one of Russia’s largest sovereign wealth funds.
Witkoff and US secretary of state Marco Rubio had been “quietly” working on the plan with both Russia and Ukraine for around a month, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday. Rubio says the plan was “authored by the US”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin described the plan as the basis of a resolution to the war, but added that Moscow may object to some proposals.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been careful not to publicly criticise or reject the plan as he is reliant on the US for weapons and intelligence sharing. However, Zelenskyy has said Kyiv is being put under unbearable pressure.
In a sombre 10-minute speech outside his presidential palace on Friday, the Ukrainian leader said his country had an impossible choice: keep its national dignity or risk losing a major partner in the US.
It came amid claims that Kyiv was frozen out of the drafting of the Trump proposals that are demanding huge concessions from Ukraine.
What is contained within the draft plan to end the war in Ukraine?
Here is a bit more detail on what is contained within the draft US-Russia plan:
- Territory: “Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk will be recognised as de facto Russian, including by the United States,” the plan reads. Kyiv still partly holds Luhansk and Donetsk, which together make up the Donbas industrial belt on the frontline of the war. Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014.
Areas from which Ukraine has withdrawn in Donetsk would be deemed a demilitarised zone which Russian forces will not enter, according to the plan.
The southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia – which Russia falsely claims to have annexed – will be “frozen along the line of contact,” it said.
- Security: The plan calls for Ukraine to reduce its army to 600,000 personnel, a reduction of hundreds of thousands compared to its current size.
Nato would agree not to station troops in Ukraine – dashing Kyiv’s hopes for a European peacekeeping force – and the country would be barred from joining Nato.
- Diplomacy: Under the proposed deal, Russia would be “reintegrated into the global economy” after nearly four years of tough sanctions and be allowed back into the G8.
“It is expected that Russia will not invade neighbouring countries and Nato will not expand further,” the document says, according to multiple media outlets.
But all sanctions would snap back if Russia invades Ukraine again – “in addition to a decisive coordinated military response.” In addition, $100bn in frozen Russian assets would be dedicated to rebuilding Ukraine.
Western officials hold talks in Geneva on US plan for Ukraine as Trump suggests deal is not ‘final offer’
Welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Ukrainian and American officials will meet in Switzerland on Sunday for emergency talks to discuss a draft US plan to end the war that is widely seen as being favourable to Moscow despite Russia launching the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The 28-point draft plan, which was leaked last week, includes proposals that Kyiv had previously ruled out, including handing over areas of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.
It also says that Ukraine should limit its military and relinquish its ambitions to join Nato. Ukraine would receive “reliable security guarantees”, the plan says without specifying.
Washington has given Kyiv a deadline of Thursday to respond, but Kyiv is seeking changes to the draft plan, which European and Ukrainian officials have said amounts to a “capitulation”.
The US president, Donald Trump, has said the plan is not the “final offer”, suggesting an extension could be possible. He has repeatedly expressed frustration at both Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, for the lack of progress in negotiations.
A meeting has been hastily convened in Geneva later today, where national security advisers from the E3 – France, Britain and Germany – will reportedly meet EU, American and Ukrainian officials for further discussions.
Both the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will attend the Geneva meeting on Sunday.
Ukraine’s delegation is led by the head of Zelenskyy’s office, Andriy Yermak, and includes top security officials.
Stick with us as we bring you the latest developments throughout the day.
