4 d. ago ‘They want to break us’: Russian energy grid strikes give freezing Kyiv some of its darkest days

Impact of raid on infrastructure rivals early weeks of war when tanks tried to force their way into Ukrainian capitalOn the night of 9 January, amid warnings from Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of massive and imminent Russian airstrikes, Tetiana Shkred began cooking for her children at midnight.Concerned that the power was once again about to be knocked out in her apartment block on Kyiv’s left bank – the side of the city that has been most affected by Moscow’s attacks on energy infrastructure – she cooked until 3am, when her flat was plunged into freezing darkness. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago ‘I think they want to break us’: Russian strikes on energy grid give freezing Kyiv some of its darkest days

Impact of raid on infrastructure rivals early weeks of war when tanks tried to force their way into Ukraine’s capitalOn the night of 9 January, amid warnings from Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of massive and imminent Russian airstrikes, Tetiana Shkred began cooking for her children at midnight.Concerned that the power was once again about to be knocked out in her apartment block on Kyiv’s left bank – the side of the city that has been most affected by Moscow’s attacks on energy infrastructure – she cooked until 3am, when her flat was plunged into freezing darkness. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Trump says ‘tough’ issues remain for Ukraine peace deal after after meeting Zelenskyy in Florida

US president said ‘thorny’ questions over territory have yet to be resolved and expressed sympathy with Russia not wanting a ceasefireDonald Trump has said a deal to end the war in Ukraine is “closer than ever” but has admitted that “thorny” questions over the future of the eastern Donbas region have yet to be resolved, after a two-hour meeting on Sunday with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Florida.Trump said a draft agreement to end the war was nearly “95% done”. “I really think we are closer than ever with both sides,” he said, adding that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, also wants to “see it happen”. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Trump says ‘tough’ issues remain for Ukraine peace deal after meeting Zelenskyy in Florida

US president said ‘thorny’ questions over territory have yet to be resolved and expressed sympathy with Russia not wanting a ceasefireDonald Trump has said a deal to end the war in Ukraine is “closer than ever” but has admitted that “thorny” questions over the future of the eastern Donbas region have yet to be resolved, after a two-hour meeting on Sunday with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Florida.Trump said a draft agreement to end the war was nearly “95% done”. “I really think we are closer than ever with both sides,” he said, adding that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, also wants to “see it happen”. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Trump and Zelenskyy to hold talks amid heavy Russian airstrikes on Ukraine

Key topics include security guarantees from Europe and the US, with Putin yet to signal interest in latest negotiationsRussia-Ukraine war – latest news updatesDonald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy are to meet on Sunday to discuss a plan to end the war in Ukraine, amid continuing Russian attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, and scepticism that Moscow is willing to drop any of its maximalist demands.Zelenskyy arrived in Florida on Saturday night with a Ukrainian delegation, before talks with the US president at his Mar-a-Lago residence. The two leaders are expected to discuss the latest iteration of a 20-point peace plan and the unresolved question of the future of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Trump says Ukraine peace talks in ‘final stages’ as he meets Zelenskyy in Florida

Key topics include security guarantees to prevent Russia from attacking again, with US president saying he believes Putin is serious about peaceRussia-Ukraine war – latest news updatesDonald Trump has said talks to end the war in Ukraine are in their “final stages” as he sat down for a meeting on Sunday with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Florida, and insisted that Vladimir Putin was ready to make a peace deal.Trump met Ukraine’s president outside his Mar-a-Lago residence and claimed both warring sides were close to an agreement. Hours earlier the US president held a lengthy phone call with Putin and said he would ring the Kremlin again once talks had concluded. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Trump says Ukraine peace deal ‘closer than ever’ after meeting with Zelenskyy in Florida

US president said ‘thorny’ questions over territory have yet to be resolved and expressed sympathy with Russia not wanting a ceasefireDonald Trump has said a deal to end the war in Ukraine is “closer than ever” but has admitted that “thorny” questions over the future of the eastern Donbas region have yet to be resolved, after a two-hour meeting on Sunday with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Florida.Trump said a draft agreement to end the war was nearly “95% done”. “I really think we are closer than ever with both sides,” he said, adding that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, also wants to “see it happen”. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago ‘Dancing on bones’: Mariupol theatre to reopen with staging of Russian fairytale

Restoration presented as rebuilding, but many see it as part of a broader Russification effort in occupied Ukrainian cityThe Mariupol Drama Theatre, destroyed in a Russian airstrike in 2022 while hundreds of civilians were sheltering in its basement, is to open its doors again, with Russian occupation authorities heralding the reconstruction as a sign of renewal, while former actors at the theatre denounced the reopening as “dancing on bones”.The Kremlin has made the reconstruction of Mariupol a calling card of its rule in occupied Ukraine, but Moscow’s oversight is accompanied by arrests or exile of critics, along with property seizures that have stripped thousands of Ukrainians of apartments they legally owned. Continue reading...

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