80 m. ago Watch live: Putin meets Trump envoy for crunch Ukraine talks

Watch live as Vladimir Putin meets Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff for talks in Moscow on Tuesday, 2 December.

Politics

3 h. ago Putin says Russia has captured Ukraine’s fortress city Pokrovsk in frontline breakthrough ahead of crunch talks with US

VLADIMIR Putin has claimed his troops have captured the key fortress city of Pokrovsk from Ukraine ahead of crunch peace negotiations. Russian fighters were pictured brandishing a flag in the eastern Ukrainian city despite Kyiv dismissing the claims that the frontline region has fallen. Ukrainian Armed Forces' officials admitted on Monday the situation on the...

Politics

3 h. ago Russia and the US threatened to resume nuclear testing after several decades. Here is why it matters

The U.S. and Russia have both recently threatened to resume nuclear testing, alarming the international community and jeopardizing a global norm against such tests

Events

5 h. ago Ukraine war live: Trump envoy Steve Witkoff set to meet Vladimir Putin in Moscow amid US push for peace deal

Talks come after Witkoff led US discussions with Ukraine at weekend amid European concerns that Kyiv will be pressured to make concessions to MoscowUS-Russia talks may pile pressure on Kyiv to make concessions, says EU foreign policy chief See all our Ukraine war coverageThe Kremlin has said Vladimir Putin will meet Steve Witkoff for their talks on Tuesday afternoon. It’s now approaching 9.10am local time in Moscow.Their meeting would take “in the second half of the day”, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, while refusing to be drawn on Russia’s red lines, saying megaphone diplomacy was not helpful.Russian military commanders told Putin in comments reported on Monday that Russian forces had captured the frontline Ukrainian towns of Pokrovsk – a key logistics hub – and Vovchansk and were advancing elsewhere, which the Russian president hailed as successes to enable further gains. Ukrainian officials have made no acknowledgement that either place has fallen into Russian hands. Co...

Politics

6 h. ago Ukrainian troops near the front doubt the proposed pact with Russia will bring lasting peace

Ukrainian troops fighting in eastern Ukraine are expressing doubts that a peace proposal currently being negotiated will prevent Russia from attacking their country again

Politics

15 h. ago Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade hammers Steve Witkoff’s ‘totally unacceptable’ call: He ‘likes Russia too much’

‘You can't be telling Vladimir Putin how to handle your best friend,’ Brian Kilmeade argued on Monday.

Politics

16 h. ago Russia warns of ‘consequences’ & accuses Nato of preparing for ‘major war’ after claims of ‘pre

RUSSIA has accused Europe of gearing up for "major war" after a top Nato chief claimed the defence pact could launch "pre-emptive strikes" on Vladimir Putin. Moscow hit back at the suggestion, blaming the West for "moving towards escalation" - despite mad Vlad's growing shadow war currently tearing through the continent. It comes after Admiral...

Events

24 h. ago ICC president vows to resist US and Russian pressure despite sanctions and threats

The president of the International Criminal Court says the institution will not bow to pressure from the United States and Russia

Events

44 h. ago Ukrainian and US officials meet in Florida to discuss proposals to end Russia’s war

Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner meet Kyiv delegation, after another weekend of deadly Russian attacks in UkraineUkrainian negotiators are meeting with US officials in Florida to thrash out details of Washington’s proposed framework to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, as Kyiv faces pressure on military and political fronts.The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, the special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, are sitting down with a Ukrainian delegation on Sunday before planned US talks this week in Moscow with Vladimir Putin.Agence France-Presse, Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report Continue reading...

Politics

47 h. ago Ukrainian and US officials to meet in Florida to discuss proposals to end Russia’s war

Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner expected to meet Kyiv delegation, after another weekend of deadly Russian attacks in UkraineUkrainian negotiators are preparing to meet US officials in Florida to thrash out details of Washington’s proposed framework to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, as Kyiv faces pressure on military and political fronts.The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, the special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, are expected to sit down with a Ukrainian delegation on Sunday before planned US talks this week in Moscow with Vladimir Putin. Continue reading...

Politics

64 h. ago When will Donald Trump see that Vladimir Putin wants this war?

Editorial: Fiona Hill, a former White House adviser, tells The Independent that the Russian president is manipulating his US counterpart and has no intention of stopping the war on Ukraine

Politics

3 d. ago WW3 fears as Putin mouthpiece threatens to invade Paris and Berlin

One of Vladimir Putin's most vocal mouthpiece, Vladimir Solovyov, has warned Europe that Russia is "prepared to continue demonstrating its superiority on the battlefield" over Ukraine and European forces

Events

3 d. ago Russian attacks kills 2 in Kyiv as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine gain momentum

Russian drone and missile attacks on Kyiv killed at least two people and wounded 15 Saturday, officials said, as renewed U.S.-led peace negotiations gathered momentum

Events

3 d. ago Fiona Hill: Russian expert on why Putin knows exactly how to get Trump on side

Vladimir Putin knows exactly how to get Donald Trump on side, a former White House adviser who observed meetings between the pair has said.

Politics

3 d. ago ‘Putin’s whole life revolves around war – he’s manipulating Trump and doesn’t want peace’, ex

Fiona Hill, a Russian expert and former White House adviser, who witnessed meetings between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, tells The Independent podcast World of Trouble’s Sam Kiley that the Russian president knows how to mesmerise his US counterpart - and has no plan to give up his designs on Ukraine

Politics

3 d. ago Trump's 'real' plan for ending war in Ukraine 'revealed': $300 BILLION boost to America and joint space missions with Russia to Mars... but Putin may still have the last laugh

Donald Trump is reportedly looking to engage in business deals with Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine. Billions could be invested into the US economy.

Politics

3 d. ago The Guardian view on Ukraine peace talks: Putin is taking Trump for another ride on the Kremlin carousel | Editorial

Russia’s president is only interested in a deal on Moscow’s terms. Equipping Kyiv with the resources to fight on is the quickest route to a just settlementAs Donald Trump’s Thanksgiving Day deadline for a Ukraine peace agreement came and went this week, the Russia expert Mark Galeotti pointed to a telling indicator of how the Kremlin is treating the latest flurry of White House diplomacy. In the government paper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, a foreign policy scholar close to Vladimir Putin’s regime bluntly observed: “As long as hostilities continue, leverage remains. As soon as they cease, Russia finds itself alone (we harbour no illusions) in the face of coordinated political and diplomatic pressure.”Mr Putin has no interest in a ceasefire followed by talks where Ukraine’s rights as a sovereign nation would be defended and reasserted. He seeks the capitulation and reabsorption of Russia’s neighbour into Moscow’s orbit. Whether that is achieved through battlefield attrition, or through a Trum...

Politics

3 d. ago Zelenskyy chief of staff resigns after property raid by Ukraine’s anti

‘I want there to be no rumours and speculation,’ Zelenskyy says as Andriy Yermak resignsThe Commission also totally rejected dismissed Russia’s criticism of Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “illegitimate” leader of Ukraine, after Vladimir Putin suggested yesterday that was a technical reason he couldn’t agree a peace deal with Zelenskyy.“President Zelensky is the democratically elected president, by the Ukrainian people, of Ukraine,” a commission spokesperson said in response, somewhat mockingly adding that Putin seems to have “some difficulties in recognising the democratically elected president of his neighbour country, Ukraine.”“Let me stress the fight against corruption is a key element for a country to join the EU, it requires continuous efforts and a strong capacity to fight corruption. This is a key element that we also address in our enlargement report that was published a couple of weeks ago, so we will continue to follow the situation very closely.” Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago French military service: 11 things you need to know about Emmanuel Macron's army plans

French President Emmanuel Macron has outlined plans for France to introduce military service in a bid to counter the growing threat posed by Vladimir Putin to Europe

Events

3 d. ago Trump ‘will recognise occupied Ukraine as RUSSIA’ in bombshell gift to Putin to help secure peace deal after talks stall

DONALD Trump is reportedly set to hand occupied Ukrainian territories over to Vladimir Putin to secure a deal to end the war. The US president has sent Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner to make the offer to the Russian tyrant in Moscow, according to reports. A source told The Telegraph: "It’s increasingly clear...

Politics