
US warns Russia against 'bad faith' negotiations
"We will ultimately judge President (Vladimir) Putin’s commitment to a ceasefire by Russia's actions," Acting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Dorothy Shea said on April 8.
Team
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
"We will ultimately judge President (Vladimir) Putin’s commitment to a ceasefire by Russia's actions," Acting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Dorothy Shea said on April 8.
At least 15 explosions rocked Kharkiv late on April 8, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said. One person was injured, according to preliminary information.
"We are talking to Russia. We would like them to stop," Trump told reporters on April 6. His comments came after President Volodymyr Zelensky renewed his plea for a decisive response from the U.S. following Russia's continuous attacks against Ukraine.
Joseph Tater, 46, was arrested in August 2024 after being accused of assaulting a police officer during an altercation with hotel staff in a luxury hotel in the Russian capital.
The prolonged negotiations over a minerals deal, which have already tested relations between Kyiv and Washington, follow an effort to finalize a framework agreement earlier this year.
The U.K.'s Defense Ministry also received credible intelligence suggesting that superyachts owned by Russian oligarchs could have been used for underwater reconnaissance, according to the Sunday Times.
Earlier this week, several Ukrainians who entered the U.S. after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 received emails saying that their legal status would be terminated, CBS News reported on April 4.
The strike set a fire in a residential area, killing a woman in her home and injuring at least five civilians, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city's military administration.
Finland’s Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen said that Europe cannot afford a disjointed transition in defense capabilities, which could provide Russia with an opportunity to exploit any gaps in the region's security.
"Such attacks cannot be an accident," President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 4, pointing out that Russia is fully aware of the target's critical energy role.
Russia launched a ballistic missile attack on Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on April 4, hitting a residential neighborhood, setting buildings on fire and causing severe damage, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city's military administration.
"Trump is frustrated with both Zelensky and Putin as well, but we’re going to get there," U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, told Fox News. "What we want to have is a comprehensive 30-day ceasefire."
European Solidarity called the blocked trip a violation of democratic principles, accusing the speaker of Ukraine's parliament of obstructing opposition activity and undermining parliamentary diplomacy.
The European Union is set to receive a 20% tariff, while goods from China will be hit with an additional 34%. Ukraine is also included on the list, subject to a 10% tariff.
The comment followed Trump's phone call with NBC, during which he reportedly said he is "pissed off and very angry" about Putin's continued focus on President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"For several weeks, there has been a U.S. proposal for an unconditional ceasefire. And almost every day, in response to this proposal, there are Russian drones, bombs, artillery shelling, and ballistic strikes," Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian operation appears to be aimed at diverting Russian forces as Moscow intensifies efforts to push Kyiv’s troops out of Kursk.
The agency, which has been central to U.S. foreign aid efforts, will be disbanded by July 1.
Over 20 drones targeted the city late on March 28, though most were shot down, according to regional Governor Serhii Lysak.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced on March 25 that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant is a Russian facility and cannot be transferred to Ukraine or any other country.
"We believe that, after Washington makes two official statements... the ceasefire in the sea and the energy ceasefire must come into effect, in (the Americans') opinion," Zelensky said. "Undoubtedly this depends on orders given by the presidents to their military forces."
Leonid Pasechnik, the Russia-installed head of the occupied Luhansk Oblast, claimed the attack occurred in the Kreminna district, also killing three civilians.
In a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio seen by Reuters on March 24, senators questioned the administration’s willingness to use all available financial tools to pressure Russia into ending its war against Ukraine.
A Kremlin-linked official told the Moscow Times that Vladimir Putin cannot afford to lose these territories politically, and Russia intends to solidify its grip on them at any cost.
Russian forces launched the attack against residential areas and infrastructure facilities, including children's hospital, said acting Mayor Artem Kobzar.
Russian senator Grigory Karasin, who will lead Moscow’s delegation, told local Zvezda TV that he and FSB advisor Sergey Beseda would enter the negotiations with a "combative and constructive" approach.
The Kremlin has revived familiar narratives portraying Ukraine as the aggressor and acting under Western influence, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
Svetlana Petrenko, a representative of the Russian Investigative Committee, claimed the attack aimed to "destabilize the situation in Russia."
Ukraine has not held elections during Russia's full-scale war because they are prohibited under martial law, which was declared on Feb. 24, 2022.
In an interview with Sky News, Kirsty Coventry, the newly elected president of the International Olympic Committee, questioned why Russia remains singled out while conflicts continue in other regions.
Russia attacked the city of Zaporizhzhia on the evening of March 21, killing three people, regional governor Ivan Fedorov reported. The rescue operation concluded at around 1:00 a.m. local time.
Researchers reportedly lost access to the database last month after U.S. officials terminated the contract, cutting off critical evidence from investigators pursuing war crimes cases.