White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on March 17 that the Trump administration believes they have "never been closer" to closing a ceasefire deal in Ukraine, ahead of a call scheduled between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin for March 18.
EU foreign ministers are set to discuss the termination of the U.S. grant that funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) during a meeting in Brussels on March 17, according to a Kyiv Independent reporter in Brussels.
Budapest had initially planned to veto the sanctions renewal, citing U.S. President Donald Trump's return to the White House and the possibility of a shift in U.S. policy toward Russia.
"We won't be dragged into this; we will not allow Hungarian taxpayers' money to be used to finance arms shipments to Ukraine," Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said.
"I'll be speaking to President Putin on Tuesday. A lot of work's been done over the weekend," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters.
"There is a nuclear reactor that supplies quite a bit of electricity to the country of Ukraine. That’s got to be dealt with," Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, said on March 16.
Turkey has positioned itself as a potential mediator in Russia's war against Ukraine, now in its fourth year, by maintaining diplomatic and economic ties with both nations while supporting Ukraine's sovereignty.
Speaking on CBS’s "Face the Nation" on March 16, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized that the primary goal is to secure a ceasefire before moving forward with broader negotiations for a permanent resolution.
“I expect that there will be a call with both presidents this week, and we’re also continuing to engage and have a conversation with the Ukrainians,” Witkoff told CNN after meeting Putin in Moscow on March 13, as cited by Reuters.
"Today, I have ordered the United States Military to launch decisive and powerful military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen," Trump said in a post on Truth Socials.
"The fake news, as usual, is at it again!" Trump said in a post on Truth Social. "Why can't they be honest, just for once?"
"Ukraine must be sovereign and independent, because otherwise there will be no peace, it will only be the end of the war due to the occupation of Ukraine by Russia," Polish President Andrzej Duda said in a wide-ranging interview with the BBC published on March 15.
The Trump administration on March 15 followed up a on an executive order signed a day earlier by President Donald Trump vowing to gut funding for the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which oversees Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). As a
The Trump administration dealt a blow to Russia's energy sector last week after it let lapse an exemption allowing Russian banks to use U.S. payment systems for energy transactions. The move closed an important financial channel for Russian oil and gas exports and comes as Washington looks for ways
Initially appointed as Trump’s Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia, General Keith Kellogg was to be involved in direct peace talk efforts between the two countries. However, recent media reports indicate that he was excluded from high-level peace at the Kremlin's request as Moscow perceived Kellogg as being too sympathetic to Ukraine.
"I think we've had some very good results. I haven't been able to say that to anybody else, I haven't wanted to say it until just before I came here, I got some pretty good news."
The group’s communiqué, released on March 14, affirmed Ukraine’s "territorial integrity and right to exist," while condemning Russian "acts of aggression." However, its language was softer than the G7 leaders' statement from November 2024.
"There is reason to be cautiously optimistic, but by the same token, we continue to recognize this is a difficult and complex situation," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on March 14.
Editor’s note: Soldiers interviewed for this article are identified only by their first name, callsign, or nickname due to security reasons. William, a 25-year-old U.S. Army veteran, has come to Ukraine to join the Ukrainian military in its fight against Russian aggression just days after his contract with
Key developments on March 14: * Kyiv says Ukrainian troops 'regrouped' in Kursk Oblast, deny encirclement * Ukrainian drones strike Russian gas facilities, missile depot, source claims * Ukrainian drones strike Tuapse oil refinery in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, governor says * Putin still seeks control over Ukraine despite US peace efforts, WP reports * Ukraine,
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on March 14 that Ukrainian soldiers must surrender in Kursk Oblast after U.S. President Donald Trump's request to "spare" the troops he claimed are surrounded. Ukraine denied claims that the country's troops are surrounded at any part of the front.
"At this very moment, thousands of Ukrainian troops are completely surrounded by the Russian military, and in a very bad and vulnerable position," U.S. President Donald Trump wrote, without providing any evidence.
Polish President Andrzej Duda has said such a move would be justified given Russia has deployed tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus.
Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin late in the evening on March 13, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
As a U.S. delegation in Moscow worked to hammer out a ceasefire agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Russian leader responded by demanding extensive concessions in exchange for a ceasefire deal in Ukraine. So far, Trump has made harsh demands on Ukraine while avoiding putting similar pressure on
Some officials believe that even if Russia agrees to a temporary truce, Moscow will use the pause to rearm, violate the agreement, and create provocations to blame on Ukraine.
Some 56% of Americans believe that U.S. President Donald Trump is "too closely aligned" with Russia amid shifting U.S. foreign policy, a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on March 13 found.
Greenland's outgoing Prime Minister Mute Egede criticized President Donald Trump’s suggestion that the U.S. could annex Greenland in a Facebook post on March 13.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, was excluded from peace talks after the Kremlin said it did not want him present, NBC News reported on March 13, citing U.S. and Russian officials.
The Trump administration toughened sanctions on Russia's oil and gas industry on March 13 by not renewing an exemption that allows Russian banks to access U.S. payment systems to conduct energy transactions.
Key developments on March 13: * 'Russia needs war,' Zelensky says in response to Putin's preconditions for ceasefire * Russia claims to retake Sudzha; Ukraine hasn't confirmed * Ukrainian drones strike covert UAV plant in western Russia, sources claim * Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant part of peace talks, Trump says Russian President Vladimir
Russian President Vladimir Putin's remarks about a 30-day ceasefire indicate that he is preparing a rejection of the U.S. proposal, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 13.
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