As Ukraine and Russia prepare for peace talks scheduled for June 2 in Istanbul, few observers expect a breakthrough. While the U.S. and Ukraine have pushed for an unconditional ceasefire, the Kremlin has rejected it. Instead, Moscow has regularly voiced maximalist demands that are unlikely to be accepted by
"I've gotten to see things I was very surprised at. Rockets being shot into cities like Kyiv during a negotiation that was maybe very close to ending," Trump said during a news conference in the Oval Office. "All of a sudden rockets got shot into a couple of cities and people died. I saw thing I was surprised at and I don't like being surprised, so I'm very disappointed in that way."
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stressed that a high-level summit would require concrete outcomes from the negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations.
As Russia ramps up its missile and drone strikes countrywide, all eyes are on Europe’s capacity to continue supporting Ukraine, with the future of U.S. military aid growing ever more uncertain. Ukraine should have enough air defense missiles despite the persisting shortage to avoid the worst of the
Trump previously said it would take him "about two weeks" to know whether or not Russian President Vladimir Putin was serious about a peace deal.
Dmytro Bodyu, a U.S. citizen and the pastor of the "Word of Life" Pentecostal Church in Russian-occupied Melitopol, was detained by Russians in March 2022. During his detention, he was accused of working for the CIA and received death threats from the Russian military. Only an intervention by the
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also "informed Marco Rubio about implementing the May 19 agreements between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of the United States Donald Trump," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
"President (Donald) Trump... is working to stop this war and end the killing. We await receipt of (the Russian) Memorandum... that you promised a week ago. Cease fire now," U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said.
U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce on May 27 urged Russia to focus less on President Donald Trump’s social media posts and more on ending its war in Ukraine, saying that if Moscow truly cared about peace efforts, it would prioritize stopping “the carnage and the slaughter that’s happening right now.”
During a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, Trump was told that a "memorandum of peace" outlining conditions for a ceasefire would be delivered shortly. As of May 27, no such document has been received.
After an unprecedented three-day wave of Russian aerial attacks in Ukraine over the weekend, the world is once again looking to U.S. President Donald Trump to take his first steps toward forcing Moscow to end its violence. From May 24 to 26, Russian forces fired more than 600 drones
Key developments on May 27: * Trump admits to protecting Russia from 'really bad things' during Ukraine peace talks * Russia builds power lines to connect occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant to its grid, NYT reports * US blocks G7 push to tighten Russian oil price cap, Financial Times reports * Decision on lifting range
Trump's comments come amid growing pressure on the U.S. administration to respond to escalating Russian attacks.
Despite months of resisting President Donald Trump's peace process, the U.S. has yet to take a single concrete step to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin into ending his full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The proposal was dropped after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reportedly declined to support it.
U.S. President Trump is considering imposing sanctions on Russia as it continues to wage its war against Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reported on May 26.
"This is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone absolutely and with emotional reactions," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said when asked about Trump calling Putin "absolutely crazy."
"I’ve always gotten along with him," Trump said of Putin to reporters at an airport in New Jersey on May 25. "But he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all."
In the early 19th century, one of the founding fathers of modern war studies, the Prussian general and military historian Carl von Clausewitz, commented on the Napoleonic Wars: "The conqueror is always peace-loving; he would much prefer to march into our state calmly." This remains an observation that applies to
In what is now a semi-regular occurrence, the workings of U.S.-led global diplomacy has cast a dark shadow over Ukraine. U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on May 19 in the latest attempt to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine. The call came
“Because I think there’s a chance of getting something done, and if you do that, you could also make it much worse," Trump told reporters from the Oval Office on May 19.
The Russian president made no mention of an immediate and unconditional ceasefire — the key demand pushed by U.S. President Donald Trump and accepted by Ukraine back in March.
In October of last year, just days before the U.S. presidential election, Head of the McCain Institute Evelyn Farkas told the Kyiv Independent that a Donald Trump victory would be the "worst-case scenario" for Ukraine. In the months since, a victorious Trump has taken office, dismantled the global post-World
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the conversation between the two leaders is scheduled for 5 p.m. local time and will "reflect the outcomes of last week’s negotiations in Istanbul" between Russian and Ukrainian delegations.
Ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s upcoming conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, European leaders also discussed the potential for additional sanctions should Russia fail to engage constructively in ceasefire negotiations.
French President Emmanuel Macron, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will speak to Trump before he calls Putin on the morning of May 19.
"If you put it together, you could say that Zelensky is patient and President Trump is getting impatient, but in the right direction, which is towards Russia," Finnish President Alexander Stubb said after holding separate talks with both Trump and Zelensky this weekend.
"Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war — a war that should have never happened — will end. God bless us all!!!" U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"Honestly, I will (impose sanctions), if we're not gonna make a deal," Trump told Fox News’ Bret Baier in an interview published on May 16. "This would be crushing for Russia because they're having a hard time now with the economy."
"In Putin’s eyes, all the leaders of the Western world are weaklings and suckers," Ukrainian infantryman "Mamai," told the Kyiv Independent.
"Ukraine is fighting for itself, we are not ready to lose our lives and our land. It doesn't mean that we are aggressors," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he might still go to the potential Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations in Istanbul on May 16 if there is progress toward a deal, the BBC reported.
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