“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.
"The world must understand that Russia is the only obstacle preventing peace," President Volodymyr Zelensky said following a virtual summit of 25 nations supporting peace efforts in Ukraine.
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,
Russia proposed building a drone factory in Belarus with an annual capacity of 100,000 units. Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko appoints new government ahead of his seventh “inauguration.” Belarus cracks down on the unemployed amid workforce shortages. UN experts urge Belarus to end the incommunicado detention of political prisoner Siarhei
Previously, U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio said that Ukraine-U.S. talks included discussions about potential "territorial concessions" as part of a negotiated settlement with Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's conditions for a ceasefire are unrealistic and tantamount to demanding that Ukraine disarm itself and surrender, analysts say. Putin said on March 13 that Russia was ready to agree to the U.S.-backed 30-day-long ceasefire in Ukraine but then followed by listing a number of
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.
The General Staff said that Russia had been reporting an alleged encirclement of Ukrainian forces in Kursk Oblast "for political purposes and to put pressure on Ukraine and its partners."
"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.
"If we are going to burst through this open door, we will ruin everything we have done," Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko said.
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.
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.
Instead of approaching the war in Ukraine from a geopolitical or moral perspective, U.S. President Donald Trump is framing his policy on Russia through the lens of his personal relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton. “Trump thinks Putin is
The Kyiv Independent’s Kate Tsurkan sat down with former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton to discuss why U.S. President Donald Trump considers Putin “a friend,” and why a ceasefire at this time would not be favorable for Ukraine.
Russia is ready to agree to the U.S.-proposed ceasefire in Ukraine but demands guarantees that Kyiv will not mobilize or train troops, nor receive military aid during it, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on March 13.
Russia is signaling its intention to reject a U.S. ceasefire proposal already accepted by Ukraine in Jeddah this week, setting the stage for a likely diplomatic standoff between Washington and Moscow. After nearly 48 hours of silence on the issue, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov on March 13 dismissed
Russian presidential aide Nikolai Patrushev accused the alliance, particularly the U.K., of provoking instability in the region.
"We believe that our goal is a long-term peaceful settlement, and we are striving for that, a peaceful settlement that takes into account the legitimate interests of our country and our known concerns," said Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff’s visit comes as the U.S. seeks Russian approval for a proposed 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine, which Kyiv accepted during talks in Jeddah on March 11.
According to the sources, Russian and U.S. officials discussed these demands during face-to-face and virtual conversations over the past three weeks.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on March 12 reportedly made his first visit to Russia's Kursk Oblast since Ukraine's incursion into the region began in August 2024.
Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi confirmed ongoing battles in the suburbs of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast and the surrounding areas.
According to Kommersant, the agencies agreed to maintain communication "to help ensure international stability and security, as well as to reduce confrontation."
Any ceasefire agreement would have to take Russia's battlefield advances into account and provide "guarantees" to Moscow, sources told Reuters.
"If we can get Russia to do it, that'll be great. If we can't, we just keep going on, and people are going to get killed, lots of people," Trump told reporters at the White House on March 11.
U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that U.S. officials would meet with Russian representatives in the coming days to discuss the ceasefire.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has deliberately set "maximalist" demands on land, peacekeepers, and Ukraine's neutrality, knowing they will likely be unacceptable to Kyiv and European nations, undisclosed officials told Bloomberg.
According to the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, 87% of Ukrainians believe that Russia intends to continue its aggression beyond the currently occupied territories.
The call for action comes in response to what Moscow claims was the largest Ukrainian drone attack since the start of the full-scale war.
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