"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power."
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv on May 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked the idea of a demilitarized zone in the war and emphasized the importance of first securing a ceasefire.
"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an event at the Mar-a-Lago Club April 4, 2023 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump said on July 18 that if elected, he will ask Europe to cover the U.S. costs of restoring stockpiles of weapons sent to Ukraine.
"I will ask Europe to reimburse us for the cost of rebuilding the stockpiles sent to Ukraine, which they should be doing now, but Joe Biden is too weak, too disrespected," the former president said in his campaign video.
Trump complained that European countries spend less than the U.S. on their aid for Ukraine, and criticized the incumbent President Joe Biden for "emptying out" the country's military stockpiles.
He also attacked the foreign policy of the Biden administration. Trump said that the idea of admitting Ukraine to NATO at this time is "completely unhinged," and that the U.S. is risking nuclear war with Russia or China.
In spite of Trump's insinuations, Biden said that Ukraine cannot join the Alliance while at war, and Kyiv has not yet received a membership invitation.
The Republican candidate who served as the 45th president vowed to return the U.S. to the "America First" policy, and to work to restore "peace and stability" in Eastern Europe and to "stop people from dying."
Trump is currently the most popular Republican candidate in the upcoming primaries for the 2024 presidential election, according to opinion polls. As many as 48% of the respondents will support him in the primaries, while 22% will back Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a poll published by YouGov and the Economist on July 8-11 revealed.
The former president claimed on July 17 that if re-elected, he would be able to restore peace between Russia and Ukraine.
"I would tell Zelensky, no more. You got to make a deal. I would tell Putin, if you don't make a deal, we're going to give him a lot. We're going to (give Ukraine) more than they ever got if we have to," Trump said, adding that "he will have the deal done in one day."
Trump has previously criticized the Biden administration for spending too many resources on supporting Ukraine.
Igor Kossov
