Ukraine This Week: Su-57s, foreign mercenaries, and an internet rumor

9:13 AM

Russia presents US with demands for possible Ukraine peace deal, Reuters reports.

According to the sources, Russian and U.S. officials discussed these demands during face-to-face and virtual conversations over the past three weeks.

8:30 AM

Ukrainian drones set ablaze Russian factory, infrastructure site overnight, authorities claim.

Russian air defenses downed 77 drones overnight, including 30 over Bryansk Oblast, 25 over Kaluga Oblast, six over Kursk and Voronezh oblasts each, and five over Rostov and Belgorod oblasts each, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed.

8:11 AM

General Staff: Russia has lost 890,250 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.

This number includes 1,200 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

7:00 AM

White House won't confirm if it has mechanisms to enforce ceasefire with Russia.

"Well, that’s obviously a grand hypothetical question that I won’t comment on, because we’re not there yet," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on March 12.

6:21 AM

EU parliament accuses US of 'blackmailing' Ukraine in joint declaration.

The declaration accuses the U.S. of trying "to negotiate a ceasefire and peace agreement with Russia over the heads of Ukraine and other European states."

5:16 AM

Europe-bound Chinese rail shipments through Russia plummet due to transit restrictions.

Moscow's restrictions allow Russian authorities to seize and keep hard-to-get Western-sanctioned goods, which can then be used to manufacture weapons for the war against Ukraine.

3:55 AM

Journalist Viktoria Roshchyna receives posthumous human rights award.

Roshchyna, who died last fall in Russian captivity, received the Homo Homini award for her "work dedicated to portraying issues threatening the democratic order of Ukraine, which she did not compromise on, even at the risk of her personal safety."

3:01 AM

Ukraine out of ATACMS missiles, AP reports.

The U.S. sent Ukraine less than 40 long-range ATACMS in total, a U.S. official told the AP. According to the official, Kyiv ran out of the missiles in January.

9:12 AM  (Updated:  March 13, 2025 2:04 am)

Updated: 14 killed, 41 injured in Russian attacks against Ukraine over past day.

Russian attacks across Ukraine killed at least 14 civilians and injured at least 33 over the past day, regional authorities reported on March 12. The casualties included children and Syrian crew members of a merchant vessel in Odesa.

1:30 AM

Fires reported at infrastructure facilities in Russia's Voronezh and Rostov regions following drone strikes.

Infrastructure facilities in Russia's Voronezh and Rostov regions caught fire following multiple drone strikes, governors Alexander Gusev and Yuri Slyusar reported on March 12.

11:43 PM

Putin reportedly makes first visit to Kursk Oblast since start of incursion.

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.

10:39 PM

30-day ceasefire deal may be struck within days, Rubio says.

"Here’s what we’d like the world to look like in a few days: Neither side is shooting at each other — not rockets, not missiles, not bullets, nothing, not artillery," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on March 12. "The shooting stops, the fighting stops, and the talking starts."

10:26 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: Kyiv ready to fight in Kursk Oblast 'as long as necessary' as Russia claims to retake over 86% of seized territories

9:44 PM

Ukraine says it's ready to fight in Kursk Oblast 'as long as necessary,' as Russia claims to retake over 86% of seized territories.

Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi confirmed ongoing battles in the suburbs of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast and the surrounding areas.

9:37 PM

Ukraine Business Roundup — The foreign arms producer showing real results in Ukraine

9:32 PM

Ukraine Reforms Tracker Weekly — Issue 17

9:23 PM

Russian intelligence recruited teenagers for terrorist attack in western Ukraine, SBU claims.

According to law enforcement, the recruited agents were two teenagers aged 15 and 17 who sought quick money on Telegram channels.

8:51 PM

Ceasefire

'There will still be war' — Ukraine's soldiers on ceasefire proposal, Russia, and Putin.

7:41 PM

Trump & Russia

Trump said Ukraine is 'more difficult to deal with' than Russia — that might be about to change

7:34 PM

US officials heading to Russia for ceasefire talks, Trump says.

Speaking to journalists in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump said Washington has "some positive messages about a possible ceasefire." He added that a potential of the temporary truce is now up to Russia.

6:49 PM

War analysis

Ukraine struggles to hold on in Kursk Oblast as Russia strikes back before peace talks

6:24 PM

Russia has stepped up attacks in Ukraine's south over past two weeks, military says.

"This is not an offensive or part of the enemy's strategic actions, but tactical attempts to improve their position relative to the combat line," said Vladyslav Voloshyn, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Southern Command.

5:36 PM

Ukraine won't recognize occupied territories as Russian as part of any peace deal, Zelensky says.

"Our people have fought for this, our heroes died. How many injured, how many passed. So no one will forget about it... This is the most important red line. We will not let anyone forget about this crime against Ukraine," President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists on March 12.

5:19 PM

Video

Ex-envoy to Russia slams Trump's negotiating strategy as 'incredibly bad.'

The Kyiv Independent's Chris York sits down with Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia and political scientist, to discuss the Ukraine-Russia peace negotiations, U.S. President Donald Trump's approach to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the ideological parallels between Putinism and MAGA.

5:01 PM

War analysis

Losing foothold in Kursk Oblast would be 'politically significant,' experts say