Ukraine
Potential US troop withdrawal from Europe to leave Kosovo exposed
Fears US may consider withdrawing its troops from Europe, including Kosovo, if Trump and Putin reach an agreement to end the war in Ukraine.
Zelenskiy, Trump take verbal swipes at each other as relations between Washington and Kyiv nosedive
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy launched a scathing attack on Donald Trump, accusing the US president of being trapped in a “disinformation bubble” over the war in Ukraine.
Trump’s mineral deal for Ukraine “worse than Versailles”, reports The Daily Telegraph
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ordered his staff not to sign the proposed deal that would hand the US control over Ukraine's raw materials and key infrastructure.
Zelenskiy freezes US minerals deal, reaches out to Arab nations
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has frozen a proposed concession to mine Ukraine’s considerable mineral resources after the US side offered little in return and is travelling in the Middle East to look for new partners.
US and Russian officials hold landmark peace talks in Saudi Arabia as Ukraine remains excluded
Senior US and Russian officials have concluded extensive talks at the Diriyah Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – the most significant diplomatic engagement between the two powers since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Visibly tired and upset Zelenskiy holds Ukraine war press conference with Erdogan in Istanbul
Says Turkey should be among countries with seat at any peace talks table. Turkish president says that table should be in Ankara.
Russia says pipeline drone strike set to wipe out up to third of Kazakhstan’s oil exports
Kremlin mouthpiece Medvedev claims Ukrainian attack was designed to harm US economic interests in deliberate move against Trump.
European leaders clash over peacekeepers in Ukraine at Paris meeting
Argument highlights the lack of consensus on how to respond to US President Donald Trump’s proposed peace talks with Russia, which have kicked off in Riyadh.
LONG READ: Can Ukraine go it alone (with a little help from the EU) if the US abandons it?
Now that Ukraine’s Nato membership hopes have been dashed and its Western allies are unlikely to offer binding bilateral security guarantees, can Ukraine continue to fight Russia on its own, given the EU continues to support it?
Kremlin orders Russian media to downplay importance of Trump after Putin call
Kremlin wants fewer mentions of US President Donald Trump, to emphasise Putin as the primary decision-maker
Ukrainian drone strikes Kazakhstan’s main oil export pipeline route in Russia
Attack comes on same day Hungarian and Kazakh top diplomats back idea of Ukraine conflict talks between Putin and Trump.
MOSCOW BLOG: International values-based order is dead
In his closing remarks at the end of this year’s Munich Security Conference (MSC), the outgoing chairman Christoph Heusgen broke down into tears. The event turned into an earthquake that has destroyed the trans-Atlantic partnership.
US threatens troop deployment to Ukraine if Russia resists peace talks
The United States may impose stricter sanctions and consider deploying troops to Ukraine if Moscow refuses to engage in meaningful negotiations to end the war, US Vice President JD Vance has warned.
Poland to play key role in EU Paris meeting to counter Trump’s Ukraine talks exclusion
Poland was the poor second cousin to its EU peers when it first joined the EU two decades ago. But a flourishing economy, its frontline position and growing military might means it’s been promoted to the top table in EU affairs.
Europe out of Ukraine ceasefire talks
When asked if Europe will be at the table in the upcoming US-Russia negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine, US special envoy to Ukraine retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg said “no.”
Putin taking Trump talks seriously, appoints a heavy-weight team to lead the talks
Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking the upcoming ceasefire talks with US President Donald Trump very seriously and has put together a heavyweight team of his top officials to conduct the negotiations.
Ukraine's position in ceasefire talks takes turn for the worst as the Munich Security Conference gets underway
Some analysts are claiming that Putin “won the war” after Trump held a phone conversation with Putin on February 12 going over the heads of Europe and without consulting Ukraine. The two leaders plan to meet in Riyadh for one-on-one talks.
MACRO ADVISORY: A new hope, but far from Mission Accomplished
The return of Realpolitik. True to his promise, President Trump and his team have actively engaged with the Kremlin and appear to have reached the broad outline of a roadmap towards a peace process.
EU has continued to buy Russian fertilizer throughout war – Statista
The Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) has called for increased economic pressure on Russia as well as secondary sanctions on companies supporting its war efforts in a new report, released February 11.
Belarusian authorities release American citizen from a Minsk jail as part of Russo-US prisoner exchange deal
Prisoner release follows liberation of former US embassy employee Mark Fogel from Russian detention in a PR coup for US President Donald Trump.