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Kremlin Sinks Trump’s Hope of Peace Deal by Thanksgiving

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Russia has sunk Donald Trump’s hope that a peace deal in Ukraine can be achieved by Thanksgiving after the Kremlin said Europe’s counterproposal was not constructive and did not work for Moscow.

In a sign that both sides remain far apart, the Kremlin said that Europe’s demands for Ukraine would not be accepted by Vladimir Putin but said that an earlier proposal by the US seemed “quite acceptable to us”.

Trump claimed on Monday that progress was being made in peace talks in Geneva between US and Ukrainian officials. Washington and Kyiv said in a joint statement that they were working to narrow the gaps in the 28-point peace plan revealed by the US last week.

The US president had given Ukraine until Thanksgiving, this Thursday, to agree to the plan – but US officials later indicated the deadline could change.

Some EU leaders met to discuss Ukraine on the sidelines of an EU-African Union summit in Luanda on Monday, with others dialling in via video conference. (Read more from “Kremlin Sinks Trump’s Hope of Peace Deal by Thanksgiving” HERE)

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US Peace Plan Asks Almost Nothing of Russia, Leaving Some American Officials Questioning Why Kyiv Would Accept It

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The US peace plan to end the war in Ukraine contains almost no concessions from Russia aside from it abandoning its vow to take over the entire country — and American officials say they can’t see why Kyiv would accept the proposal.

The plan, devised by President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, after consultations with both Ukrainian and Russian officials, would see Kyiv surrendering the entirety of its Donbas region.

The handed-over area would include territory that the Kremlin hasn’t even been able to secure for more than a decade, since it made a separate land grab for it in 2014.

The proposed pact also calls for Ukraine to pledge to never join NATO, shrink its armed forces from its current estimated 900,000 to 600,000 personnel — and grant amnesty for all parties involved in wartime actions, eliminating any future legal claims over Russian war crimes.

Some US officials and experts characterized the plan as a no-win for Kyiv. (Read more from “US Peace Plan Asks Almost Nothing of Russia, Leaving Some American Officials Questioning Why Kyiv Would Accept It” HERE)

Several NATO Nations Scramble Jets as Russian Airstrike Kills At Least 20 Including Children

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The air forces of several NATO states were scrambled overnight to protect the airspace of the alliance along its eastern border as Russia launched one of its deadliest air strikes against Ukraine’s western regions of the war so far.

Polish, Romanian, German, Spanish, Norwegian, and Dutch fighter jets were scrambled in two deployments in airspace bordering Ukraine over Poland and Romania and the Russian armed forces hammered western Ukraine. According to Kyiv, Russia launched 476 drones, 47 cruise missiles and one ballistic missiles in strikes across the country, but particularly on Western cities Ternopil and Lviv.

At least 20 people have been found dead in Ternopil, which is approximately 225 miles west of Ukrainian capital Kyiv and 110 miles short of the Polish border. Of the killed, at least two are children, and a further 66 were wounded including 16 children in the strikes which badly damaged two apartment blocks.

Ukraine said it scrambled its own Western-built jet fighters including U.S.-made F-16s and French Mirage-2000 jets to shoot down Russian missiles. In all, Kyiv said 41 cruise missiles were shot down, 10 of them by Western-supplied Ukraine Air Force jets.

The BBC notes the unusually large and deadly Russian air raid came one day after Ukraine said it had used U.S.-made ATACMS missiles against targets inside Russia, the first time this has happened under the Trump Presidency. (Read more from “Several NATO Nations Scramble Jets as Russian Airstrike Kills At Least 20 Including Children” HERE)

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Trump Administration Drastically Increases Sanctions on Russia in Effort to Push Ceasefire in Ukraine

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President Donald Trump announced Wednesday a sweeping escalation of U.S. sanctions against Russia, aiming to pressure Moscow into agreeing to a ceasefire in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

In a statement released by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the administration said it was placing Rosneft Oil Company and Lukoil OAO — Russia’s two largest oil firms — under expanded sanctions pursuant to Executive Order 14024, which targets individuals and entities operating in Russia’s energy sector.

“Today’s actions increase pressure on Russia’s energy sector and degrade the Kremlin’s ability to raise revenue for its war machine and support its weakened economy,” the Treasury release stated.

The move blocks dozens of subsidiaries connected to Rosneft and Lukoil, including those involved in oil exploration, development, production, and refining. Any company in which either corporation holds a 50 percent or greater stake will now be subject to U.S. sanctions.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the sanctions were designed to halt the flow of money fueling the war. “Now is the time to stop the killing and for an immediate ceasefire,” Bessent said. “Given President Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war, Treasury is sanctioning Russia’s two largest oil companies that fund the Kremlin’s war machine.”

He added that the United States is prepared to impose even stricter measures if needed. “Treasury is prepared to take further action if necessary to support President Trump’s effort to end yet another war. We encourage our allies to join us and adhere to these sanctions.”

Speaking from the Oval Office alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump praised the sanctions package as one of the toughest yet.

“These are tremendous sanctions,” Trump said. “And we hope that they won’t be on for long. We hope that the war will be settled.”

In Zelensky Meeting, Trump Indicates He Is Not Ready To Give Ukraine Tomahawk Missiles

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President Donald Trump suggested Friday that he is not ready to give Ukraine the United States Tomahawk missiles as he spoke publicly with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House.

Zelensky came once again to Washington to speak with the president following Trump’s highly discussed call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday. Trump announced on Thursday that he and Putin will soon meet in Budapest, Hungary, to hammer out details on ending the war between Russia and Ukraine.

On Friday, he suggested that the meeting will only be between him and Putin, pointing to the “tremendous bad blood” between Putin and Zelensky.
“They have tremendous bad blood,” Trump said. “It really is what is holding up, I think, a settlement. I think we are going to get it done, and we have to make it long-lasting, as I said, in the Middle East, everlasting.”

“The Middle East is a much more complicated situation,” the president noted, referring to the peace deal he struck between Israel and Hamas. “You know, we had 59 countries involved, and every one of them agreed. And it’s, you know, it’s sort of amazing. Most people didn’t think that was doable. This is going to be something I really believe that’s going to get done. I had a very good talk yesterday with President Putin. I think he wants to get it done.” (Read more from “In Zelensky Meeting, Trump Indicates He Is Not Ready To Give Ukraine Tomahawk Missiles” HERE)

Trump to Give Ukraine Intel for Attacks on Critical Energy Targets Deep Into Russia

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By The War Zone. Reports indicate that the United States has agreed to provide Ukraine with targeting intelligence for its long-range strikes against Russian energy infrastructure. For many months now, Ukraine has been waging a campaign to degrade Russia’s oil and natural gas infrastructure, depriving it of critical resources for its offensive in Ukraine as well as revenue from energy exports.

According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, which cites unnamed U.S. administration officials, and another report from Reuters, the new policy is being adopted ahead of a possible transfer of longer-range and harder-hitting weapons that can be used against the same kinds of targets, and potentially others deep in Russia.

The officials who spoke to the WSJ reportedly said that President Donald Trump had recently signed off on the sharing of intelligence for the Ukrainian strikes, although the caveat that only attacks on energy infrastructure are covered is significant. Targeting data will be provided to Kyiv by U.S. intelligence agencies as well as the Pentagon. Meanwhile, U.S. officials are said to be pushing NATO allies to do the same.

This would be the first time, officially at least, that the Trump administration provides Ukraine with this kind of intelligence for its long-range strikes.

In the meantime, Ukraine has been repeatedly using long-range one-way attack drones, and to a lesser degree, cruise missiles of its own design, to hit Russian refineries, pipelines, power stations, and related infrastructure far beyond the front lines. (Read more from “Trump to Give Ukraine Intel for Attacks on Critical Energy Targets Deep Into Russia” HERE)

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‘Impossible to believe’ Russia would attack NATO countries, says Putin

By The Sky News. Next up, Putin is attacking European countries that are “whipping up hysteria”, trying to “recreate the well-known enemy they invented hundreds of years ago: Russia”.

While Putin says that Europe’s “ruling elites” claim that war with Russia is near, he calls this “nonsense” that is “impossible to believe”. It would run counter to Russia’s security interests, he argues.

And European people are sceptical as well, as they “don’t know what is so bad about Russia and why they should tighten their belts to counter Russia”, the president says. (Read more from “‘Impossible to believe’ Russia would attack NATO countries, says Putin” HERE)

Putin’s Right Hand Man Gives Middle Finger To Trump’s Peace Efforts

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov flatly rejected President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Ukraine.

Lavrov said territorial swaps would not “stop” Moscow’s campaign in a Tuesday meeting with foreign ambassadors, directly contradicting Trump’s proposal. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) noted Trump recently argued peace would require land concessions. Lavrov also dismissed U.S. offers to restore trade ties as an incentive for Vladimir Putin.

He insisted any deal must resolve what the Kremlin calls the war’s “root causes,” which ISW analysts interpret as installing a pro-Russian government in Kiev, forcing Ukrainian neutrality and blocking NATO’s Open Door Policy.

Lavrov warned that Russia would view any European troops stationed in a postwar Ukraine as “legitimate military targets.” The threat echoed earlier declarations from senior Kremlin figures rejecting Western security guarantees for Kiev, according to ISW. (Read more from “Putin’s Right Hand Man Gives Middle Finger To Trump’s Peace Efforts” HERE)

Russia Is Losing the War in Ukraine, U.S. Envoy Keith Kellogg Says

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Special Presidential Envoy Keith Kellogg on Monday said he and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff recently advised President Trump that Russia is losing its war on Ukraine — as Moscow has seen more than 1 million casualties while taking less than 1% of Ukrainian territory since November 2022.

Speaking at the Yalta European Security Conference in Kyiv, Kellogg revealed he and the chairman, Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, each reassured the president of Moscow’s wilting position roughly six weeks ago — shortly before Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.

“If Putin thinks Russia is winning, his definition of winning and my definition of winning are absolutely two different things,” Kellogg said. “If he was winning, he’d be in Kyiv. If he’s winning, he’d be west of the Dnipro River. If he was winning, he’d be on Odessa. If he was winning, he would have changed the government.

“Russia is, in fact, losing this war,” he added.

The two military experts gave their assessment in response to Trump’s then-prodding as to whether Putin’s grandstanding of supposed success in Ukraine was true, Kellogg said, giving a rare glimpse into private discussions at the White House. (Read more from “Russia Is Losing the War in Ukraine, U.S. Envoy Keith Kellogg Says” HERE)

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Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska’s Look of Horror After She Was Fatally Stabbed on Train — As Her Final Moments Are Revealed

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Slaughtered Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska looked up at her killer with terror in her eyes after he repeatedly stabbed her with a pocket knife, as no passengers came immediately to her aid, disturbing newly-released surveillance footage shows.

The new extended clip from the Aug. 22 attack on the Lynx Blue Line train shows the 23-year-old cowering in fear and covering her face with her hands after the shocking, unprovoked attack, allegedly carried out by homeless repeat felon Decarlos Brown Jr.

Zarutska, who had come to the US in 2022 seeking safety after Russia invaded her country, pulls up her legs, which can be seen spattered with blood in the video.

It comes as the FBI announced on Monday that Brown was hit with federal charges on top of the state murder rap he already faces. The penalty includes the possibility of the death sentence if he is convicted.

She then falls to the floor about 15 seconds later, the video shows. (Read more from “Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska’s Look of Horror After She Was Fatally Stabbed on Train — As Her Final Moments Are Revealed” HERE)

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Putin’s Three Demands for Ukraine Peace Revealed After Alaska Summit With Trump: Report

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has laid out three conditions he says are necessary to achieve peace in Ukraine, according to a new report.

Putin, who met with Donald Trump two weeks ago in Alaska for a high-stakes summit, is demanding that Ukraine surrender control of the remaining parts of the Donbas region, abandon its bid to join NATO, and accept strict neutrality that bars Western forces from setting foot in the war-torn country, three sources familiar with Kremlin thinking told Reuters.

The reported proposal marks a scaling back from Moscow’s earlier demands. In June 2024, Russia insisted Kyiv give up four provinces: Donetsk and Luhansk in the east, along with Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south. Now, according to Russian sources, Putin is seeking only the full Donbas in exchange for halting operations in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

Russia currently controls about 88% of the Donbas, as well as 73% of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, according to U.S. intelligence estimates and open-source data. Moscow has also signaled it could return small parts of the Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk regions as part of a potential settlement.

Still, Putin remains firm on his two other core demands: that Ukraine’s NATO ambitions, written into its constitution, be abandoned, and that Western militaries not be allowed to deploy in Ukraine under any peacekeeping mandate.

“Putin is ready for peace — for compromise,” one Russian source told Reuters. “That is the message that was conveyed to Trump.”Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly rejected any deal that involves ceding internationally recognized Ukrainian territory to Russia. On Thursday, he stressed the Donbas region is essential to his country’s survival.

“If we’re talking about simply withdrawing from the east, we cannot do that,” Zelensky said. “It is a matter of our country’s survival, involving the strongest defensive lines.”

He also argued that Ukraine’s NATO aspirations are a sovereign matter and should not be dictated by Moscow.

For now, no direct talks between Putin and Zelensky are scheduled. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told NBC News that “the agenda is not ready at all” for such a summit.

“President Putin said clearly that he is ready to meet provided this meeting is really going to have an agenda, presidential agenda,” Lavrov said, accusing Kyiv of stalling.

Meanwhile, Trump has applied pressure from the sidelines, warning of “massive” sanctions and tariffs if Putin and Zelensky fail to move toward negotiations.

“I’ll see whose fault it is,” Trump said Friday. “If there are reasons why, I would understand that. I know exactly what I’m doing. We’re going to see whether or not they have a meeting — that will be interesting to see.”

Zelensky has said he is ready to meet Putin but accused the Kremlin leader of blocking progress.

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