News & Events

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said his country won’t accept peacekeeping forces from Nato countries in Ukraine under any peace deal, following high-level talks with the US in Saudi Arabia.

Donald Trump’s demand for a $500bn (£400bn) “payback” from Ukraine goes far beyond US control over the country’s critical minerals. It covers everything from ports and infrastructure to oil and gas, and the larger resource base of the country.

Balancing Ukraine’s sovereignty with Russia’s demand for its own “security guarantees” promises to be the hardest part of any negotiation. But experts see possible compromises.

The prime minister warns against allowing “divisions” in the alliance between Europe and the US to distract from the threat from Russia. His comments come as the French president is thought to be convening crisis talks between European leaders, which the prime minister will attend.

Kyiv has not been invited to talks between the US and Russia aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, a senior Ukrainian government source has told the BBC.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance accused European leaders on Friday of censoring free speech and failing to control immigration, drawing a sharp rebuke from Germany’s defence minister and overshadowing discussions on the war in Ukraine.

United States President Donald Trump has signalled a major shift in three years of US policy towards Kyiv, saying that he and Russian leader Vladimir Putin had spoken by phone and agreed to begin negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine will not accept any peace deal agreed by the US and Russia without its involvement, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said, after Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin pledged to begin negotiations to end the war.