Russia-Ukraine War

Rubio said lawmakers are preparing to raise new sanctions against Russia if negotiations for peace in Ukraine falter.

The new deployment is part of an effort by Berlin to secure NATO’s eastern flank and show that Europe can take on a greater responsibility for its own defense.

Moscow says it is maintaining contact with Washington but that issues under discussion ‘require a lot of additional effort.’

The move put the Finnish government on the same path as Poland and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia continues to face U.S. sanctions and that ’restrictions continue to apply to American companies.’

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces are being ejected from border communities in Russia’s Kursk, a defense source tells Moscow’s TASS news agency.

Moscow says it is ready to revive a Black Sea grain initiative—part of a would-be cease-fire deal—if its long-standing demands for sanctions relief are met.

The president said he‘d impose sanctions ’if Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia’s fault.’

As European countries increase their defense spending to counter the threat from Russia, China, and Iran, can Europe’s arms manufacturers up their game?

Zelenskyy said that Russian leadership was intent on conquering more of Ukraine’s territory before committing to a U.S.-led cease-fire deal.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk says that Moscow would seek to balance its relationship between Washington and Beijing.

Kyiv won’t treat U.S. aid as debt and is still assessing Washington’s latest minerals agreement proposal, the Ukrainian president says.

The Russian president renewed his argument that the current Ukrainian government is illegitimate and suggested Kyiv may renege on a peace deal.

France and the UK have spearheaded a plan for a European force in Ukraine, but divisions remain with threat of direct conflict with Moscow.

The Trump administration has negotiated a limited cease-fire covering Russia and Ukraine’s energy sites, but a broader truce is still in the works.

Zelenskyy said Russia, not Ukraine, was holding up progress on a broader cease-fire.

Kyiv says Washington’s proposal is a ‘full-scale agreement’ that could pave the way for a joint revenue-sharing agreement on rare earths.

The negotiations this week have begun to bear some fruit, but agreements are scarce on the future of a cease-fire agreement.