US and Ukrainian officials will begin a third straight day of talks in Miami on December 6, with senior Ukrainian and US negotiators jointly saying that "real progress" depends on Moscow's desire to end the war. "Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia's readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings," said a US summary of the ongoing talks posted late on December 5.
Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner have been meeting top Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov and Andrii Hnatov, the chief of staff of Kyiv's armed forces. Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia's readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings, said a summary of the talks.
Europe is offering proposals for a peace plan for Ukraine that are unacceptable to Russia. "Russia has no intention of going to war with European countries, but if Europe starts a war, Russia is ready right now and then Moscow will have nobody to negotiate with. "Europe has no peace agenda and is now hindering US efforts to resolve the conflict,
This is according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on the 100 most important arms manufacturers worldwide. Their revenues from the sale of weapons and military services amounted to $679 billion (582 billion) last year. This represents an inflation-adjusted increase of 5.9% compared to 2023. Even then, increasing geopolitical tensions and, above all, the war in Ukraine had led to increased demand for arms. In 2024, this trend accelerated even further.
Vladimir Putin says Ukraine is being unrealistic if it does not accept the US plan to end the war, declaring: Ukraine is against it. Apparently, Ukraine and its European allies are still under illusions and dream of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia on the battlefield. The positive response from the Russian president adds weight to the views of European and Ukrainian officials that the deal amounts to a capitulation.
A Russian drone has hit a NATO flagged ship carrying liquefied natural gas in the port of Odessa on Monday. A Turkish flagged tanker was hit by a Russian drone in Odessa which comes one day after the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a deal with the US to import the gas. The MT Orinda was struck by the drone whilst they were offloading the liquefied petroleum gas at Izmail port.
A Ukrainian military official early on November 17 said three people were killed and at least 10 injured in a Russian strike on the eastern city of Balakliya, an important railroad junction in the Kharkiv region. Vitaliy Karabanov, head of Balakliya's military administration, said the attack struck the city center and injured at least three children. Nine people were hospitalized, while emergency crews were at the site, he added.
Because without the pressure coming from the United States government I'm speaking 2022 the Europeans would not take that hard line, what they have today, on the war So the pressure was coming from the United States to be more pro-war in Europe. We have to restore something which was ruined and created from here, Orban concluded. That was an enormous mistake, what we have done the Western world several years ago, and we have to stop it.
Russian President Vladimir Putin received North Korea's top diplomat at the Kremlin on October 27 as Russian forces continued their push in eastern Ukraine, penetrating a key city amid fierce fighting. North Korean media said Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui discussed "many future projects to constantly strengthen and develop" the bilateral relationship while also passing on leader Kim Jong Un's "brotherly regard" to Putin. No further details were given.
"in the dead of night, in fair weather or foul, to go to dangerous places to find those who would do our nation harm, and deliver justice on behalf of the American people in close and brutal combat if necessary," Hegseth said. "In this profession," he went on, "you feel comfortable inside the violence so that our citizens can live peacefully. Lethality is our calling card, and victory our only acceptable end state."