Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin ‘won’t accept any Trump peace deal’ as he is ‘obsessed’ with crushing Ukraine
Trump risks collapsing Ukraine’s front lines if he decides to starve Kyiv of military aid, Dmytro Kuleba warns
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Your support makes all the difference.Vladimir Putin will not accept a peace deal pushed by US president-elect Donald Trump, because the Russian president is “obsessed” with “crushing” Ukraine and exposing the weakness of the West, Ukraine’s former foreign minister has warned.
Dmytro Kuleba – who resigned in September – warned that Mr Trump instead risks collapsing Ukraine’s front lines if his administration decides to starve Kyiv of military aid.
Warning that Mr Putin still believes he “can snuff out Ukrainian statehood”, he told Politico: “Ukraine is a personal obsession for Putin, but crushing Ukraine is also a means to accomplish his grand goal – to show to the world how the West is incapable of defending itself or what it stands for.”
It came as Ukrainian officials said an experimental new ballistic missile fired by Russia at Dnipro last week carried multiple dummy warheads but no explosives. Mr Putin has called the Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile strike a successful test and claimed it reached its target – a missile and defence facility.
ICYMI: Russia expels British diplomat for ‘spying’
Russia has expelled a British diplomat for spying in an accusation denied by London as a fresh row erupts in the latest blow to relations between the two countries.
The Russian FSB security service named the diplomat, whose photo was splashed across TV news bulletins, as Edward Wilkes and alleged he had intentionally provided false information when he entered Russia – a claim disputed by the UK Foreign Office as “malicious and baseless”.
A spokesperson for Britain’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said: “This is not the first time that Russia has made malicious and baseless accusations against our staff. We will respond in due course.”
My colleague Tara Cobham has more in this report:
Russia expels British diplomat for ‘spying’ after record drone attack on Ukraine
London denies espionage accusation as fresh row erupts to deal latest blow to already dire state of relations
US urges Ukraine to lower fighting age to 18 to bolster ranks, official says
Ukrainian officials should consider lowering the age for its soldiers to 18 years old, a senior US administration official has said.
In comments to Reuters, the US official warned that Ukraine is not mobilising or training enough new soldiers for its war with Russia.
Watch: Zelensky hits out at ‘insane neighbour’ claiming Putin is ‘searching world for weapons’
Poland detains German citizen for exporting dual-use goods to Russia
Poland has detained a German citizen and charged the suspect with brokering and exporting dual-use goods to Russia.
“The German citizen traded in specialist machines used in the technological industry, which – through his company – were illegally sent to Russian military plants involved in the production of weapons,” the Internal Security Agency said.
“The suspect pleaded guilty and filed a motion for voluntary submission to punishment.”
A German foreign office source said the embassy in Warsaw was in touch with Polish authorities and working urgently to get details.
European Union sanctions levied against Russia since its invasion of Ukraine include a ban on selling to Russia certain dual-use goods and technologies that have both civilian and military applications.
The Internal Security Agency statement did not specify the article of the criminal code under which the suspect was charged and it was not immediately clear what penalty he faces.
Europe must take greater responsibility for its own security, Swedish PM says
Europe needs to take a greater responsibility for its own security, Swedish premier Ulf Kristersson has warned, as his nation joined numerous others in jointly vowing to bolster aid to Ukraine.
“That is preconditioned on us increasing our cooperation and continuing to support Ukraine, which is fighting for both its own and our security, over the long term,” he said in a statement issued shortly after the agreement was struck.
Nordic and Baltic states vow to take tougher stance on Russia
The leaders of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Norway, Poland and Sweden have all committed to step up their support for Ukraine and invest in making more ammunition available for Kyiv.
“We are committed to strengthening our deterrence, and defence, including resilience, against conventional as well as hybrid attacks, and to expanding sanctions against Russia as well as against those who enable Russia’s aggression,” the nations’ leaders said in a joint statement on Wednesday.
The leaders were meeting at the Swedish government’s country retreat in Harpsund, southwest of Stockholm, for talks covering transatlantic relations, regional security cooperation and a common policy on the war in Ukraine.
Aid from the Nordics, Baltics and Poland totals around €24bn, according to the Kiel Institute’s Ukraine Support Tracker, second only to the United States in absolute terms.
Full report: Imprisoned Kremlin critic stands a second trial for opposing Ukraine war
Imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Gorinov – the first known Russian jailed under a new wartime law effectively banning criticism of Moscow’s military – appeared in court on Wednesday for a second trial for opposing Russia’s war in Ukraine, an independent news site reported.
The new trial against Mr Gorinov, a 63-year-old former member of a Moscow municipal council who is suffering from a chronic lung condition, is the latest in the unrelenting crackdown against dissent that the Kremlin unleashed after sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
Dasha Litvinova has more in this report:
Imprisoned Kremlin critic stands a second trial for opposing Ukraine war
Imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Gorinov has appeared in court for a second trial for opposing Russia’s war in Ukraine
UK broadcaster Jeremy Kyle cuts off caller who defends Putin during live interview
Nordics, Baltics and Poland to bolster support and increase ammunition to Ukraine
The Nordic states, the three Baltic republics and Poland have said in a joint statement that they will step up their support for Ukraine and make more ammunition available to Kyiv in the coming months.
Trump eyes retired General Keith Kellogg for Ukraine envoy, sources say
Donald Trump is considering retired lieutenant general Keith Kellogg, who has presented the US president-elect with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, to serve as a special envoy for the conflict, three sources with knowledge of the matter have told Reuters.
Mr Kellogg, who was the chief of staff for the White House National Security Council during Trump’s 2017-2021 term, would likely play a central role in attempting to resolve the conflict if he is selected.
Mr Kellogg’s plan for ending the war, which began when Russia invaded Ukrainian sovereign territory, involves freezing the battle lines at their prevailing locations and forcing both Kyiv and Moscow to the negotiating table, Reuters reported in June.
There is currently no special envoy for the conflict, but Trump is likely to create the position, said all the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss private deliberations.
Richard Grenell – Trump’s former acting director of national intelligence, who has advocated for the creation of “autonomous zones” as a means of settling the conflict – is also in the running, Reuters reported on Friday. One of the sources with knowledge of Mr Kellogg’s potential appointment said Mr Grenell still appeared to be the frontrunner.
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