Ukraine-Russia war latest: Ceasefire talks resume in Saudi Arabia as Trump envoy Witkoff praises Putin
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff says: ‘I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy. He’s super smart.’
Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has praised Vladimir Putin, saying he “liked” the Russian president as US-brokered ceasefire discussions got under way in Saudi Arabia.
“I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy. He’s super smart,” Mr Witkoff told far-right commentator Tucker Carlson, while also dismissing Sir Keir Starmer’s plan for a “coalition of the willing” to provide military security guarantees to Ukraine as “a posture and a pose”.
His remarks came as Ukrainian officials met with US counterparts in Riyadh on Sunday to discuss a ceasefire, with Russian officials set to follow suit on Monday – marking the first such parallel peace talks since the early days of Moscow’s full-scale invasion.
As the Ukrainian round of talks concluded on Sunday night, Kyiv’s defence minister Rustem Umerov said they had been “constructive and meaningful” discussions, focused particularly on the energy sector.
Just hours earlier, officials said at least seven people were killed – including a five-year-old child – as Russia launched an overnight barrage of drones at Kyiv. The drones hit apartment buildings and sparked several fires throughout Ukraine’s capital despite Moscow agreeing to a limited ceasefire, officials said.
Sir Keir’s ‘coalition of the willing’ is proving to be principled – and a rallying cry for Ukraine 
Zelensky claims Putin is ‘amassing troops to strike us’ following Russian leader’s phone call with Trump
Mapped: Which Ukrainian nuclear power plants could Trump take as part of ceasefire deal?
Trump story about ‘surrounded’ Ukraine troops contradicted by his own intelligence, report reveals
Trump story about ‘surrounded’ Ukraine troops contradicted by his own intelligence, report reveals
Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have both insisted that Ukraine’s forces in Kursk are surrounded by Russian troops and are in imminent danger, but U.S. intelligence reports have contradicted those claims.
A trio of U.S. and European officials familiar with intelligence details of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine told Reuters that the situation on the ground does not reflect the comments made by Trump and Putin.
One of the U.S. officials also said that the White House was briefed on the actual situation in Ukraine, so it’s unclear why Trump has and continues to claim that Ukrainian troops in Russia's Kursk region are surrounded.
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Trump’s story about ‘surrounded’ Ukraine troops contradicted by his own intelligence
Which Ukrainian nuclear power plants could Trump take as part of the ceasefire deal?
Donald Trump has floated the idea of taking control of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, in a phone call with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
The conversation on Wednesday was described as positive by both sides and was mainly aimed at securing a truce between Ukraine and Russia on aerial attacks against one another’s energy infrastructure.
Mr Zelensky suggested the call had focused on the US takeover of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is under Russian control.
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Mapped: Which Ukrainian nuclear plants could Trump take as part of ceasefire deal?
If Ukraine hits energy again, Putin may speak to Trump, says spokesperson
Putin and Trump may have another phone call if Ukraine continues strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, Peskov said.
Putin agreed to the suspension of such attacks in a phone call with Trump last week. Kyiv, which has said it would be willing to take part in such a partial ceasefire if a document setting out its terms is agreed, has accused Russia of not abiding by Putin's order, something Moscow denies.
"While the Russian side has been sticking to its word for several days now, the word that the president gave, and to the president's command, which immediately came into force and was immediately implemented, and is still being implemented, the same cannot be said of the Kyiv regime", Peskov said.
Russia and Ukraine accused each other on Friday of blowing up a Russian gas pumping station in a border area where Ukrainian troops have been retreating. Russia said on Saturday that it reserves the right to a "symmetrical response" to Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy facilities.
Asked if Ukraine's violation of the agreement may become a reason for another Putin-Trump call, Peskov said: "Absolutely. The presidents confirmed their intention to continue contacts as necessary."
Putin and Trump may have spoken more than twice, Kremlin says
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump may have had more contacts than the two publicly announced telephone calls over recent months, the Kremlin said in video footage published by state television on Sunday.
Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly said that he wants the three-year conflict in Ukraine to end and has warned of the risks of it escalating into a world war between the United States and Russia.
There have so far been two announced phone calls between Putin and Trump this year - on 12 February and on 18 March - though there has been speculation about much more frequent contact, and also reports that they spoke before Trump was elected last year.
When asked by the most prominent Kremlin correspondent for state television about remarks by Trump that indicated there may have been more than two calls, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said information had been released about those calls he knew of.
"Listen, we inform you about the conversations that we are aware of. But we can't rule out everything else," Peskov said with a smile.
Map shows sabotage across Europe that has been blamed on Russia and its proxies
Western officials have accused Russia and its proxies of staging dozens of attacks and other incidents across Europe since the invasion of Ukraine three years ago, according to data collected by The Associated Press.
They allege the disruption campaign is an extension of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war, intended to sow division in European societies and undermine support for Ukraine.
The AP documented 59 incidents in which European governments, prosecutors, intelligence services or other Western officials blamed Russia, groups linked to Russia or its ally Belarus for cyberattacks, spreading propaganda, plotting killings or committing acts of vandalism, arson, sabotage or espionage since the Feb. 24, 2022, invasion.
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This map shows sabotage across Europe that has been blamed on Russia
Where is key Russian gas pumping station hit by huge explosion
Mapped: Where is key Russian gas pumping station hit by huge explosion
Trump envoy dismisses Starmer plan for Ukraine
Donald Trump’s special envoy has dismissed Sir Keir Starmer’s plan for an international force which could include British troops to support a ceasefire in Ukraine as “a posture and a pose”.
Steve Witkoff told pro-Trump commentator Tucker Carlson that the idea was based on a "simplistic" notion of the UK prime minister and other European leaders thinking "we have all got to be like Winston Churchill".
He said: "I think it's a combination of a posture and a pose and a combination of also being simplistic. There is this sort of notion that we have all got to be like Winston Churchill. Russians are going to march across Europe. That is preposterous by the way. We have something called Nato that we did not have in World War Two."
Witkoff, who met with Putin 10 days ago, said he “liked” the Russian autocrat, and said: "I don't regard Putin as a bad guy," he said. "He's super smart."
Japan host talks with China and South Korea
Foreign ministers from Japan and its two neighboring Asian powers China and South Korea held a meeting Saturday to seek common ground on areas like low birth rates, natural disasters and cultural exchanges at a time of growing tensions.
The meeting on Saturday focuses on plans for a trilateral summit later this year.
The three-way meetings are an accomplishment for Japan, which has historical and territorial disputes with both China and South Korea. An earlier trilateral meeting was held in South Korea last year.
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Japan host talks with China and South Korea
Oil products spill spreads fire at Russian oil depot
An oil products spill occurred at the oil depot that caught fire in southern Russia's Krasnodar region after a drone attack last week, regional officials said on Sunday.
The area of the fire at the depot near the village of Kavkazskaya increased to 2,000 square metres from the 1,250 square metres previously reported, said state news agency TASS.
There were no casualties and other buildings and tanks at the depot were not damaged, regional officials wrote on messaging app Telegram.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said this week that the attack amounted to violation of an agreement to halt attacks on energy infrastructure as part of efforts to secure a broader ceasefire in the war in Ukraine.
Local authorities had brought in firefighting trains loaded with water to help to battle the blaze on Saturday.
The depot is a rail terminal for Russian oil supplies for a pipeline to Kazakhstan.
Russia accuses an 'unfriendly state' of planning the 2004 Moscow concert hall assault
One year since the Moscow concert hall attack killed 145 people, Russian officials asserted Saturday that it was planned and organized by "the special services of an unfriendly state.”
The aim, according to a a statement by Svetlana Petrenko, the representative of the Russian Investigative Committee, was to "destabilize the situation in Russia.”
Though she did not specify the “unfriendly state,” she noted that “six Central Asians” currently outside of Russia had been charged in absentia and placed on Russia’s wanted list for allegedly recruiting and organizing the training of four of the suspected perpetrators.
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