Trump: very disappointed with Putin, hope we don't have to use nuclear weapons

Returning to the conflict in Ukraine, the US Special Representative for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, described the situation of the Russian military during the Warsaw Security Forum, saying that Vladimir Putin "is pulling tanks out of museums and taking them to the front line". "His military forces have been decimated, frontline units have been slaughtered already in the first year of the war," he added, stressing that "Putin has the problem, not the West. The NATO alliance is very well aligned and I have great confidence in it'. On the future of the conflict, the US envoy reiterated that 'Russia is not winning this war, and the Ukrainians have fought exceptionally well. It is a conflict that must be ended'. Looking at possible peace negotiations, Kellogg admitted 'a certain level of frustration', but expressed confidence: 'I think in his heart, Putin knows he cannot win. I am a perpetual optimist: you have to hope, and make him understand that he cannot win in the long run'.

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been in emergency mode for 7 days, disconnected from the power grid due to Russian bombing, it is running on generators. This was announced by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his evening speech. "It is the seventh day now and, by the way, it has never happened before, that the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is in a state of emergency. The situation is critical. Due to the Russian bombardment, the plant has been disconnected from the power grid,' he said. The plant receives electricity from diesel generators but one of them is already out of operation.

Meanwhile, Russia has decided to extend the ban on petrol exports, which was due to expire today, until the end of the year, extending the restrictive measure to include diesel for cars and fuel for ships. The government announced this on its Telegram channel. The decision was taken to address a shortage of fuel on the domestic market, due according to observers to Ukrainian attacks on the country's refineries, coupled with regular maintenance work on some of the plants and limited stocks at petrol stations due to high interest rates on bank loans. According to the business daily Kommersant, the estimated petrol shortage in Russia is around 20%, which is pushing up prices and causing several petrol stations in some regions of the country to run out of petrol. The newspaper adds that Crimea, which has been annexed by Russia since 2014, was the first region to introduce fixed prices and set sales restrictions for each motorist to prevent a hoarding race.

A family of four, mother, father and their two children, were killed ina Russian drone raid in the Sumy region of north-eastern Ukraine.

This was announced by the head of the regional military administration, Oleg Grygorov, who said that the Russians hit a residential building in the village of Chernechchyna. "Rescuers found under the rubble the bodies of the four victims, their parents and their 4- and 6-year-old children," Grygorov wrote on Telegram, speaking of "a terrible and irreparable loss for the entire community".

Russia is winning in Ukraine. This was stated by President Vladimir Putin in a message to the nation on the third anniversary of the annexation of the Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions after popular referendums that were not internationally recognised. Regions that the Kremlin chief called 'our originally and historically Russian lands'. With the September 2022 vote, Putin said, the inhabitants of the four regions decided to 'stay with their homeland, with Russia, return to their original family, of which they have always been a part'.

"Today," the president continued, "by defending that choice, our soldiers and commanders are advancing to the front line, and the whole country, the whole of Russia, is fighting and working. Together we are defending our love of the Fatherland and the unity of our historical destiny; we are fighting and winning; we are safeguarding fundamental national interests'. Putin emphasised that Moscow has initiated 'a vast programme of socio-economic development', stating that as of 2022 in the territories of the four regions under Russian control, 'more than 23,500 buildings and facilities' have been 'constructed and renovated', including 'residential buildings, schools, modern medical facilities, sports complexes and innovative youth centres'. In addition, 'energy, communications, utilities and transport sectors are being renovated' and '460 kilometres of engineering networks and 6,350 kilometres of roads are being built and modernised'.

Al confine con la Russia

Collocazione dell’oblast (regione) di Sumy

Meanwhile Ukraine gets further support from its allies. "Ukraine is our first line of defence, we must maintain and increase our support". This is the concept that was emphasised by both Commission Chairwoman Ursula von der Leyen and Mark Rutte in a press point before the NATO Secretary General attended the College of Commissioners. "Defending Ukraine is not only defending our values, but also our collective security," Rutte stressed while von der Leyen relaunched the 'reparations loan' initiative through the use of frozen Russian assets for 'structural' military aid to Kiev.

"Our decisive action" can lead to a "breakthrough" in the conflict. We need a more structural solution for military support to Ukraine, which is why I proposed the idea of a reparation loan based on immobilised Russian assets. The loan would not be disbursed in one lump sum, but in tranches and with certain conditions. And we will strengthen our defence industry by ensuring that part of the loan is used for procurement in and with Europe. Importantly, there will be no seizure of assets,' von der Leyen explained. 'The sanctions are working. If you look at last year's Russian GDP, in 2024 it was growing by 4.3 per cent, now it is expected to slow down to 0.9 per cent in 2025, so we have to increase the pressure. And to that end, we have proposed a new sanctions package with robust measures on energy, financial services and trade," she added.

Sweden and Finland on the eve of the EU summit in Copenhagen write in a paper that 'Ukraine's uncovered financing needs for 2026 and 2027 are estimated at EUR 130 billion, for financial and military support needs: a concrete need is expected to arise in the second quarter of 2026. It is therefore urgent to find sufficient and predictable funding for Ukraine to cover the medium-term budget deficit for 2026 and 2027'. The two countries note that it is necessary to 'utilise immobilised Russian assets as much as possible'.

Ukrainian President Volodymir Zelensky announced that 'Our group of specialists has initiated a mission to Denmark to share Ukrainian experience in countering drones. Our guys arrived to participate in joint exercises with partners, which could form the basis for a new system to counter Russian and other drones'. Zelensky emphasised that 'the Ukrainian experience is the most relevant in Europe today, and it is our expertise, our specialists and our technologies that can become a key element of the future European 'Wall of Drones''.