Friday, February 21
Russia’s war against Ukraine
Residents of Lyman hide in the basements of their houses from constant shelling by Russian artillery shortly before the third anniversary of the war in Ukraine, amid ceasefire negotiations. (Yevhen Titov / NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Trump claims Russia holds ‘the cards’ in possible peace talks. “I think the Russians want to see the war end, I really do. I think they have the cards a little bit, because they’ve taken a lot of territory. They have the cards,” U.S. President Donald Trump said.
Ceasefire likely in 2025, Ukraine’s spy chief says. “How long it will be, how effective it will be, is another question. But I think it will happen,” Ukrainian military intelligence head Kyrylo Budanov said.
Meeting with Kellogg ‘restores hope,’ Zelensky says. “A meeting that restores hope, and we need strong agreements with America — agreements that will really work,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said after meeting with U.S. Special Envoy Keith Kellogg.
Trump administration presents ’improved’ minerals draft to Ukraine after Zelensky’s rejection, Axios reports. “This is a negotiation. And in a negotiation, you negotiate. Ukraine wants to negotiate minerals, so we’re talking about it,” a White House official was quoted as saying.
Ukraine needs to ‘tone it down,’ sign US minerals deal, Waltz says. “They need to tone it down and take a hard look and sign that deal,” U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz told Fox News.
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Russia claims to retake 64% of Kursk Oblast territories seized by Ukraine. According to Sergei Rudsky, a senior Russian General Staff official, Ukrainian soldiers are in control of about 500 square kilometers (193 square miles) out of 1,268 square kilometers (490 square miles) initially seized by Kyiv.
Ukraine behind FPV goggles explosions in Russia, source claims. According to the source, HUR bought a large batch of FPV goggles for the operation and rigged them with explosives and a detonation mechanism.
Kremlin ‘concerned’ by Starmer’s reported peacekeeper plan for Ukraine. “We are, of course, following all these reports most closely… This is a cause for concern because the discussion is about sending NATO military contingents to Ukraine,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said at a press briefing.
EU’s Costa, von der Leyen to visit Kyiv on Feb. 24. The visit aims to reaffirm the EU’s “support to the heroic Ukrainian people and to the democratically elected President Volodymyr Zelensky,” European Council President Antonio Costa said.
US objects to ’Russian aggression’ language in G7 statement, straining unity on Ukraine, FT reports. The shift in U.S. rhetoric follows statements from President Donald Trump, who has blamed Ukraine for the war, accused Zelensky of acting like a “dictator,” and suggested that Russia should be invited back into the G7.
Read our exclusives
How Ukraine should deal with Trump, according to Ukrainians
Despite a long history of controversial and bombastic statements, Donald Trump still managed to stun those watching this week by calling Volodymyr Zelesnky a “dictator” and blaming Ukraine for Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Photo: Andrew Harnik / Getty Images
Ukrainian business sees potential in Trump resource deal — if done right
Within weeks of U.S. President Donald Trump saying he wanted to do a deal with Kyiv on its “rare earths and other things,” it became clear the U.S. wasn’t just interested in Ukraine’s critical minerals and rare earth elements.
Photo: Christopher Occhicone / Bloomberg via Getty Images
Ukraine war latest: Zelensky-Kellogg meeting ends with no joint statements at US request
Kellogg arrived in Ukraine on Feb. 19 as part of Washington’s efforts to broker a resolution to Russia’s full-scale war. Upon arrival, he said his primary mission was to “listen” to Kyiv’s concerns and relay his findings to the White House.
Photo: Andrew Kravchenko/Bloomberg via Getty Images
‘We cannot survive’ without foreign weapons, say Ukrainian soldiers fearing looming Trump cuts
As U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration prepares negotiations with their Russian counterparts, Ukrainians fear being cut out of negotiations — and cut off from future U.S. support, including weaponry.
Photo: Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu via Getty Images
Human cost of war
Explosion kills Russian occupation official in Berdiansk, Ukraine’s intelligence claims. The intelligence agency accused Yevgeny Bogdanov, deputy head of Berdiasnk’s occupation administration, of committing multiple war crimes against Ukrainian citizens.
7 killed, 30 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine over past day. Russian aerial strikes targeted an energy facility of Ukraine’s DTEK company in Odesa Oblast overnight, the company announced. Governor Oleh Kiper said that 49,000 consumers remain without power as of 9 a.m. local time as repairs continue.
EU defense commissioner pushes back against Trump
International response
UK’s Lammy sees no Russian willingness for peace at G20 meeting. In his speech, released by the U.K. Foreign Office, David Lammy accused Russia of engaging in “Tsarist imperialism” and failing to learn from historical colonial wars.
Moscow demanded NATO withdrawal from eastern Europe during US-Russia talks, FT reports. The U.S. delegation reportedly rejected the demand, but concerns remain over what concessions President Donald Trump might consider to secure a deal on ending war with Russia.
Opinions and insights
Europe, rearming is cheaper than war
“Europe urgently needs to rearm. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the broader threat that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime poses to Europe, requires nothing less,” writes Philippe Legrain, former economic advisor to ex-European Commission President José Manuel Barroso.
Photo: Christoph Soeder/picture alliance via Getty Images
In other news
Russian hackers target Signal accounts in growing espionage effort. Google’s Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) has identified a rise in Russian state-backed hacking attempts to compromise Signal messenger accounts.
Ukraine moves to nationalize Ferrexpo’s mining subsidiary. Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation and Justice Ministry are preparing to nationalize Poltava Mining, a subsidiary of London-listed Ferrexpo, which is majority owned by oligarch Konstantin Zhevago, the SBI announced on Feb. 20.
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