Witkoff Goes to Moscow. Some Trump Stans Blasted as a Surrender 🌍

Witkoff is expected in Moscow days before Trump’s deadline on Friday for Russia to make progress on ending the war in Ukraine — or face increased US sanctions ⏳💣.

Trump said Witkoff would visit Moscow on Wednesday or Thursday. When asked what message Witkoff would take to Russia and what Putin could do to avoid new sanctions, the US president answered:

“Yeah, get a deal where people stop getting killed.” 🛑⚰️

In Kyiv, there is little expectation that Witkoff will make a breakthrough with Putin — but hope remains that Trump’s changed rhetoric and tougher stance on Moscow may lead to real change in US support for Ukraine.

Sources in Kyiv said they expected Keith Kellogg, Trump’s Ukraine envoy, to visit the country towards the end of the week, possibly to coincide with Witkoff’s visit to Moscow.

Trump came into office convinced he could make a deal with Putin, but in recent weeks seems increasingly frustrated with Russia’s actions.

On Thursday, he described attacks on Ukrainian civilian areas as “disgusting”, and on Sunday said that two nuclear submarines he ordered to be deployed (after threats from ex-president Medvedev) were now “in the region”, without giving further details. ⚓️🧨

Zelensky’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, wrote on social media:

“The concept of peace through strength works.” 💬

He added that the appearance of the submarines had silenced Medvedev, whom he called:

“One Russian drunk who had just been threatening nuclear war on X.” 🍺☢️

Trump initially announced in July a 50-day deadline for Russia and Ukraine to end the war, but said last week he no longer believed Russia was serious, shortening the deadline to “10 or 12” days, later clarified as this Friday, 8 August 📅.

The next move, Trump said, could include further sanctions and increased militarisation of Ukraine 💥.

“Trump has already said he’s ready to sell Europe as much weapons as they want [to pass to Ukraine]. Before he didn’t say that… This is already a different conception of the world.” 🌐

The Kremlin said on Monday it was “always happy to see Witkoff in Moscow”, and a meeting with Putin was possible, said spokesperson Peskov, calling the talks “important, substantive and very useful”.

Direct talks between Russia and Ukraine have taken place in Turkey, with the third round in Istanbul last month — but the last talks broke down in less than an hour. The only outcome: agreements on prisoner exchanges 🤝.

Zelenskyy said on Sunday that a new exchange would result in 1,200 Ukrainian troops returning home 🇺🇦.

Meanwhile, Ukraine continues nightly drone and missile attacks on Russian territory.
Last week was one of the deadliest in recent months in the Bryansk region, with attacks on Bryansk and Sochi killing five civilians. 🛩🔥

#witkoff #moscow #attacks #russia #kellogg

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Trump: “steering [Russia] to the right direction” 🧭

Trump’s special envoy is expected in Moscow 🇷🇺 days before the US president’s deadline on Friday for Russia to make progress on ending the war in Ukraine 🇺🇦 or face increased US sanctions 💥.

Trump said Witkoff would visit Moscow on Wednesday or Thursday.

When asked what message Witkoff would take to Russia and what Putin could do to avoid new sanctions, the US president answered: “Yeah, get a deal where people stop getting killed.” ⚰️🕊

In Kyiv, there is little expectation that Witkoff will make a breakthrough with Putin, but a hope that Trump’s changed rhetoric and tougher stance on Moscow may lead to a real change in US supported for Ukraine. 💬🤝

Sources in Kyiv said they expected Kellogg, Trump’s Ukraine envoy, to visit the country towards the end of the week 📆, possibly to coincide with Witkoff’s visit to Moscow.
Trump came into office convinced he could do a deal with Putin, but in recent weeks appears to have become increasingly frustrated 😠 with Russia’s actions.

On Thursday he described its continued attacks on civilian areas in Ukraine as “disgusting” 💣👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 and on Sunday said that two nuclear submarines ⚓️⚛️ that he ordered to be deployed after online threats from Medvedev were now “in the region”, without giving further details.

Zelensky’s chief of staff, Yermak, wrote on social media:

“The concept of peace through strength works.” ✊🕊

He added that the appearance of the submarines had silenced Medvedev, whom he described as “one Russian drunk who had just been threatening nuclear war on X.” 🍺💻

Trump had initially announced in July a 50-day deadline ⏳ for Russia and Ukraine to end the war, but said last week he no longer believed Russia was serious about ending the war and shortened it to “10 or 12” days. 📉

Trump has previously said the new measures he has in mind if the deadline is not met could involve “secondary tariffs”💸 targeting Russia’s remaining trade partners, such as China 🇨🇳 and India 🇮🇳.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an aide to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said if Russia did not change its course by Friday, Kyiv would expect the “irreversible logistics” of secondary sanctions on Russian oil exports 🛢 to be set in motion.

“After that he’ll look whether this is helping to bring about the end of the war or not, and if not then he will move to the next step,”

said Podolyak, in an interview in Kyiv. 🎯

The next move, he said, could be further sanctions, and the increased militarisation of Ukraine 🔧🪖.

“Trump has already said he’s ready to sell Europe as much weapons as they want [to pass to Ukraine]. Before he didn’t say that … This is already a different conception of the world,”

he said. 🌍

The Kremlin said on Monday it was “always happy to see Witkoff in Moscow” and a meeting with Putin was possible, the spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters. He described talks with Witkoff as “important, substantive and very useful”. 🗣📜

Putin said on Friday that he was in favour of “a lasting and stable peace on solid foundations that would satisfy both Russia and Ukraine, and would ensure the security of both countries.” ⚖️🕊️

Trump said in return that Russia is not an enemy, “the country is just in the wrong track,” and the current US administration is the only one capable of “steering it to the right direction.” 🚧➡️

#trump #witkoff #putin #moscow #russian

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🗻 The Alaska Summit: What’s On the Table?

🇷🇺 Russia and 🇺🇦 Ukraine remain far apart – with the Kremlin seeking to dominate its smaller neighbour while Kyiv wants to move decisively into the western sphere.

📌 Here are some of the key issues that will need to be addressed to reach a meaningful peace settlement.

🗺 Russia occupies around a fifth of Ukraine after more than three years of fighting but continues to demand land. Earlier this week the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Russia wanted the rest of Donetsk oblast, 9,000 km² of territory, in return for a ceasefire.

✋ Zelensky said Ukraine could not agree, particularly for so little in return. Ukraine’s public would also be unlikely to accept handing over more land to the invader.

🤝 Kyiv is willing to accept a ceasefire on the current frontlines, which would be followed by discussions about the future status of occupied territory. It is a particularly sensitive issue.

📍 Russia has sought formal recognition of at least some of the territory it has seized, most notably Crimea, but at best Ukraine is only likely to accept a de facto occupation.

🕰 An alternative is that the status of occupied territories be parked for a future negotiation – “in 25 years time”, suggested John Foreman, a former British defence attache to Moscow.

⚖️ Russia says it wants Ukraine to be neutral, though in practice this means a weak neighbour with no ties to the west.

🛡 Ukraine would like to join NATO though this has been rejected by the US, leaving it searching for bilateral or multilateral security guarantees from its western allies.

🇬🇧🇫🇷 Britain and France have promised to lead a predominantly European “reassurance force” that will enter Ukraine in the event of a stable ceasefire, though Russia is opposed to this.

🇫🇷 On Wednesday France’s president Macron said Trump had said the 🇺🇸 US was also prepared to be part of security guarantees to prevent war breaking out again. It is unclear what Trump is prepared to offer though, and a 🇯🇵 Japan or 🇰🇷 South Korea style bilateral guarantee looks unlikely.

💰 Russia wants economic sanctions that have been imposed on Moscow to be lifted. Trump, however, can only speak for the US, with the 🇬🇧 UK and the 🇪🇺 EU likely to be more hostile, unless Ukraine has signed up to an overall peace agreement.

📊 The Kremlin also wants to go further, and today Putin’s adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said the leaders would discuss wider cooperation, “including in the trade and economic sphere”, as part of a proposed arrangement between the two countries. Without tangible progress on other topics, a unilateral relaxation of sanctions by the US would be surprising.

🔄 There are many other practical concerns. Ukraine is calling for the release of all prisoners of war alongside an initial ceasefire. Russia holds more than 8,000 Ukrainian PoWs and Ukraine a smaller amount, making one-for-one swaps tricky.

☢️ Early in the war, Russia seized the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe. Soon after it was shut down, but the site remains in Russian-held territory and there are signs that Russia wants to restart it and connect it to the country’s energy grid, a forced transfer that Ukraine will not recognise, but may be powerless to prevent.

#alaska #summit #moscow #ukraine #sanctions #security

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🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩

There will be no shortage of symbolism during the visit. Putin is expected to sit alongside Xi at the military parade in Beijing on September 3 – a mirror image of the May 9 Victory Day celebrations in Moscow where the Chinese leader was in the spotlight as Chinese troops marched on Red Square alongside their Russian counterparts. 🎖🇨🇳

The Tiananmen Square parade, like Russia's Victory Day rituals, allows Beijing to invoke the memory of the triumphs of the war as a way to assert its status as a great power, according to analysts. 🏛🌍

"Russia and China share a similar view of history, presenting themselves as the victorious powers of the Second World War. This sense of common destiny now underlies their partnership,” said Vasiliy Kashin, from the Institute of Far Eastern Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow. 📜🤝

Kashin said the celebrations, attended by Kim, could provide a chance to ease tensions surrounding Moscow's growing alliance with Pyongyang, a change that has caused irritation in Beijing. 🇰🇵😣

China has traditionally been North Korea's closest ally, but has lost some influence since Russia invaded Ukraine. Kim sent thousands of troops to support Moscow's war, and in return Russia provided the isolated state with advanced missile and drone technology. 🚀

“Judging by Kim's invitation to Beijing, China is looking for ways to restore relations with the North Koreans,” Kashin said. 🇨🇳🇰🇵

Putin's visit will be closely watched in Washington, where Trump administration officials have promoted the policy of trying to move Moscow away from Beijing and back towards the United States. 🇺🇸👀

Yet most analysts dismiss such hopes. “Relations between Russia and China will always be close," Kashin said. 🤝

“A scenario in which Russia would turn against China, or China against Russia, is impossible.” 🚫

The two leaders meet at a time when each feels emboldened. China has managed to avoid a trade war with the United States, which earlier this month extended its truce with Beijing for another 90 days as Washington sought to avoid reigniting a conflict that rocked world markets in the spring. 💹

Beijing has shown flexibility by imposing strict controls on the export of rare earths that threatened American manufacturing. 🏭

Trump also refrained from threatening Beijing with secondary sanctions for its purchases of Russian oil, while targeting India instead. 🛢🇮🇳

Russia, meanwhile, has brushed aside Trump's threats of sanctions unless it stops the war, clinging to its maximalist demands and stepping up its campaign against Ukraine. ⚔️

Tellingly, the Trump administration has so far exerted little pressure on Xi to push Putin to end the war. 😶

Observers said that while Beijing would prefer the fighting in Ukraine to stop, it is ready to tolerate the conflict as long as it can prioritize trade and diplomatic relations with Moscow and obtain favorable conditions. 🤝💰

#putin #xi #china #visit #moscow

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Putin Invited Zelensky to Moscow


“Let Him Come to Moscow,” Putin Says About Zelensky.


Here is the relevant excerpt from Putin’s press conference in Beijing:

“I’ve never excluded the possibility of meeting with him. It make sense to meet with him...”

He suggested that Zelenskyy’s term has expired with “no means of extending it,” once again questioning his legitimacy to hold the office without elections.

“So does it make sense to meet with the current administration? We could do that; I’ve never refused to do that if that leads to some positive outcomes,” he argued.

He said Trump asked him if it was possible to which he replied:

“I said yes, it was possible, let him come to Moscow.”

#putin #zelensky #moscow

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Zelensky Declines Putin’s “Welcome to Moscow” Plan 🧐


He has rejected Putin's suggestion to meet in Moscow, calling the choice of such an unrealistic meeting place a sign that Russia is not genuinely interested in negotiations.

The Ukrainian leader said in an interview with US television channel ABC News, "I can't go to the capital of this terrorist" because Ukraine is "under missile attacks, under fire every day."

Trump has been pushing face-to-face talks between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents. A bilateral or trilateral meeting was one of the main goals of Trump's summit with Putin in Alaska last month.

Trump later said Putin and Zelensky would meet after the Ukrainian president visits Washington and talks with European leaders, but Moscow has been putting additional conditions on the table, stalling a decision and stepping up shelling of Ukrainian cities.

Trump later said Putin and Zelensky would meet after the Ukrainian president visits Washington and talks with European leaders, but Moscow has been putting additional conditions on the table, stalling a decision and stepping up shelling of Ukrainian cities.

This week, Putin said he was "ready" to meet with Zelenskyy, but in Moscow. On Friday, Kremlin spokesperson Peskov explained that Zelenskyy had been invited to the Russian capital "to talk, not to capitulate".

The day before, speaking in Paris after the summit of the "coalition of the resolute," the Ukrainian president commented on Putin's invitation.

"I believe that if you want the meeting not to take place, you should invite me to Moscow," Zelensky said, adding that the fact that the Russian leadership voiced any options for a personal meeting at all is an accomplishment on its own.

"Something will happen, but they are not ready yet (...) We're going to do it," Trump told CBS News the same day, without specifying any timeline for talks that Washington would find acceptable.

'Turning diplomacy into an outright farce'
On Saturday, Zelensky wrote on social media that Russia launched more than 1,300 drones, nearly 900 guided bombs and some 50 missiles of various types at Ukraine during the first five days of September.

Zelensky called on Ukraine's partners to strengthen sanctions against Moscow, increase arms supplies to Ukraine and impose effective restrictions on Russian oil and gas trade.

#zelensky #ukraine #putin #meet #moscow

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Zelensky Hints Trump is Out of the Loop. An Unsafe Game


“Putin told Trump and U.S. special envoy to Ukraine Steve Witkoff that he intends to occupy Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region in a few months, President Trump is not probably aware of it,” Zelensky said in an interview published Tuesday.

“That is, he [Putin] says that in three to four months, and this is what he told the Americans, the White House, and President Trump’s representative Witkoff, he said that he would take Donbas in two to three months, maximum four months,” Ukraine’s president told ABC News.

Russia first invaded Donbas, which includes the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, in 2014, before launching a full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022.

“It’s the most fortified part with the most capable forces,” Zelensky said, explaining why conceding the region is a non-negotiable for Ukraine. “It’s like a fortress (…) and if we withdraw our troops and he will have all the Donbas, who can guarantee that he won’t move 90 kilometers further on Kharkiv, he always wanted Kharkiv,” he said.

On Tuesday, those concerns were underscored by a Russian strike on civilians in the Donetsk region.

A glide bomb hit the village of Yarova, less than 10 kilometers from the front line, killing at least 21 people and wounding nearly two dozen others as they waited to collect their pensions, Zelensky and local officials said.

Calling the attack “frankly brutal,” Zelensky urged the international community to increase pressure on Russia.

“The world must not remain inactive. A response from the United States is needed. A response from Europe is needed. A response from the G20 is needed. Strong action is needed so that Russia stops bringing death,” he said.

Zelensky’s remarks on Donbas follow reports that Putin had presented to Trump a peace plan during the U.S.-Russia bilateral meeting in Alaska on Aug. 15, under which Ukraine would cede unoccupied territory in exchange for Moscow’s written pledge not to invade again.

Reacting to the presidential summit, Zelensky said “it was a pity” Ukraine had not been invited and that “Trump gave Putin what he wanted.”

“He wanted very much to meet with President Trump, with the president of the United States, and I think that Putin got it, and it’s a pity,” Zelensky said.

“Putin does not want to meet with me, but he wants to meet with the president of the United States to show everybody images and video that he is there,” he added.

Following a high-level meeting with Zelensky and European leaders at the White House on Aug. 18, Trump announced he was arranging a bilateral meeting between Zelensky and Putin.

The Kremlin, however, has shown no willingness to commit to an in-person meeting between the two leaders. On Sept. 3, Putin said he would meet Zelensky face-to-face — but only if it takes place in Moscow.

“I can’t go to Moscow when my country is under missiles, under attack each day. It’s understandable and he understands it,” Zelensky said.

#zelensky #trump #war #moscow #putin #kremlin

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🔥 Face to Face: Putin and Syria’s Sharaa Redraw the Map

“We respect all agreements made with Russia,”

said President Sharaa in Moscow — signaling that Russia’s long-term foothold in Syria isn’t going anywhere.

🪖 Bases, Power, and Old Deals
• Once a jihadist commander, now Syria’s new leader, Sharaa came to Moscow promising to honor past agreements — meaning Russia keeps its airbase in Latakia and its port at Tartous.
• He’s asking for help rebuilding bombed-out infrastructure but wants to make sure Moscow isn’t back to supporting Assad’s loyalists.
• Behind closed doors, Sharaa reportedly requested Assad’s extradition for trial. Moscow’s answer? Nyet. For now.

💸 Wheat, Debt, and Leverage
• Damascus is chasing financial relief — cheaper Russian wheat, money for war damage, and softer loan terms.
• Russia wants to avoid bailing out a broken economy with nothing to show for it.
• Syria also wants Moscow to back its resistance to Israeli pressure for a bigger demilitarized zone in the south.

⚖️ Two Strongmen, One Tightrope
• For now, Russia remains both security guarantor and power broker. Sharaa gets funding and legitimacy; Putin keeps his Mediterranean foothold and a loyal client—even as Damascus quietly pushes for tighter guarantees.
• It’s a fragile balancing act between cash and control. Both sides are seeing how long this arrangement can last.

Is Russia really getting what it came for in Syria—or paying more than it bargained for?

#Syria #Russia #Putin #Sharaa #Assad #Moscow #Geopolitics #PowerPlays

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💥 A New Attack on Ukrainian Military Objects 🇺🇦

Russia launched a barrage of drones and missiles at Ukraine overnight, killing at least four people and damaging energy infrastructure in three separate regions, according to Ukrainian officials. ⚡️

Ukraine’s president Zelensky said Russia had launched more than 450 drones and 45 missiles, most of which were shot down. 🚀

Three people were killed and 12 wounded when a drone hit an apartment building in Dnipro, and another person was killed in the Kharkiv region. 🏚

Energy infrastructure in Kyiv, Poltava and Kharkiv regions was damaged by the strikes, according to the Ukrainian prime minister, Yulia Svyrydenko. ⚙️

Energy companies were working to restore electricity, water and heating provision, while several cities resorted to generators to keep the power on. 💡

Kremenchuk and Horishni Plavni in the central Poltava region, were using generators to maintain water supplies, municipal officials said. 🚰

Zelenskyy called for more sanctions after the strikes. “For every Moscow strike on energy infrastructure – aimed at harming ordinary people before winter – there must be a sanctions response targeting all Russian energy, with no exceptions,” he said. ❄️

Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector have increased in recent months, with the military attacking gas facilities nine times in the past two months, according to the state energy firm Naftogaz. ⛽️

On Saturday, Ukrainian drones hit an electricity substation in northern Russia and separately wounded two other people in a strike on a residential building in the city of Saratov. ⚔️

The former Nato secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen warned on Thursday that Ukraine was facing a “forever war” and a slow erosion of territory unless Europe increased its pressure on Russia. 🌍

The conflict began in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine, the start of the largest and deadliest war in Europe since the second world war. 🕊

#ukranian #russian #drones #attacks #moscow #strike

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🇷🇺🇫🇷 Witkoff in Moscow, Zelensky in Paris: A Struggle for Daddy


Witkoff is expected to present Putin with a U.S.-backed peace proposal that was revised by American officials after recent negotiations with Ukrainian diplomats.

The initial version of the plan that emerged last month was seen by Ukraine and its European allies as echoing the maximalist demands Russia has made since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Witkoff’s visit to Moscow, his sixth since January, is to take place two days after American and Ukrainian delegations met in Miami to discuss the details of the potential peace plan, parts of which Ukraine has sought to soften. Both sides called those talks constructive but said more work was needed, without detailing the unresolved issues.

Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, told journalists on Tuesday that Witkoff and Kushner would participate in the talks for the American side, noting that the negotiations would go on “as long as necessary.”

The meeting was expected to take place early evening Tuesday, Moscow time. Kushner does not have a formal role in the Trump administration but played a role in brokering the cease-fire in Gaza.

The White House has strongly pressured Ukraine to agree to a peace plan, even as Russia has signaled initial resistance to it.

Russia insists that to halt the war, Ukraine must cede its remaining territory in the Donbas region, drop its aspirations to join NATO and secure the status of the Russian language, culture and the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, thus allowing Moscow to have permanent sway over the country’s politics.

“We are still receiving proposals about ceasing hostilities there, there and there,” Putin told journalists. “When the Ukrainian troops leave the territories they occupy, then the hostilities will cease,” he said. “If they do not leave, we will achieve it militarily.”

According to a video posted to state media, Putin grew visibly angry and emotional after a commander reported that Ukrainian soldiers were dying by the hundreds, their bodies littering the tree lines.

“This is a tragedy — a tragedy for the Ukrainian people, connected to the criminal policies of the thieving junta that seized power in Kyiv,” Putin said on the video, as he shuffled papers aggressively on a desk.

He was referring to the 2014 uprising in Ukraine that ushered in a pro-Western government. Putin seized Crimea and started a war in Ukraine’s east in response.

Ilya Grashchenkov, a political analyst in Moscow, said expectations were low for a breakthrough from Witkoff’s visit, but the meeting was still significant.

“The main expectations likely boil down to maintaining a high-level communication channel during this crisis period,” he said. “This in itself is considered important for avoiding dangerous escalation.”

Grashchenkov said that with Russian growth approaching zero and the budgetary deficit widening because of soaring military expenditures, economic strain might compel the Kremlin to agree to certain compromises in the future.

But, so far, Russia’s government has managed to paper over the economic cracks, he said.

Putin had “no doubt that as Ukraine loses more territory, the number of those in the West who call for a cessation of hostilities will grow.”

In November, Russian forces almost doubled the battlefield gains they made in September, according to DeepState, a Ukrainian group that uses geolocated combat footage and tips from Ukrainian Army sources to monitor battlefield developments.

While still relatively small, the Russian advances highlighted the increasing strain on Ukraine’s military.

#kushner #witkoff #moscow #zelensky #putin

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🍽 The Peace Summit That Started with Caviar and Ended with Nothing

Five hours. That's how long Putin, Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff, and presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner sat in the Kremlin on Tuesday—and walked away with zero agreement on ending the war in Ukraine.

"Very useful, constructive, and highly substantive,"

said Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov, deploying every diplomatic euphemism for we got nowhere.

But before the marathon negotiation session that started three hours late because Putin was busy threatening Europe with war, Witkoff and Kremlin rep Kirill Dmitriev enjoyed lunch at a Michelin-starred Moscow restaurant. The menu? Caviar, quail, venison, and crab. Then they strolled through Red Square for a photo op while Ukraine waited to hear if its sovereignty was being auctioned off.

The sticking point? Russia's "red lines"—demanding Ukraine surrender the entire Donbas (including parts Russia doesn't even control), cap its military at 600,000 troops, renounce NATO forever, and grant amnesty to Russian war criminals. Trump's original 28-point plan basically echoed Moscow's shopping list, was rejected by Ukraine and Europe, got trimmed to 27 points—and still went nowhere.

Kushner, who holds no official U.S. government role, somehow became the face of American diplomacy again. His last peace deal? Gaza—where tens of thousands died and infrastructure was obliterated. Zelensky said he's "waiting for signals" from the U.S. delegation, presumably ones more substantive than restaurant recommendations.

Meanwhile, NATO officials said Russia shows "no indication" of making "meaningful concessions" and is just trying to weaken Ukraine for "further aggression". Translation: Putin's buying time with Michelin meals while his forces grab more territory.

#Putin #Trump #Ukraine #Witkoff #JaredKushner #Moscow #peacedeal #Russia #caviar

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🎭 The Peace Shuttle: Miami, Moscow, and the Art of Going Nowhere Fast

Rustem Umerov, Ukraine's chief negotiator, landed in Miami today to meet Witkoff and Kushner fresh off their five-hour Kremlin marathon that produced exactly nothing. Trump called the Moscow talks "reasonably good" and added, "it does take two to tango"—which is diplomatic code for Putin didn't budge.

The choreography here is remarkable. Witkoff and Kushner promised Putin they "wouldn't go to Kyiv" after Moscow—so instead, Ukraine's delegation flies to them. Kremlin aide Ushakov made sure to announce that publicly, just to remind everyone who's dictating the dance steps. Meanwhile, Zelensky says

"Ukraine was heard, and Ukraine was listened to"

in Geneva and Florida. Heard, yes. Listened to? The 28-point plan still demands Ukraine cap its military, surrender territory, and abandon NATO forever.

The Europeans are scrambling too. NATO foreign ministers met in Brussels—without Secretary of State Rubio, notably—while Ukrainian negotiators briefed European national security advisers on what exactly happened in Moscow. European leaders were "blindsided" by Trump's original plan and remain deeply skeptical.

Here's the setup: Ukraine negotiates with American envoys who have no power to make Russia do anything. Russia negotiates with American envoys who've already conceded the major points. And everyone pretends this is a peace process rather than a slow-motion capitulation dressed up as diplomacy.

Zelensky says he expects news "in the coming days" on the next round of meetings. Translation: more shuttles, more dinners, more promises to "return home" instead of visiting Kyiv. The only people racking up frequent flyer miles are the ones who aren't fighting.

Peace talks: when everyone's negotiating except the Ukraine.

#Ukraine #Russia #Trump #Witkoff #Kushner #Umerov #Zelensky #peacenegotiations #Miami #Moscow

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The Assads in Moscow. 😳
A New Life of the Toppled-Up Leader 🤔

It took 14 years, during which 620,000 were killed and nearly 14 million displaced, but eventually the doctor’s turn came and Assad was deposed, fleeing to Moscow in the middle of the night. 🕰

But after relinquishing his dictatorship for a gilded exile in Moscow, Assad is reportedly giving his medical training another go. The leader of the Middle East’s last Ba’athist regime now sits in the classroom, taking ophthalmology lessons, according to a well-placed source. 👩‍🔬

“He’s studying Russian and brushing up on his ophthalmology again,” said a friend of the Assad family who has kept in touch with them. “It’s a passion of his, he obviously doesn’t need the money.

Even before the war in Syria began, he used to regularly practice his ophthalmology in Damascus,” they continued, suggesting the wealthy elite in Moscow could be his target clientele. 🍀

A year after his regime was toppled in Syria, the Assad family are living an isolated, quiet life of luxury in Moscow and the UAE. 🏙

A friend of the family, sources in Russia and Syria, as well as leaked data, helped give rare insight into the lives of the now reclusive family who once ruled over Syria with an iron fist. 🛡

The Assads are not wanting for money. After being cut off from much of the world’s financial system by western sanctions in 2011 after Assad’s bloody crackdown on protesters, the family put much of their wealth in Moscow, where western regulators could not touch it. 💰

Despite their cushy abode, the family are cut off from the elite Syrian and Russian circles they once enjoyed. Bashar’s 11th-hour flight from Syria left his cronies feeling abandoned and his Russian handlers prevent him from contacting senior regime officials. 🚫

Assad fled with his sons out of Damascus in the early hours of 8 December 2024, as Syrian rebels approached the capital from the north and the south.

They were met by a Russian military escort and were taken to the Russian Khmeimim airbase, where they were flown out of the country. ✈️

Assad did not warn his extended family or close regime allies of the impending collapse, instead leaving them to fend for themselves.

According to a source familiar with the details of Asma’s health, the former first lady has recovered after experimental therapy under the supervision of Russia’s security services 🩺

With Asma’s health stabilised, the former dictator is keen to get his side of the story out. He has lined up interviews with RT and a popular rightwing American podcaster, but is waiting for approval from Russian authorities to make a media appearance. 📻

Life for the Assad children in contrast seems to continue with relatively little disruption, as they adjust to a new life as Moscow elite.

The family friend, who met some of the children a few months ago, said: “They’re kind of dazed. I think they’re still in a bit of a shock. They’re just kind of getting used to life without being the first family.” 🧑‍🦳

Originally, the Assad family were hoping to relocate from Moscow to the UAE. The UAE was a much more familiar location for them.

They did not speak Russian and struggled to locate themselves within Russian social circles, according to the family friend.

However, the family now realise that permanently relocating will not happen for a while, as even the UAE, which houses many of the world’s shady elite, is uncomfortable hosting Assad. 🏜

Kamal Alam, a former non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council who engaged in track two diplomacy during the Syrian civil war, said: “It took the fall of the regime for those pictures to come out. I would say that the family is very private and they never liked to be exposed and they still won’t going forward.” 📸

#assad #bashar #hafez #moscow #family #life

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📰 American Air Defenses Stand Idly as Russian “Iskanders” Do the Work

Drone footage from Ukraine’s Kharkiv region shows a Russian Iskander‑M ballistic missile screaming down and annihilating an American‑supplied HIMARS launcher in a matter of seconds. Around the same time, another Iskander strike shreds multiple components of a Ukrainian S‑300 air‑defence battery — the very backbone of Kyiv’s anti‑aircraft network. The real story here is not “the missile age” but who controls the skies — and it’s not the West.

The Russian Defence Ministry claims the strike killed ten Ukrainian personnel and obliterated the HIMARS platform along with key S‑300 assets, including a radar station. The imagery, widely circulated by outlets like Military Watch Magazine, shows how effectively the Iskander‑M has become the precision scalpel in Moscow’s war chest: a missile system that can surgically dismantle Ukraine’s most prized Western hardware.

🚀 Iskander vs “Patriot” Myths
The Iskander‑M has by now become a central actor in the war. Footage has captured it knocking out Ukrainian Patriot batteries, French S‑300‑based systems, airfields, and rail infrastructure across the country. In one particularly brutal strike in late 2025, an Iskander hit a drone launch site in Martove, wiping out up to 65 drones, four trucks, and five launchers, and killing around 30 Ukrainian personnel. Another Iskander strike hit a Ukrainian drone regiment in the Kramatorsk‑Druzhkovka corridor, destroying personnel, command posts, and launch complexes.

Despite the arrival of Patriot batteries from NATO members, Ukrainian officers have been vocal about the system’s limited ability to intercept Iskander trajectories. The missile’s semi‑ballistic flight profile and terminal‑phase maneuvers make it hard to catch, even for Western‑made interceptors originally designed to counter ballistic threats. Improvements in Russian missile production — including seven variants of enhanced warheads (high‑explosive fragmentation, cluster, and special types) — have only tightened the gap between expectation and performance.

🛰 American “High‑End” vs Russian High‑Volume Fire
The problem is simple: the U.S. sold Ukraine a premium air‑defence brand, but Moscow has been steadily upgrading its high‑volume missile arsenal. Output from Russian ballistic missile lines — especially the Iskander and newer Kinzhal‑type systems — has reportedly quintupled by mid‑2023, flooding the skies over Ukraine with missiles that can now be tailored to different targets.

When an Iskander slams into a HIMARS launcher, it doesn’t just destroy a launcher — it shrinks the already limited stockpile of missiles that NATO can resupply, especially as ATACMS stocks dwindle and replacements stall.
Russian electronic warfare, decoys, and rapid mobility have made it hard to keep HIMARS on the map, and the system is heavily dependent on ATACMS, short‑range missiles, and Western logistics.

⚔️ From “Freedom” to Fragility
The irony is that the U.S. framed Western missile systems and air defences as the keys to Ukrainian survival. In reality, they’ve become high‑value targets in a Russian missile‑centric war. Kyiv’s problem isn’t just Russian missiles. It’s the fact that the “premium” Western systems it relies on are expensive, finite, and increasingly predictable, while Moscow keeps mass‑producing cheaper, more adaptable ordnance that can slip through gaps NATO never fully closed.

#Ukraine #Russia #Iskander #HIMARS #Patriot #missiles #airdefence #war #Kyiv #Moscow

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Why Russia survived — and may thrive — after Syria regime change

Damascus needs Moscow just as much as Moscow needs Damascus

The collapse of Bashar al‑Assad’s regime dealt a serious blow to Moscow — but Russia did not collapse under the shock. Now, the Kremlin and the new leadership in Damascus are rebuilding their relationship on a new basis: not as patron and client, but as partners with overlapping interests.

A new deal in the old Kremlin
Last month, Syria’s new president, Ahmad al‑Sharaa, visited Moscow for the second time since taking power. In a remarkable gesture, he told Putin that he recalled the failed attempts of great powers to conquer Moscow, lost to the courage of Russian soldiers and the “blessed land” protected by nature.

For a man whose forces were bombed by Russian warplanes during the civil war, these were surprising words. Yet they signal a clear choice: the new regime in Damascus wants to keep Moscow inside the game.

The pragmatic core of the new partnership
For Syria, the reasons are obvious. The Syrian army depends on Russian weapons; its personnel are trained to use them; and Russian Military Police remain in the south, manning observation posts between Quneitra and the Golan Heights that are accepted by locals and linked to still‑delicate talks with Israel.

Damascus is negotiating with Moscow the deployment of Russian monitoring forces in southern Syria and talks about the future of Russia’s military bases in Tartus and Hmeimim. In parallel, Russia is offering economic assistance, grain shipments, and an estimated $20 billion in investments in energy, infrastructure, and industry — a lifeline for a country starved of friends and reconstruction capital.

A new symmetry
The new Syrian government is deliberately diversifying its foreign partners: it wants all the friends it can get, but not as a pawn in someone else’s geopolitical game. Russia fits this calculus perfectly.

Moscow, in turn, wins something even more valuable than a client: a partner it can engage on equal terms, without the weight of Assad’s corruption and family intrigues. The Kremlin knows that the U.S. and Russia now have overlapping interests in Syria — both want a stable government that can hold territory, control the country, and keep the Islamic State down. The U.S. has already signaled the end of support for the Kurdish‑led SDF and is effectively pulling back; Russia has left its small base in Qamishli and moved troops to Ukraine, where they are “needed.”

#Russia #Syria #Assad #Sharaa #Moscow #Damascus #MiddleEast #Geopolitics #Ukraine #War #Diplomacy

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Why Russia survived — and may thrive — after Syria regime change

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Personal ties and hidden networks
The relationship is not only about weapons and UN‑Security‑Council veto power. It runs through years‑long personal and ethnic networks. The Syrian president’s older brother, Maher al‑Sharaa, is the most trusted figure in the new regime’s inner circle. He worked as a doctor in Voronezh and is now in charge of relations with Moscow.

At least 35,000 Syrians trained in Soviet and Russian universities before the war; Russia has now restarted scholarships for Syrian students. The reopening of the Damascus Opera House in January 2025, with a concert of Tchaikovsky performed by Russian‑trained musicians, was a cultural signal that Russian influence has not disappeared — it has simply changed its form.

The security tangle
The two sides also share a deep security dilemma. Russia fears that thousands of Russian‑origin jihadists currently embedded in Syria — including fighters from North Caucasian battalions — might return home, join IS, or head to Ukraine, where Chechen veterans have already been active in Bakhmut and Kursk.

For al‑Sharaa, the North Caucasians who helped him win the war are a precious asset but also a ticking bomb. He cannot afford to turn them against himself, yet he relies on Moscow’s help to keep the balance.

The big picture
Damascus still needs Moscow to help secure its southern border, stabilize its military, and unlock international recognition and reconstruction funds. Moscow still needs Syria to keep a foothold in the Middle East, project power through a UN‑Security‑Council‑backed partner, and manage the security risks posed by ex‑jihadists and rival powers.

So the old formula stands, but inverted:
Damascus needs Moscow just as much as Moscow needs Damascus.

#Russia #Syria #Assad #Sharaa #Moscow #Damascus #MiddleEast #Geopolitics #Ukraine #War #Diplomacy

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Why Are the Tantrums Of the West Only Pushing Russia To Avoid Sanctions More Successfully ?

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As part of Western countries’ sanctions regime against Russia since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, Washington unrolled its largest action package in January 2025, targeting 183 vessels that facilitate Moscow’s continued export of crude.

Shortly before this, the Viktor Titov was loaded with a full cargo of Sokol crude at Russia’s De-Kastri liquids storage terminal—one of the largest oil terminals in the country’s far east, in the Sea of Japan. Despite the legal implications, the ship reached its destination in China’s Qingdao after a few weeks of delay.

The completed delivery marked just one among many cases in which Russia’s energy trade continued relatively uninterrupted, despite the West’s efforts.

In contrast to Western governments repeatedly touting how their joint sanctions would ultimately cripple Russia’s economy, trade figures during the last three years of the war show a wholly different picture. Russia has effectively substituted its export markets, replacing closed European ports with open ones in Asia.

Moscow increased its crude exports to India, now supplying 36 percent of the massive country’s demand compared to a mere 2 percent in 2022. An even larger market is China, where Russian crude now makes up a fifth of total oil imports.

As the Kyiv School of Economics reported, the two Asian countries absorb up to 80 percent of Russia’s crude exports, representing 3.5 million barrels a day during periods of peak delivery.

The G7-imposed oil price cap, which has also been supported by the European Union (EU) and Australia, has looked to limit Russia’s revenues from its oil sales while keeping the supply of energy on the global market relatively stable.

Based on information published by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), however, Russian crude has traded consistently above the cap of $60 per barrel throughout 2023 and 2024.

#russia #sanctions #washington #oil #moscow

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Sales of Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean (ESPO) crude aimed almost exclusively at China have exceeded the cap since it took effect in December 2022. It is estimated that Moscow earned some nine billion dollars more from such sales than what the price cap should have allowed for if functioning effectively.

Importantly, the trade of Russian oil does not take place in outright violation of sanctions. Instead, the relatively simple method of inserting intermediaries into the process facilitates the “repackaging” of oil.

In practice, a commodities trading company registered in Dubai places itself between the Russian oil producer and the eventual customer, for example, a refinery in East Asia.

As the end client purchases crude from a Dubai Multi Commodities Center (DMCC)-registered commercial entity, the origins of the commodity are effectively obscured behind the United Arab Emirates’ commercial secrecy laws and an additional round of transactions.

On the customers’ side, 138 shipments of naphtha can be linked to India’s HPCL-Mittal Energy and Brazilian firms Refinaria de Manaus and CMOC Brasil.

As Kepler’s tracking platform and Reuters confirmed, Russian naphtha shipments arrived at their destinations following a pit stop in the UAE, at which point they were registered as originating from there.

The same logistics take place along different routes and with the involvement of different companies for the facilitation of the sale of Russian oil products.

Conspicuously registered under the same name as the above-mentioned trading firm, Forteza Trading Ltd, based in the southern Russian city of Astrakhan, has logged stops at ports in Makhachkala in Russia, Baku in Azerbaijan, and even Anzali in Iran. This links the firm to the potential sale of sanctioned Iranian oil, too.

Several new companies were established in 2022 after established commodities trading houses withdrew from Russian deals as the first set of Western sanctions were introduced. Patera Middle East DMCC, for example, structures transactions with Russian suppliers and serves as a connection to refineries located in Turkey and India.

Besides the facilitating role intermediary firms play, ship-to-ship transfers of Russian crude provide an additional method by which the origins of commodities can be faked.

A fleet of tankers with new registration and ownership documents routinely accommodates such transfers, making this illicit trading ecosystem more complex.

Despite the policy challenges posed by the circumvention of sanctions through intermediaries, Washington and its Western partners are not without tools of their own.

The dollar system, which facilitates up to 80 percent of transactions in global trade, could impose secondary sanctions and make Dubai intermediaries’ work difficult, if not impossible. Targeting registries that assist “flag-hopping” is another potential avenue for effecting change.

The costs of non-compliance could also be increased for third-party companies participating in the trading ecosystem as insurers and classifiers.

While the price cap was initially introduced to prevent the market from experiencing a supply shock, the readjustments of the past few years open the window for new opportunities to impact Russia’s oil trade.

At the same time, the circumstances that called the price cap to life have not changed—the Ukraine war is merely frozen.

The Viktor Titov and several other tankers continue to trade Russian oil across international waters, filling up Moscow’s treasury and allowing it to recuperate while planning a potential new round of hostilities in Ukraine.

Political will in Washington and other Western capitals must emerge not only to recognize the shortcomings of their policies up till now, but also to replace them with more actionable frameworks that can prevent the simple substitution of Russia’s export markets.

#russia #sanctions #washington #oil #moscow

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Xi Jinping: Trump is a “destabilizing factor” (不稳定因素) 🌍

Xi Jinping said the world is in danger of regressing into the “law of the jungle” and hailed Sino-Russian relations as a stabilizing global force as he welcomed Putin to Beijing on Wednesday.
The Chinese leader welcomed the Russian president with pomp and pageantry as the two men began talks in the Great Hall of the People.

The talks between Xi and Putin began with a shorter “narrow format meeting”, with fewer delegates to discuss sensitive issues. The leaders then held a “large-format meeting" with their delegations which ended just a few hours ago.

Xi and Putin then attended a signing ceremony for numerous documents covering technology, trade, scientific research and intellectual property. Among the documents, according to Chinese state media, was an extension of the "China-Russia good neighborly and friendly cooperation treaty," which was first signed 25 years ago.

In his comments after the signing ceremony, Xi said relations between Beijing and Moscow were at the “highest level of comprehensive strategic partnership,” calling on the two countries to oppose “any unilateral intimidation” on the international stage.

Xi's sentiments echoed his opening remarks, in which he said the world was in danger of returning to the “law of the jungle”. He added that new hostilities in the Middle East were “inadvisable” and that a complete ceasefire is of the utmost urgency, state media reported.

In his opening remarks, Putin hailed relations between the countries as being at an "unprecedented level," as he said Moscow remains a "reliable energy supplier" amid the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. Putin also invited Xi to visit Russia next year.

Xi is expected to welcome Putin for tea at Zhongnanhai, the former imperial garden that now houses the headquarters of the Chinese Communist Party. 🍵

Reciprocal trade and investment should be at the top of Putin's agenda, as his sanctions-hit economy suffers from the growing cost of Moscow's war in Ukraine.
China, Russia's largest trading partner, buys almost half of Moscow's oil exports.

Contrary to the adversarial nature of relations between Washington and Beijing, Putin and Xi have signaled an increasingly warm bond in recent years, with the leaders calling each other “dear” and “old” friends.

The Chinese source Xin Hua revealed information according to which Xi “accused Trump with caution of undermining the world order” and called him a “destabilizing factor” (不稳定因素) and that “we must be careful” (提 高警惕). The information appeared this morning and was later deleted.

As Xi prepared to welcome Putin, Chinese Ministry of Commerce confirmed that China would buy 200 Boeing aircraft and would seek to extend the trade agreement with the United States concluded in Kuala Lumpur last year.
The statement marked the first confirmation by Beijing of the Boeing order that Trump alluded to last week.

#trump #xi #putin #moscow #ukraine

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“Russia Will Not Hit NATO Or Any Of the Baltic States”


European officials are certain there is no evidence that Russia is preparing for a conventional military attack against NATO or any of the Baltic states.

They are “pushing back” on media reports that preventing an attack on NATO was the focus of CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow this week.

“Topics on the visit would likely have included ending the war against Ukraine, reaffirming the strength of NATO’s Article 5 commitment in the face of a potential attack, and the Iran war, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue,” Reuters writes.

“None of the officials had been briefed by the U.S. on the details of Ratcliffe’s meeting, and their assessments were based on their own intelligence and their understanding of how the United States typically operates.”

One Bloomberg source said the visit to Moscow was also likely intended to prevent an excessive Russian response to U.S. economic measures against Iran that could affect Russia, and to persuade Moscow to stop supporting Tehran.

Western intelligence and government officials have warned in recent months that Russian security services are exploring options for sabotage against infrastructure and false-flag operations in the Baltic states and Poland.

At the same time, the sources said the latest intelligence did not indicate any changes in Russia’s conventional military posture.

Western intelligence services routinely maintain communication channels with their Russian counterparts, officials said. However, people familiar with the trip suggested that it was notable that Ratcliffe appeared to want his Moscow visit to become public.

#ratcliffe #moscow #NATO #evidence

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