[🇺🇦] Monitoring Russian and Ukraine War.

[Saif]

Foreign fighters in Ukraine war: What we know

Zelensky said this week more than 150 Chinese nationals were fighting for Russia's army in its war against Ukraine

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Foreign fighters in Ukraine war: What we know
AFP
Published: 11 Apr 2025, 17: 12

Founder of Wagner private mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin makes a statement as he stand next to Wagner fighters in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in Bakhmut, Ukraine, in this still image taken from video released 20 May, 2023 AFP

Volodymyr Zelensky said this week more than 150 Chinese nationals were fighting for Russia's army in its war against Ukraine and accused Moscow of "dragging" other countries into its invasion.

It was the latest accusation of foreign involvement in a conflict which has seen both Russia and Ukraine deploy fighters from other countries.

Here is what we know about their use on the battlefield:

The most significant presence of foreign fighters in the war is Russia's use of North Korean troops in its Western Kursk region.

Kyiv, the West and South Korea all say Pyongyang despatched more than 10,000 soldiers from its army after Ukraine launched a shock cross-border offensive there in August 2024.

North Korean officials initially denied the deployment though Russian President Vladimir Putin sidestepped the issue when asked about Western satellite images apparently showing North Korean troops movements.

"Images are a serious thing; if there are images, they reflect something," he said in October.

Ukraine last year said it had captured two wounded North Korean soldiers, publishing video interrogations with them.

Other foreign fighters on both sides are largely volunteers who travelled to fight on their own accord, moved by a desire to help Ukraine defend itself in the face of the Russian invasion, or lured by high salaries on offer by both militaries.

Moscow has also faced allegations and complaints from other countries, including India and Bangladesh, that military recruiters have duped or coerced their citizens into fighting for the army.

Russia classes foreigners fighting for Ukraine as "mercenaries", a crime punishable by years in prison under Russian law.

Moscow has also offered fast-track citizenship to those who join its army during the Ukraine offensive in a bid to attract recruits.

Zelensky on Wednesday said Russia had been recruiting Chinese fighters through adverts on TikTok and other social media channels.

Neither side routinely provides information on how many foreign fighters have joined their militaries.

In March 2022, two weeks after Russia invaded, Ukraine said more than 20,000 had said they wanted to sign up to join a specially created military unit for foreigners, called the "International Legion."

Ukrainian officials have not given any detailed update on how many of them actually served in combat or on the size of the Legion today.

Russia has similarly not given any information on how many foreign citizens have joined its army, but in November 2024, the interior ministry said it had awarded Russian citizenship to 3,300 foreigners that year who had served in its military.

Throughout the conflict, AFP journalists in eastern Ukraine have spoken to soldiers fighting on the Ukrainian side from the likes of the United States, Britain, France, Japan, Ireland and as far away as Colombia.

Many had professional military experience and were motivated to fight against Russia's invasion and help Ukraine defend itself.

Notable numbers of Georgians and Chechens -- who fought against Russia's army in the 1990s and 2000s -- are also known to have travelled to Ukraine to support Kyiv's military.

As have some Russian citizens, outraged at President Vladimir Putin and having decided to take up arms against their own country.

Alongside the use of North Korean troops, Russia has largely recruited soldiers from poor countries, offering huge salaries to fighters from Cuba, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Sierra Leone and Somalia, among others -- according to accounts from prisoners of war and media reports in Ukraine, Russia and those countries.

According to media reports in Central Asia, Moscow has also recruited hundreds from ex-Soviet countries in the region.​

 

[Saif]

Europe vows more arms for Ukraine

Ukraine’s European allies vowed Friday to step up weapons deliveries as support from the United States dries up under president Donald Trump.

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Europe vows more arms for Ukraine
Agence France-Presse . Brussels, Belgium 11 April, 2025, 22:43

Ukraine’s European allies vowed Friday to step up weapons deliveries as support from the United States dries up under president Donald Trump.

The US leader has switched Washington’s focus from backing Kyiv’s fight against Russia’s invasion to trying to negotiate a peace deal with President Vladimir Putin to halt the war.

Britain and Germany took the reins of a meeting of Ukraine’s backers at NATO’s headquarters in Brussels—that used to be chaired by the United States under president Joe Biden.

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth dialled into the talks via video call.

‘In the weeks to come, we will see what’s going to happen with the US participation, with the US support. I am not able to have a look in the crystal ball,’ German defence minister Boris Pistorius said.

‘We take on more responsibility as Europeans.’

British defence minister John Healey said overall $24 billion more has been promised towards helping arm Ukraine.

He said London was looking to surge support worth $450 million—including thousands of drones—to Kyiv’s fighters on the front line.

‘2025 is the critical year for this war in Ukraine, and now is the critical moment in that war,’ Healey said.

‘We are sending a signal to Putin, but we are also sending a message to Ukraine, and we are saying to Ukraine, we stand with you in the fight.’

Ukraine’s defence minister, Rustem Umerov, said that ‘Europe is taking over the lead in security assistance, for which we are thankful’.

‘It’s a share of responsibilities, European partners are taking the lead and the US is beside us and focused on the peace.’​

 

[Saif]

Russia launches scores of drones on Ukraine, four people injured, Kyiv says

Russia launched a barrage of drones in an overnight attack on Ukraine, injuring four people and damaging residential and commercial buildings in Kyiv and other parts of the country, Ukrainian officials said on Saturday. Ukraine's air defences shot down 56 of 88 Russian drones, its air force said.

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Russia launches scores of drones on Ukraine, four people injured, Kyiv says
REUTERS
Published :
Apr 12, 2025 20:06
Updated :
Apr 12, 2025 20:06

A drone explodes in the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine April 12, 2025. Photo : REUTERS/Gleb Garanich

Russia launched a barrage of drones in an overnight attack on Ukraine, injuring four people and damaging residential and commercial buildings in Kyiv and other parts of the country, Ukrainian officials said on Saturday.

Ukraine's air defences shot down 56 of 88 Russian drones, its air force said. It added that 24 drones were "lost" as the military used electronic warfare to redirect them.

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Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitchko said that three people were injured in the capital as a result of the drone attacks.

Drone debris also destroyed a private house and damaged several commercial buildings, causing large fires in different parts of Kyiv, city officials said.

One more person was wounded in the city of Kharkiv in the northeast, Kharkiv's mayor, Ihor Terekhov, said.

Regional officials also said that residential and commercial buildings were damaged in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, and the military reported damage in the Odesa region in the south.​

 

[Saif]

Trump envoy suggests allied zones of control in Ukraine

Keith Kellogg, US president Donald Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, suggested British and French troops could adopt zones of control in the country, in an interview with The Times newspaper published Saturday.

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Trump envoy suggests allied zones of control in Ukraine
Agence France-Presse . London, United Kingdom 13 April, 2025, 00:43

US president Donald Trump. | File photo

Keith Kellogg, US president Donald Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, suggested British and French troops could adopt zones of control in the country, in an interview with The Times newspaper published Saturday.

Kellogg suggested they could have areas of responsibility west of the Dnipro river, as part of a ‘reassurance force’, with a demilitarised zone separating them from Russian-occupied areas in the east.

‘You could almost make it look like what happened with Berlin after World War II, when you had a Russian zone, a French zone, and a British zone, a US zone,’ he said, later clarifying on X that the United States would not be providing troops.

‘You’re west of the [Dnipro], which is a major obstacle,’ Kellogg said, adding that the force would therefore ‘not be provocative at all’ to Russia.

He suggested that a demilitarised zone could be implemented along the existing lines of control in eastern Ukraine, The Times said.

A retired lieutenant general and former acting national security advisor during Trump’s first term, Kellogg, 80, said Ukraine was big enough to accommodate several armies seeking to enforce a ceasefire.

To make sure that British, French, Ukrainian and other allied forces do not exchange fire with Russian troops, Kellogg said a buffer zone would be needed.

‘You look at a map and you create, for lack of a better term, a demilitarised zone,’ he said. ‘You have a... DMZ that you can monitor, and you’ve got this... no-fire zone.’

But he added: ‘Now, are there going to be violations? Probably, because there always are. But your ability to monitor that is easy.’

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Kellogg admitted that Russian president Vladimir Putin ‘might not accept’ the proposal.

Kellogg later clarified his position, posting on X. ‘I was speaking of a post-ceasefire resiliency force in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty. In discussions of partitioning, I was referencing areas or zones of responsibility for an allied force [without US troops]. I was NOT referring to a partitioning of Ukraine,’ he said.

Britain and France are spearheading talks among a 30-nation ‘coalition of the willing’ on potentially deploying forces to Ukraine to shore up any ceasefire Trump may strike.

London and Paris describe the possible deployment as a ‘reassurance force’ aimed at offering Ukraine some kind of security guarantee. But many questions remain unanswered, from the size of any force, to who would contribute, what the mandate would be and whether the United States would back it up.

Putin, in power for 25 years and repeatedly elected in votes with no competition, has often questioned Volodymyr Zelensky’s ‘legitimacy’ as president, after the Ukrainian leader’s initial five-year mandate ended in May 2024.

Under Ukrainian law, elections are suspended during times of major military conflict, and Zelensky’s domestic opponents have all said no ballots should be held until after the conflict.

‘If you get to a ceasefire, you’re going to have elections,’ said Kellogg.

‘I think Zelensky is open to do that once you get to a ceasefire and once you get some resolution. But that’s a call for the Ukrainian people in the Ukrainian parliament. Not ours.’

Kellogg said relations between Ukraine and the United States were now ‘back on track’, citing resumed talks over a proposed deal on Ukraine’s mineral resources.

He said officials would try to turn a ‘business deal’ into a ‘diplomatic deal’ over the coming days.​

 

[Saif]

Russian missile strike kills 32 in Ukraine

A Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s northeastern city of Sumy killed at least 32 people, including two children, and wounded dozens on Sunday, Kyiv said, in the deadliest attack in months...

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Russian missile strike kills 32 in Ukraine
Agence France-Presse . Sumy, Ukraine 13 April, 2025, 16:26

In this handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Emergency Service on Sunday, a Ukrainian rescuer works to extinguish a fire at the site of a missile attack in Sumy, northeastern Ukraine, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. | AFP photo

A Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s northeastern city of Sumy killed at least 32 people, including two children, and wounded dozens on Sunday, Kyiv said, in the deadliest attack in months.

European leaders expressed indignation at Moscow’s attack on Sumy’s city centre, while Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, pointing out it happened on Palm Sunday, said: ‘Only *&*&*&*&*&*&*&*& do this.’

French president Emmanuel Macron said it showed Russia’s ‘blatant disregard for human lives, international law and the diplomatic efforts of president Donald Trump’.

The strike came two days after US envoy Steve Witkoff travelled to Russia to meet with president Vladimir Putin and push Trump’s efforts to end the war.

Sumy lies close to the Russian border and has come under increasing attack for weeks.

The local emergency service said on social media that the latest toll was that ‘32 people died , including two children’ and that ‘84 people were injured, including 10 children’.

An AFP reporter saw bodies covered in silver sheets strewn in the centre of the city, with a destroyed trolleybus. Rescuers were seen working on the rubble of a building.

One woman said she head two explosions.

‘This second blow. A lot of people were very badly injured. A lot of corpses,’ she said, struggling to speak.

It was the second Russian attack with a large civilian death toll this month. Trump has voiced anger at Moscow for ‘bombing like crazy’ in Ukraine.

Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky said Moscow launched a ballistic missile on Sumy and called on the world to put pressure on Russia to end the three-year war.

He called for a ‘strong response’ from Europe and the United States, saying: ‘Talking has never stopped ballistic missiles and bombs.’

He added that the deadly attack occurred ‘on a day when people go to church: Palm Sunday, the feast of the Lord’s Entry into Jerusalem’.

Macron said the Russian attack showed what ‘everyone knows: this war was initiated by Russia alone. And today, it is clear that Russia alone chooses to continue it.’

In a statement on social media, he added: ‘Strong measures are needed to impose a ceasefire on Russia. France is working tirelessly toward this goal, alongside its partners.’

European Council chief Antonio Costa condemned the ‘criminal attack’, saying that ‘this war exists and endures only because Russia chooses so’.

Local authorities in Sumy published footage of bodies strewn on the street and people running for safety, with cars on fire and wounded civilians on the ground.

Russia has relentlessly attacked Ukraine in recent weeks, extending the violence wrought by its all-out invasion that has gone on for more than three years.

In early April, a Russian attack on the central city of Kryvyi Rig killed 18 people, including nine children.

Russia has refused a US-proposed unconditional ceasefire and been accused by Ukraine and its European allies of dragging out the war and seeking to stall efforts for peace negotiations.

Sumy has been under increasing pressure since Moscow pushed back many of Ukraine’s troops from its Kursk region inside Russia, across the border.

The eastern Ukrainian city so far has been spared the kind of fighting seen farther south, in the Donetsk region. But Kyiv for weeks has warned that Moscow could mount an offensive on Sumy.

Russia in recent weeks has claimed the capture of a village in the Sumy region, for the first time since the early days of its 2022 invasion.

Russia launched its invasion partially through the Sumy region and briefly occupied parts of it before being pushed back by Ukrainian forces.

Moscow has not yet commented on the strike.

On Sunday, it said it captured another village in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region.​

 

[Saif]

undefined | The Financial Express

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Russia says it is not easy to agree Ukraine peace deal with US
REUTERS
Published :
Apr 15, 2025 14:01
Updated :
Apr 15, 2025 14:01

A Ukrainian serviceman walks at the site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine on April 13, 2025 — Reuters photo

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that it was not easy to agree with the United States on the key parts of a possible peace deal to end the war in Ukraine and that Russia would never again allow itself to depend economically on the West.

US President Donald Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly said he wants to end the "bloodbath" of the three-year war in Ukraine, though a deal has yet to be agreed.

"It is not easy to agree the key components of a settlement. They are being discussed," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with the Kommersant newspaper when asked if Moscow and Washington had agreement on some aspects of a possible peace deal.

"We are well aware of what a mutually beneficial deal looks like, which we have never rejected, and what a deal looks like that could lead us into another trap," Lavrov said in the interview published in Tuesday's edition.

The Kremlin on Sunday said that it was too early to expect results from the restoration of more normal relations with Washington.

Lavrov said that Russia's position had been set out clearly by President Vladimir Putin in June 2024, when Putin demanded Ukraine must officially drop its NATO ambitions and withdraw its troops from the entirety of the territory of four Ukrainian regions claimed by Russia.

"We're talking about the rights of the people who live on these lands. That is why these lands are dear to us. And we cannot give them up, allowing people to be kicked out of there," Lavrov said.

Russia currently controls a little under one fifth of Ukraine, including Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and parts of four other regions Moscow now claims are part of Russia - a claim not recognised by most countries.

Lavrov praised Trump's "common sense" and for saying that previous US support of Ukraine's bid to join the NATO military alliance was a major cause of the war in Ukraine.

But Russia's political elite, he said, would not countenance any moves that led Russia back towards economic, military, technological or agricultural dependence on the West.

The globalisation of the world economy, Lavrov said, had been destroyed by sanctions imposed on Russia, China and Iran by the administration of former US President Joe Biden.

Biden, Western European leaders and Ukraine describe Russia's 2022 invasion as an imperial-style land grab, and repeatedly vowed to defeat Russian forces.

Putin casts the war in Ukraine as part of a battle with a declining West, which he says humiliated Russia after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 by enlarging the NATO military alliance and encroaching on what he considers Moscow's sphere of influence.​

 

[Saif]

Ukraine pounds Kursk with dozens of drones

Kyiv forces hit Russia’s Kursk region that borders Ukraine with dozens of drones, killing an elderly woman, injuring nine people and sparking fries in several buildings in the region’s administrative centre, Russian authorities said yesterday.

www.thedailystar.net

Ukraine pounds Kursk with dozens of drones
Says Russia; Kremlin claims no clear outline for US-Russia deal on Ukraine

Kyiv forces hit Russia's Kursk region that borders Ukraine with dozens of drones, killing an elderly woman, injuring nine people and sparking fries in several buildings in the region's administrative centre, Russian authorities said yesterday.

The Russian defence ministry, which releases data only on how many drones its forces destroy not how many Ukraine launches, said 109 drones were downed over the Kursk region overnight.

"Kursk has been subjected to a massive enemy attack overnight," the Kursk region administration said in a post on Telegram messaging app. "Unfortunately, an 85-year-old woman died."

A multi-storey apartment building was damaged in result of the drone attack, with several flats catching fire, acting mayor of Kursk, Sergei Kotlyarov said on Telegram. Residents have been evacuated to a nearby school, he added.

The region's administration posted photos of a multi-storey apartment building with blown out windows and fire damage to the facade.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin said yesterday that there is no clear outline of a US-Russia deal on Ukraine for now, but that there is political will to move in the direction of an agreement.​

 

[Saif]

Russian attacks kill three in Ukraine’s south, officials say

Russian attacks killed at least three people in Ukraine’s south and injured 10 more on Thursday, local authorities said, after an overnight barrage of missiles and drones. Two men, aged 56 and 61, were killed, and five more were wounded in artillery shelling on Nikopol, the regional governor

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Russian attacks kill three in Ukraine’s south, officials say
REUTERS
Published :
Apr 17, 2025 17:16
Updated :
Apr 17, 2025 17:16

A resident stands next to burned cars at the site of a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine Apr 17, 2025. Photo : REUTERS

Russian attacks killed at least three people in Ukraine’s south and injured 10 more on Thursday, local authorities said, after an overnight barrage of missiles and drones.

Two men, aged 56 and 61, were killed, and five more were wounded in artillery shelling on Nikopol, the regional governor said on the Telegram messenger.

He added that the attack sparked a fire and damaged a shop and civilian infrastructure.

One person was killed during a Russian air strike on Kherson, which also injured a teenager and four adults, the mayor said.

Moscow’s forces regularly attack both cities from their positions across the Dnipro River.

The Ukrainian air force said earlier that Russia had launched five missiles and 75 drones during an overnight attack, while Russia said it had destroyed or intercepted 71 Ukrainian drones over six Russian regions overnight.

The violence has continued despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to arrange a ceasefire in the three-year-old war prompted by Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Top Ukrainian officials made a previously unannounced visit on Thursday to Paris, where European and US officials were due to hold talks on Ukraine.​

 

[Saif]

Zelensky urges pressure on Russia to end war

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday urged ‘pressure’ on Russia to end the three-year war as his top aides visited Paris for talks with US and EU officials on the conflict...

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Zelensky urges pressure on Russia to end war
Agence France-Presse . Kyiv, Ukraine 17 April, 2025, 23:20

Volodymyr Zelensky. | AFP file photo

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday urged ‘pressure’ on Russia to end the three-year war as his top aides visited Paris for talks with US and EU officials on the conflict.

At least 10 people were reported killed and dozens wounded Thursday as Russia pounded Ukraine with drone strikes and shells.

‘Russia uses every day and every night to kill. We must put pressure on the killers to end this war and guarantee a lasting peace,’ Zelensky said in a Telegram post.

Zelensky’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak said he had arrived to Paris with foreign minister Andriy Sybiga and defence minister Rustem Umerov for talks with US, British, Germany and French officials — without saying with who.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio and Keith Kellogg, US president Donald Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, are meeting French president Emmanuel Macron on Thursday about crafting a ceasefire in Ukraine.

The meeting comes after a spate of deadly Russian air strikes on Ukrainian cities that has triggered outrage in Kyiv and Europe.

Zelensky’s office said his team in Paris will discuss ‘bringing peace to Ukraine.’

‘Among other things, the parties will discuss ways to implement a full and unconditional ceasefire, the deployment of a multinational military contingent to ensure security, and the further development of Ukraine’s security architecture,’ Ukraine’s presidency said in a statement.

The Kremlin dismissed the talks and accused Kyiv’s allies of wanting to drag out the war.

‘Unfortunately we see from Europeans a focus on continuing the war,’ Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, when asked about what he expected from the talks.

Russia launched a ‘massive’ drone salvo overnight on the city of Dnipro that killed three and wounded more than 30, local governor Sergiy Lysak said.

Fires broke out at apartment blocks in the city after the attack.

Two more were killed in artillery strikes in Nikopol, down south from Dnipro, Lysak added, while local officials also reported fatalities in the frontline areas in the Donetsk and Kherson regions.

Russia’s army also claimed to have captured a small village in the eastern Donetsk region, where its troops have been grinding forward for months.​

 

[Saif]

Ukraine hits Chinese firms with sanctions after accusing Beijing of arming Russia

Ukraine imposed sanctions on three Chinese companies on Friday, a day after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy alleged that China had been supplying weapons to Russia. China's foreign ministry earlier on Friday dismissed Zelenskiy's accusation as groundless. While maintaining close economic ties with R

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Ukraine hits Chinese firms with sanctions after accusing Beijing of arming Russia
REUTERS
Published :
Apr 18, 2025 21:36
Updated :
Apr 18, 2025 21:36

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, April 4, 2025. Photo : REUTERS/Alina Smutko/Files

Ukraine imposed sanctions on three Chinese companies on Friday, a day after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy alleged that China had been supplying weapons to Russia.

China's foreign ministry earlier on Friday dismissed Zelenskiy's accusation as groundless. While maintaining close economic ties with Russia during Moscow's three-year war in Ukraine, China has sought to project an image of neutrality and denies any involvement in the war.

Zelenskiy's administration on Friday published an updated list of sanctioned entities. The list, which also includes Russian companies, named Beijing Aviation And Aerospace Xianghui Technology Co Ltd, Rui Jin Machinery Co Ltd, and Zhongfu Shenying Carbon Fiber Xining Co Ltd, all described as registered in China.

It did not give details of why they had been added to the sanctions list, which bans companies from doing business in Ukraine and freezes their assets there.

Ukraine exported $8 billion of goods to China in 2021, mostly raw materials and agricultural products, while it imported from China just under $11 billion, mainly in manufactured goods, according to the Ukrainian government.

On Thursday, Zelenskiy told reporters in Kyiv his government had evidence that Chinese firms were supplying what he described as artillery and gunpowder to Russia, and that Chinese entities are making some weapons on Russian soil.

He did not offer any evidence for the assertion.

A week earlier, Zelenskiy had said Chinese nationals were fighting on Russia's side in the war with Ukraine, including two who had been taken prisoner. A Chinese diplomat was summoned to the Ukrainian foreign ministry to provide an explanation.

Ukrainian and US officials later said the men had signed up on their own initiative for money.

US President Donald Trump will walk away from trying to broker peace in Ukraine within days unless there are signs of progress, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday.​

 

[Saif]

US threatens to withdraw from Ukraine talks if no progress

Trump's push for peace has stumbled, with Russian President Vladimir Putin rebuffing a complete truce.

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US threatens to withdraw from Ukraine talks if no progress
AFP Paris
Published: 18 Apr 2025, 18: 38

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio Collected

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday that Washington could soon exit efforts to reach a Ukraine ceasefire if it decided peace was not "doable", after meeting European and Ukrainian officials in Paris.

European powers have been seeking a seat at the table since US President Donald Trump's shock decision to open talks with Russia to end the three-year-old war, which started with Moscow's 2022 invasion.

But Trump's push for peace has stumbled, with Russian President Vladimir Putin rebuffing a complete truce.

"The United States has been helping Ukraine over the last three years, and we want it (the conflict) to end, but it's not our war," Rubio said.

"We need to figure out here now, within a matter of days, whether this is doable in the short term, because if it's not, then I think we're just going to move on," he told reporters at the Le Bourget airport outside Paris.

"We have other priorities to focus on as well."

Rubio said European officials had been "very helpful and constructive with their ideas" during talks in Paris on Thursday, which he attended with US envoy Steve Witkoff.

"We'd like them to remain engaged... I think the UK and France and Germany can help us move the ball on this," he said, ahead of a similar meeting planned for "early next week" in London.

'European sanctions'

Ukraine said Friday that its prime minister would visit Washington next week for talks with US officials aimed at clinching a long-fraught minerals and resources deal.

Trump wants the deal as compensation for aid given to Ukraine by his predecessor, Joe Biden.

An agreement would be designed to give the United States royalty payments on profits from Ukrainian mining of resources and rare minerals.

Rubio had said late Thursday in a phone call with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov that "peace is possible if all parties commit to reaching an agreement", the US State Department said.

Rubio said he hoped European nations would consider lifting sanctions against Russia over the war.

"Many of them are European sanctions that we can't lift, if that were ever to be part of a deal," he said.

European countries last month agreed to ramp up rather than scale down sanctions on Russia.

France and Britain have sought a coordinated European response to defending Ukraine during the conflict and in any ceasefire, after Trump opened talks with Putin.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the Paris talks had made a breakthrough because the United States, Ukraine and European ministers had "gathered around the same table".

He said the United States "has understood that a just and sustainable peace... can only be achieved with the consent and contribution of Europeans."

'Little problem'

Russia's strikes, which have recently killed dozens of people including children in Ukrainian cities, have increased pressure for new diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

Witkoff said this week that Putin was open to "permanent peace" after talks with him in Saint Petersburg, their third meeting since Trump returned to the White House in January.

Zelensky has accused Witkoff of "spreading Russian narratives" after the US envoy suggested a peace deal with Russia hinged on the status of Ukraine's occupied territories.

Putin last month rejected a US proposal for a full and unconditional ceasefire, after Kyiv gave its backing to the idea.

Putin also suggested Zelensky be removed from office, sparking an angry response from Trump who said he was "very angry" with the Russian leader.

Celia Belin, of the European Council on Foreign Relations, said Rubio's latest comments were "not surprising".

"Trump wants to get rid of the Ukraine issue," she told AFP.

"He wants to renew a strategic partnership with Moscow and he doesn't want a 'little problem' like Ukraine getting in the way."​

 

[Saif]

https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/world/russias-putin-declares-unilateral-easter-ceasefire-in-ukraine

Russia's Putin declares unilateral Easter ceasefire in Ukraine
REUTERS
Published :
Apr 19, 2025 22:01
Updated :
Apr 19, 2025 22:01

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a unilateral Easter ceasefire in Ukraine, ordering his forces to end hostilities at 6 pm Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday until the end of Sunday.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukrainian air defence units were repelling an attack by Russian drones on Saturday, saying that showed true Moscow's attitude to Easter and the lives of people.

"Based on humanitarian considerations ... the Russian side announces an Easter truce. I order a stop to all military activities for this period," Putin told his military chief, Valery Gerasimov, at a meeting in the Kremlin.

"We assume that Ukraine will follow our example. At the same time, our troops should be prepared to repel possible violations of the truce and provocations by the enemy, any aggressive actions," Putin added.

US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio had said on Friday the United States would walk away from efforts to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal unless there are clear signs of progress soon.

The full-scale war began when Putin ordered thousands of Russian troops across the border into Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Putin has said repeatedly that he wants an end to the war. He has demanded that Ukraine must officially drop its ambitions to join NATO and withdraw its troops from the entirety of the territory of four Ukrainian regions claimed by Moscow.

Kyiv has broadly rejected those terms as tantamount to surrender.

Putin told Gerasimov on Saturday that Russia welcomed efforts from the US, China and BRICS countries to find a peaceful settlement to the conflict.

The Russian Defence Ministry said it had given instructions on the ceasefire to all group commanders in the area of the "special military operation", the Kremlin's term for the war.

Russian troops will adhere to the ceasefire provided it is "mutually respected" by Ukraine, the ministry said in a statement.

Separately, the Russian Defence Ministry said Russia and Ukraine conducted a prisoner of war swap of 246 prisoners each on Saturday, mediated by the UAE.

The Russian POWs are in Belarus, the ministry said, where they were being provided with medical and psychological care.​

 

[Saif]

Russia, Ukraine accuse each other of breaching Easter truce

Russia and Ukraine on Sunday accused each other of violating an Easter truce announced by Russian president Vladimir Putin...

www.newagebd.net

Russia, Ukraine accuse each other of breaching Easter truce
Agence France-Presse . Kyiv, Ukraine 21 April, 2025, 00:01

Russia and Ukraine on Sunday accused each other of violating an Easter truce announced by Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian forces were continuing their shelling and assaults along the front line despite Putin announcing the surprise truce.

The 30-hour truce starting Saturday evening to mark the religious holiday would be the most significant pause in the fighting throughout the three-year conflict.

But Zelensky accused Russia of having maintained its attacks on the front line after the truce started.

Russia’s defence ministry in turn said it had ‘repelled’ attempted assaults by Ukraine and accused Kyiv of launching drones and shells, causing civilian casualties.

Zelensky said Sunday, citing Ukrainian commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky, that ‘an increase in Russian shelling and the use of kamikaze drones has been observed since 10:00am (0700 GMT)’.

Earlier he said that the first six hours of the ceasefire saw ‘387 instances of shelling and 19 assaults by Russian forces,’ with drones ‘used by Russians 290 times’.

Ukraine’s air force on Sunday morning had not reported any drone or missile attacks, however.

AFP journalists heard explosions on Sunday morning around a dozen kilometres from the front line in east Ukraine.

Ukraine will respond ‘symmetrically’ to any attacks, Zelensky said, accusing Russia of ‘attempting to create the general impression of a ceasefire’ while continuing isolated attacks.

Russia’s defence ministry said that ‘despite the announcement of the Easter truce, Ukrainian units at night made attempts to attack’ its positions in the Donetsk region, ‘which were repelled’.

Overnight, it said, Ukraine ‘444 times shelled the positions of our troops and carried out 900 strikes with drones’.

These attacks left civilians ‘dead and wounded’, the ministry said, without giving details.

It insisted its troops had ‘strictly observed the ceasefire and stayed at the front lines and positions they previously occupied’.

Putin’s order to halt all combat over the Easter weekend came after months of efforts by US president Donald Trump to get Moscow and Kyiv to agree to a ceasefire.

On Friday, Washington even threatened to withdraw from talks if no progress was made.

Putin announced the truce from 1800 (1500 GMT) Saturday to midnight Sunday (2100 GMT Sunday) in televised comments, saying it was motivated by ‘humanitarian reasons’.

While he expected Ukraine to comply, Putin said that Russian troops ‘must be ready to resist possible breaches of the truce and provocations by the enemy’.

Zelensky said Ukraine would follow suit, and proposed extending the truce beyond Sunday.

‘Russia must fully comply with the conditions of the ceasefire. Ukraine’s proposal to implement and extend the ceasefire for 30 days after midnight tonight remains on the table,’ Zelensky’s post said Sunday.

Earlier he suggested that ‘30 days could give peace a chance’ — while pointing out that Putin had already rejected a proposed 30-day full and unconditional ceasefire.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in February 2022.

Previous attempts at holding ceasefires for Easter in April 2022 and Orthodox Christmas in January 2023 were not implemented after both sides failed to agree on them.

In Kyiv on Sunday, as Easter bells rang out, people expressed doubts over whether Russia would observe a truce while welcoming Zelensky’s proposal to extend it.

‘They’ve already broken their promise. Unfortunately, we cannot trust Russia today,’ said 38-year-old Olga Grachova, who works in marketing.

‘Our president has clearly said that if they announce a 30-hour ceasefire, we will announce a 30-day ceasefire. So let them go for it so that this terrible war ends, so that our people, our soldiers, and children stop dying,’ said Sergiy Klochko, 30, a railway worker.

But Natalia, a 41-year-old medic, said of Zelensky’s 30-day proposal: ‘Everything we offer, unfortunately, remains only our offers. Nobody responds to them.’

On the streets of Moscow, Yevgeny Pavlov, 58, did not think Russia should give Ukraine a breather.

‘There is no need to give them respite. If we press, it means we should press to the end,’ he said.​

 

[Saif]

How middlemen recruit Bangladeshi youth for Russia-Ukraine war

According to the youth, the middlemen are knowingly sending people to their death. They request the youth not to fall into the trap of being tempted to come to Russia

en.prothomalo.com

How middlemen recruit Bangladeshi youth for Russia-Ukraine war
Shahadat HossainBrahmanbaria
Published: 22 Apr 2025, 14: 48

Afzal Hossain and Ayan Mandal Collected

He was supposed to be taken to North Macedonia. But the middleman sent him to Russia, where he started working with a company. But after two or three months, he lost his job. As he arrived at the airport to return home, he fell prey to a Russian middleman. He was made to sign a contract. At one point, he realised that he had been 'sold' and that he had no way back.

This is the story of a Bangladeshi who joined the Russian army to fight against Ukraine. He did not even tell his family that he had joined the Russian army, so requested that his name and address not be disclosed.

This reporter spoke to this 20-year-old youth and three other Bangladeshis, who joined the Russian army, lured in various ways by brokers. As they shared their stories, their experiences were found to be almost identical. All of them went to Russia through middlemen. They all worked in the same company there. After a few days, they lost their jobs. Then they were duped by middlemen and lured by high salaries and Russian citizenship to join the Russian army on contractual basis.

22-year-old Akram Mia from Brahmanbaria’s Ashuganj lost his life while fighting against Ukraine for Russia. A colleague called his family and informed them of Akram’s death. The numbers of the three youth were collected from that person. This correspondent also talked with family members of Akram Mia. Like these three youths, Akram followed the same trajectory of going to Russia.

Other than Akram, another youth named Yasin Mia Sheikh, 22, from Mymensingh’s Gouripur lost his life while fighting the war for Russia on 27 March.

“They’ve sold us”

This correspondent had a long Whatsapp conversation on Saturday night with the youth, who did not want to be named. He said that he went to Russia on 8 August, 2024. For this, he had to pay the middleman Tk 800,000. He joined an company there as an electrician.

The salary was supposed to be 40,000-45,000 rubles. After two-three months, the organisation sacked 15-20 of them. Except for two Nepalese and two Indians, the rest were Bangladeshis.

The youth said that four or five of them went to the airport to return home at the end of February. There, a Russian middleman took them to a hotel, promising them work. Then, he took all their documents including their passports, promising to renew their visas. There, three or four Russians took their signatures on a contract.

“They then took us to a jungle and got us to chop down trees. After some days, we saw arms and ammunition being bought. At one point the four left us there. We sensed they had sold us,” said the youth.

These three youths blame the middlemen for their current situation. According to them, the middlemen are knowingly sending people to their deaths. They request the youth not to fall into the trap of being tempted to come to Russia
The young man said they were taken to war with little training.

“After 20 March, we were provided basic training such as loading the gun and firing for five days and taken to Ukraine on the sixth. None of us perceived that we were being taken to war.”

He said five persons including Sohag Mia from Dhaka, Amit Barua from Rangamati and Ayan Mandal from Gazipur were with him. They were later shifted to different army camps.

At the end of March, they were sent on an operation. They narrowly escaped a missile attack. On 7 or 8 April, they were sent to Luhansk for the second time. Of the 10-12 men team, six have returned while the others remain missing. He had to carry heavy weapons in both operations.

The youth said he is currently at a camp in Ukraine’s Donetsk with 30-40 men.

These youth are provided with bread and pasta only.

“The amount of risk and shootings are increasing every day. We are living in grave uncertainty,” said the youth.

“Didn’t have any idea that we are being sent to war”

The story of the young man, who does not want to be named, is similar to that of Afzal Hossain, 26, of Gopalpur village in Trishal, Mymensingh. He also went to Russia eight or nine months ago to work as a welder. After working in the same company for six months with a salary of Tk 70,000, he lost his job. While unemployed in Moscow for about a month and a half, he met a Russian middleman. He got him into the Russian army by promising him Russian citizenship and a monthly salary of Tk 310,800 in Bangladeshi currency.

I didn't know that I would be sent to the Russia-Ukraine war. Now I'm stuck. But I have not received any salary till now
Afzal Hossain.

Last Sunday, this correspondent spoke to Afzal Hossain several times on WhatsApp. This young man, who studied up to 12th grade, went to Russia through a local middleman.

Afzal Hossain told Prothom Alo, "I didn't know that I would be sent to the Russia-Ukraine war. Now I'm stuck. But I have not received any salary till now."

Afzal, who spoke to the Russian soldiers through a mobile phone translator, said that he is currently in a Russian army camp in Ukraine.

There are 10 or 12 soldiers there. However, he does not know the name of the place. Last Friday, a drone attack was launched on them while they were taking food and ammunition to another camp. However, they survived.

The youth said they were barely provided any training except for very basics such as firing and loading the gun.

Afzal said he was sent on an operation a month ago with a team of nine. One Russian army man was killed by a Ukrainian strike during the operation. Since then he has not been sent to any operation. Currently he is staying in his sixth camp and transporting food and ammunition from one camp to another. He said soldiers are ambushed en route.

Afzal was with Rubel, 29; Imran Hossain, 31; Md Mohsin Mia, 26; and the killed Akram Mia, 22. Others are in a different camp now. Afzal does not have any contact with Imran and Mohsin for 12 to 13 days.

“I secretly contacted 8 to 10 persons including Rubel bhai, Foysal Ahmed and Diganta Bishwas,” Afzal said, assuming that 40 to 50 Bangladeshis are fighting the war in Ukraine right now.

“In grave danger”

This correspondent contacted Ayan Mandal from Gazipur. But he was too scared to talk. He sent seven voice messages secretly.

“We cannot talk over the phone. We have to send voice recordings as we use our phones secretly. We are in grave danger,” said Ayan.

Five months ago, Ayan went to Russia through a middleman, spending Tk 650,000. He also joined the same company like the two others. At one stage, he was also dismissed from the company. At the airport, a Russian middleman promised to give him a job of a cleaner with a salary of 200,000 rubles and made him join the Russian army.

The young man said that he has been trapped for a month. He is currently being trained. As Ayan did not want to go for training, he was tortured. There are five other Bangladeshis with him. Apart from this, there are 15-20 more people in the nearby camp.

These three youths blame the middlemen for their current situation. According to them, the middlemen are knowingly sending people to their deaths. They request the youth not to fall into the trap of being tempted to come to Russia.

These three plead the Bangladesh government to take measures to bring them back to their country.​

 

[Saif]

Kremlin warns against rushing Ukraine talks

The Kremlin yesterday warned against rushing Ukraine peace talks, pushing back on US President Donald Trump’s hopes for a speedy deal the day before Ukraine’s allies are set to meet in London.

www.thedailystar.net

Kremlin warns against rushing Ukraine talks

The Kremlin yesterday warned against rushing Ukraine peace talks, pushing back on US President Donald Trump's hopes for a speedy deal the day before Ukraine's allies are set to meet in London.

Trump, who promised on the campaign trail to strike a deal between Moscow and Kyiv in 24 hours, has in three months failed to wrangle concessions from the Russian president to halt his invasion.

The Republican had said over the weekend he hoped a peace deal could be struck "this week" despite no signs the two sides are anywhere close to agreeing even a ceasefire, let alone a wider long-term settlement.

"This topic is so complex, connected with a settlement, that, of course, probably it is not worth setting any rigid time frames and trying to get a settlement, a viable settlement, in a short-time frame," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state TV yesterday.

After rejecting a US-Ukrainian offer for a full and unconditional ceasefire last month, Putin announced a surprise Easter truce over the weekend.​