Volodimir Zelenski

Trump has stated that Zelensky has refused to reach an agreement to end the war in Ukraine.

The United States, Ukraine and its European partners have agreed to hold more meetings in the coming weeks and to strengthen aid to Ukraine for the winter. Their priorities include more air defence systems, support for the energy sector and additional supplies.

Representatives of the US Government, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, have arrived in Kiev to meet Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski, who was in Moscow the day before to present a proposal to Vladimir Putin to end the war, which they will forward to Zelensky today.

For months now, the war front in Ukraine has been operating without much progress. Instead, air strikes are more frequent. Drone bombings of cities and strategic points have changed strategy, while Ukraine is increasing its offensive capability and hitting Russia as well. Olga Tarnovska and Albert Sort, two analysts based in Kiev and Moscow, talk to ETB about how this new large-scale war is going.

The protests have erupted after Zelensky dismissed the reformist defense minister. Tensions within the government and disagreements over army reforms have triggered the crisis.

Ukraine's president has appreciated the unblocking of European funds in Kiev, stating that this is a "very important" decision for his country. 

Europe's leading leaders, including Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa , respectively, have expressed their full support for Volodimir Zelenski in Kiev this morning. Four years after Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, the President of the European Commission and the Council of Europe, Volodimir Zelensky, participated in the ceremony held at the Cathedral of Santa Sofia  and remembered the dead in the war.

Zelenski, after the tripartite meeting in Geneva between representatives of Ukraine, Russia and the United States, has stated, however, that there has been no political progress. 

Zelenski has denied the attack and warned on his social media that Putin's goal is "to be an excuse to continue his attacks on Ukraine."

The meeting in Florida has represented a rapprochement between Washington and Kiev and the intention to involve the main European partners again. However, there are still substantial differences over security guarantees and the territorial situation in eastern Ukraine.

European leaders have backed the Ukrainian president before meeting with the White House president in Florida, and Canada has promised him million-dollar aid to rebuild the country.

Russia, for its part, has confirmed that it has contacted the United States after considering the new peace plan promoted by Kiev and its allies.

According to preliminary reports, Ukraine would be prepared to remain unincorporated into NATO if Russia provided security guarantees that would prevent further attacks.

According to the President of Ukraine, the Armed Forces will have 800,000 troops.

The President of the United States has interviewed the specialized medium Politico and has spoken without a beard. On the war in Ukraine, he believes that Zelensky will have to "wake up."

Zelenski has explained that eight of the initial 28 points of the plan presented by the Donald Trump administration have been removed from the totally unacceptable eight points for Kiev during the meetings between Kiev and Washington in Geneva, Abu Dhabi and Miami.  

Ukraine's president has said, however, that there have been "small steps towards peace" and hopes to return the revised version of Trump's plan to the US soon. After the meeting, the Ukrainian president has travelled to Brussels, where he will have a meeting with von der Leyen, Costa and Rutte on Tuesday.