Showing posts with label Ukraine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ukraine. Show all posts
Monday, July 13, 2026
Sunday, July 12, 2026
Friday, July 10, 2026
Rubio speaks with Vatican secretary of state about escalation of Russia-Ukraine war, peacemaking efforts
The conversation comes days after Russia launched one of its largest combined missile and drone attacks since the start of the war.
The Vatican's Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin attends a plenary session at the Summit on peace in Ukraine, at the luxury Burgenstock resort, near Lucerne, on June 16, 2024. The two-day gathering brings together Ukrainian President and more than 50 other heads of state and government, to try to work out a way towards a peace process for Ukraine -- albeit without Russia. (Photo by ALESSANDRO DELLA VALLE / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ALESSANDRO DELLA VALLE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
July 9, 2026
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a conversation July 9 with the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin regarding the war between Ukraine and Russia and efforts to achieve peace.
“The two leaders discussed efforts to achieve a negotiated end to the Russia-Ukraine war,” U.S. Secretary of State spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a July 9 statement.
No additional details were provided.
The war in Ukraine saw a dramatic surge of violence earlier this month when Russia launched a missile and drone attack overnight, killing at least 21 people and injuring more than 80 in Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials, as Zeale News reported. This attack marked one of Russia’s largest combined missile and drone attacks since the war began, according to the report. More than 52,000 people sheltered overnight in Kyiv’s metro system the night of July 1 following a warning from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to seek shelter ahead of impending Russian strikes.
Reuters reported July 9 that Russian military experts have also been discussing escalation of the conflict, including potentially striking European targets “such as NATO bases in Baltic countries.”
“Such a step would risk drawing Russia into direct confrontation with the U.S.-led alliance, testing the NATO commitment that an attack on one member nation constitutes an attack on all,” Reuters added.
However, Ukraine has recently carried out strikes on oil refineries, storage depots and ports in Russia and Russian-occupied Ukraine, causing Russian civilians to bear stark fuel shortages, according to Reuters. A source that regularly meets with President Vladimir Putin told Reuters that “Ukraine's recent successes, however, have made Putin more angry and more determined to give a tough response,” the outlet reported.
Two sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters on the condition of anonymity that Putin was more likely to escalate the war in the upcoming months rather than negotiate peace. President Donald Trump has had separate phone calls with Putin and Zelenskyy within the past week. Trump also met with Zelenskyy in person July 8 in Turkey during the NATO summit.
Rubio met Cardinal Parolin at the Vatican in May 2025 and communicated with him earlier this year about international situations. In January, the two had a conversation about promoting peace and religious freedom around the globe and efforts to improve humanitarian situations particularly in Venezuela. Pigott said at the time that during that conversation, the two leaders also “reaffirmed their commitment to deepening cooperation between the United States and the Holy See in addressing shared priorities around the world.”
July 9, 2026
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a conversation July 9 with the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin regarding the war between Ukraine and Russia and efforts to achieve peace.
“The two leaders discussed efforts to achieve a negotiated end to the Russia-Ukraine war,” U.S. Secretary of State spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a July 9 statement.
No additional details were provided.
The war in Ukraine saw a dramatic surge of violence earlier this month when Russia launched a missile and drone attack overnight, killing at least 21 people and injuring more than 80 in Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials, as Zeale News reported. This attack marked one of Russia’s largest combined missile and drone attacks since the war began, according to the report. More than 52,000 people sheltered overnight in Kyiv’s metro system the night of July 1 following a warning from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to seek shelter ahead of impending Russian strikes.
Reuters reported July 9 that Russian military experts have also been discussing escalation of the conflict, including potentially striking European targets “such as NATO bases in Baltic countries.”
“Such a step would risk drawing Russia into direct confrontation with the U.S.-led alliance, testing the NATO commitment that an attack on one member nation constitutes an attack on all,” Reuters added.
However, Ukraine has recently carried out strikes on oil refineries, storage depots and ports in Russia and Russian-occupied Ukraine, causing Russian civilians to bear stark fuel shortages, according to Reuters. A source that regularly meets with President Vladimir Putin told Reuters that “Ukraine's recent successes, however, have made Putin more angry and more determined to give a tough response,” the outlet reported.
Two sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters on the condition of anonymity that Putin was more likely to escalate the war in the upcoming months rather than negotiate peace. President Donald Trump has had separate phone calls with Putin and Zelenskyy within the past week. Trump also met with Zelenskyy in person July 8 in Turkey during the NATO summit.
Rubio met Cardinal Parolin at the Vatican in May 2025 and communicated with him earlier this year about international situations. In January, the two had a conversation about promoting peace and religious freedom around the globe and efforts to improve humanitarian situations particularly in Venezuela. Pigott said at the time that during that conversation, the two leaders also “reaffirmed their commitment to deepening cooperation between the United States and the Holy See in addressing shared priorities around the world.”
Thursday, April 30, 2026
Russia issues nuclear apocalypse threat as WW3 risk grows
07:48 ET, Thu, Apr 30, 2026 Updated: 08:08 ET, Thu, Apr 30, 2026
Medvedev warns that WW3 is on the verge of happening (Image: Getty images )
Russian ex-president Dmitry Medvedev has warned of a "real possibility" of a "nuclear apocalypse" as he cautioned that Russia is on a collision course with the UK and the rest of Europe.
Russian ex-president Dmitry Medvedev has warned of a "real possibility" of a "nuclear apocalypse" as he cautioned that Russia is on a collision course with the UK and the rest of Europe.
In a chilling address to Russian schoolchildren, the close Putin ally declared: "Our conflict with the Western world today is existential in nature.
"That is, it's a question of existence," he said.
"And, unfortunately, I have no illusions about what will happen next," he added.
"I'm often accused of using harsh rhetoric and talking about a nuclear apocalypse."
Medvedev serves as Putin's deputy on the Russian security council. (Image: Getty Images )
"But, unfortunately, it's a real possibility. Anyone who doesn't realize this is either a dreamer or a fool."
"But, unfortunately, it's a real possibility. Anyone who doesn't realize this is either a dreamer or a fool."
Sunday, April 19, 2026
Friday, March 27, 2026
Sunday, December 28, 2025
Friday, December 12, 2025
Trump news at a glance: president ‘sick of meetings’ as Ukraine-Russia peace deal talks drag on
Explainer
Trump news at a glance: president ‘sick of meetings’ as Ukraine-Russia peace deal talks drag on
Trump’s press secretary suggested Trump was growing weary of process as Ukraine’s president under immense pressure to sign US deal – key US politics stories from 11 December 2025
Guardian staff
Thu 11 Dec 2025 21.08 EST
When it comes to Ukraine peace talks, Donald Trump is “sick of meetings just for the sake of meetings”, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday.
Leavitt added that the White House may send a representative to meet with European and Ukrainian officials this weekend if it feels like a meeting is “worthy” of the US’s time, adding that Trump is “extremely frustrated with both sides of this war”.
“He wants this war to come to an end, and the administration has spent more than 30 hours [on] this just in the past couple of weeks, meeting with the Russians and Ukrainians and the Europeans,” Leavitt said.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been under immense pressure from Trump to sign up to the US peace plan. In recent days Trump has attacked Zelenskyy, claiming he “has not even read” the draft peace plan, suggesting he lacks legitimacy and Ukraine should hold an election.
Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian negotiating team had sent their revised plan to Washington on Wednesday, and that questions over territory and control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant were two of the remaining sticking points.
Leavitt said Trump was “aware” of Ukraine’s updated peace proposal, but offered no further comment.
When it comes to Ukraine peace talks, Donald Trump is “sick of meetings just for the sake of meetings”, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday.
Leavitt added that the White House may send a representative to meet with European and Ukrainian officials this weekend if it feels like a meeting is “worthy” of the US’s time, adding that Trump is “extremely frustrated with both sides of this war”.
“He wants this war to come to an end, and the administration has spent more than 30 hours [on] this just in the past couple of weeks, meeting with the Russians and Ukrainians and the Europeans,” Leavitt said.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been under immense pressure from Trump to sign up to the US peace plan. In recent days Trump has attacked Zelenskyy, claiming he “has not even read” the draft peace plan, suggesting he lacks legitimacy and Ukraine should hold an election.
Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian negotiating team had sent their revised plan to Washington on Wednesday, and that questions over territory and control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant were two of the remaining sticking points.
Leavitt said Trump was “aware” of Ukraine’s updated peace proposal, but offered no further comment.
Tuesday, December 02, 2025
Thursday, November 27, 2025
Wednesday, November 26, 2025
Ukraine asks Vatican to formalise role in return of captive children
Patrick Hudson
25 November 2025, The Tablet
President Zelenskyy made the request in a letter ahead of Pope Leo’s audience with a group of women and children returned from Russian captivity.
President of Ukraine
Cardinal Pietro Parolin said ‘the path to negotiation will be an uphill battle’ and urged that ‘Europe should participate and make its voice heard’ in discussions of the US peace plan.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked the Pope to formalise the Vatican’s role in negotiations for the return of children and civilians detained by Russia since it invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Zelenskyy made the request in a letter ahead of Pope Leo’s audience on 21 November with a group of women and children returned from Russian captivity. Iryna Vereshchuk, the deputy head of the president’s office who led the group, said they thanked the Pope “for understanding the depth of our wounds and hearing our pleas for help, as well as for his daily humanitarian efforts that enable Ukrainian families to reunite”.
During the visit, Vereshchuk presented the Ukrainian Order of Merit Second Class to the Archbishop of Bologna Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who has led the Vatican’s humanitarian mediation since Pope Francis appointed him as his peace envoy in May 2023. However, Vereshchuk said the Vatican needed to formalise this work “to achieve more”.
“Once the process is formalised we can have proper communications with the Russians, and when we submit a letter through the [Vatican] platform they will have to respond,” she said.
The group also attended a Mass said by the Vatican’s Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, organised by the Ukrainian Embassy to the Holy See to commemorate the victims of the Holodomor famine of 1932-33. The cardinal condemned “attacks on electrical infrastructure” which are “forcing thousands of people to live in darkness and cold”.
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
Romania evacuates border village after Russian drone attack on gas tanker
Romania evacuates border village after Russian drone attack on gas tanker
Three Romanian villages have been evacuated after Russia attacked a Turkish LNG tanker off the coast of neighbouring Ukraine on Monday.
The MR Orinda suffered significant damage during a Russian strike in Ukraine's southern Odesa region and scores of people were evacuated, mostly from the border village of Tulcea in the Nato member state, over fears it could explode.
It was hit during the offloading of liquefied petroleum gas at Izmail port, Turkey said, with the attack coming one day after Volodymyr Zelensky signed a deal to import US liquefied natural gas through the area.
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
Thursday, October 02, 2025
Saturday, September 27, 2025
Wednesday, September 10, 2025
Wednesday, August 20, 2025
Pope Leo sets Friday as day of prayer and fasting for peace in Ukraine and the Holy Land
Vatican Dispatch
by Gerard O’Connell
August 20, 2025
Pope Leo XIV talks to visitors during his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican Aug. 20, 2025. Credit: CNS photo/Lola Gomez
Deeply concerned at the ongoing wars and killing in the Holy Land and Ukraine and anxious for peace efforts to succeed, Pope Leo XIV has called on believers worldwide to observe this Friday, Aug. 22, the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary Queen of Peace, as a special day of prayer and fasting for peace in the Holy Land, Ukraine and other regions of the world that are “wounded by wars.”
He issued his appeal at the end of his public audience in the Vatican on Wednesday, Aug. 20, as efforts are underway to bring a ceasefire in Gaza and broker a peace accord between Ukraine and Russia.
Addressing thousands of pilgrims from many countries, including the United States, gathered in the Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall, the pope said that “Mary is the Mother of believers here on earth, and is also invoked as Queen of Peace, while our earth continues to be wounded by wars in the Holy Land, in Ukraine, and in many other regions of the world.”
“I invite all the faithful to devote the day of August 22 to fasting and prayer, imploring the Lord to grant us peace and justice, and to dry the tears of those who suffer as a result of the ongoing armed conflicts. Mary, Queen of Peace, intercede so that peoples may find the path to peace,” the pope said
Monday, July 14, 2025
Trump announces novel plan to send weapons to Ukraine and gives Russia new deadline to make peace
By Kevin Liptak, CNN
Updated 1:06 PM EDT, Mon July 14, 2025
Bonnie Cash/UPI/Bloomberg/Getty Images
US President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House after arriving on Marine One in Washington, DC, US, on Sunday, July 13, 2025.
US President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House after arriving on Marine One in Washington, DC, US, on Sunday, July 13, 2025.
CNN —
President Donald Trump on Monday laid out a pair of steps intended to pressure Russia to end its war in Ukraine, including funneling new weapons to Kyiv and threatening economic punishment on Moscow if peace isn’t reached in 50 days, as he grows increasingly disenchanted with his Russian counterpart.
Taken together, the moves amount to a markedly new approach to the conflict, which Trump has worked to distance himself from since taking office in January. Even as he delivered the announcement from the Oval Office, the president argued he wasn’t to blame for the prolonged war.
Still, he appeared entirely fed up with Russian President Vladimir Putin. And he acknowledged American weaponry – however it is delivered – would be necessary if Kyiv is to stave off a full-bore invasion.
“I felt we had a deal about four times,” Trump said, referring to a prospective peace agreement with Russia. “But it just kept going on and on.”
The plan the president unveiled Monday – which would see European nations purchase American weapons, then transfer them to Ukraine – has been under discussion for months, ever since Trump won last year’s election and European officials quickly began deliberating on ways to sustain US weapons shipments to Ukraine under a leader who had vowed to pull back American support.
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