Ukraine

Volodymyr Zelensky is urging European Union leaders gathered at a crunch summit in Brussels to loan billions of euros in frozen Russian money to fund Ukraine's military and economic needs.

[…] Today’s decision -which brings the total of designated vessels to almost 600- is closely linked to recent Council decisions to list nine shadow fleet enablers and adopt a declaration by the EU and its member states on making full use of the international law of the sea framework relating to threats from the 'shadow fleet' and to the protection of critical undersea infrastructure.

European leaders said they had agreed on Monday any decisions on potential Ukrainian territorial concessions to Russia could only be made once robust security guarantees were in place which should include a European-led multinational force.

German Chancellor Merz said on Thursday that proposals on territorial concessions had been sent to US President Donald Trump, who had earlier expressed frustration with European allies and questioned the United States’ ongoing involvement in future talks. 

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he held a "substantive discussion" with members of Ukraine's parliament on the possibility of holding elections, amid pressure from the United States to hold a vote despite wartime legal restrictions. Addressing Ukrainians in a nightly video on December 10, Zelenskyy said strong security guarantees from Kyiv's allies -- especially Washington -- are needed to hold a vote.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff will meet the head of Ukraine's national security council, Rustem Umerov, for talks in Miami on Thursday, the White House has confirmed.

The European Union has set out fresh details of its plan to channel billions of euros in frozen Russian assets into Ukraine’s war effort and economic stability over the next two years – a proposal which has been met with resistance from Belgium, which warns of financial and legal issues.

The UN General Assembly on Wednesday demanded by a wide margin that Russia immediately and unconditionally return all Ukrainian children who have been forcibly transferred or deported since the start of the war.

Donald Trump's overseas envoy Steve Witkoff will hold talks at the Kremlin next week as the US continues to push for a deal to end the war in Ukraine. The visit, which was confirmed by Vladimir Putin's close foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov on Wednesday, comes after Ukraine said it had reached a "common understanding" with the White House on the outline of a potential peace deal.

Russia should “curb” the size of its army and military budget in order to ensure a lasting peace in Ukraine, said the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, adding that Western leaders should not fall into the “trap” of discussing restrictions on Kyiv’s army during peace talks with Moscow.