Latest Ukraine-Russia war: Trump says ‘something good could happen’ in peace talks after Kiev redlines

German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz has said that only US President Donald Trump would like to see Russia in the Group of Eight.

“I can’t see at the moment that there is any desire among today’s six G7 members who are not the United States to readmit Russia into the group,” Merz said on Monday.

Russia was excluded from the group in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea.

He let the performance run. Donald Trump feigns independence from the Kremlin, threatens sanctions on Russian fuel importers and rants, but in the end, Vladimir Putin has his puppet strings tight and the US president is once again dancing the Moscow jig.

It is a desperate but effective move by Moscow to dominate the debate over a war Russia cannot win.

James C. Reynolds reports:

US President Donald Trump released an update on the peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.

In a post on Truth Social on Monday, the US leader wrote: “Is it really possible for major progress to be made in Russia-Ukraine peace talks? Don’t believe it until you see it, but something good may be happening. God bless America!”

“I spoke with Zelenskiy ahead of this morning’s informal meeting of EU leaders on Ukraine’s peace efforts to get his assessment of the situation,” European Council President Antonio Costa wrote in a statement on X/Twitter on Monday.

A united and coordinated EU position is key to ensuring a good outcome of the peace talks – for Ukraine and for Europe.

Russia lifted temporary flight restrictions at Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo and Zhukovsky airports after air defenses shot down a Ukrainian drone en route to Moscow on Monday.

The three airports serving the capital were forced to limit all inbound and outbound flights in response.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced in a statement that emergency forces are working at the crash site.

These restrictions were quickly removed after the operation.

President Volodymyr Zelensky outlined his expectations for Ukraine as talks look to move forward ahead of European Union talks on a peace deal with Russia on Monday.

“We all continue to work with partners, especially the United States, to seek compromises that strengthen us but not weaken us,” he said.

He added: “Using Russia’s blocked assets for dialogue is very important and accountability is necessary.”

“Right now, we’re at a critical moment,” he said.

“There is a lot of noise in the media and all the political pressure and even more responsibility for the decisions ahead.”

Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergaard said on Monday ahead of EU talks on a potential peace deal: “Ukraine’s borders cannot be changed by force if a lasting peace is to be achieved.”

According to Reuters, Stenergaard said that limits cannot be imposed on Ukraine’s military capabilities, preventing the country from defending itself against the threat of any future Russian aggression.

Donald Trump’s peace plan to end Russia’s war with Ukraine would reduce Ukraine to “Russia’s scapegoat,” according to the former head of MI6.

Sir Alex Younger said the US president’s offer was “introspective” in favor of Russia and “almost guaranteed” another invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin.

It was time for European countries to stop “dodging” and stand shoulder to shoulder with Volodymyr Zelensky to prevent this from happening.

Sir Alex, head of MI6 from 2014 to 2020, told Radio 4. today The program: “We should be under no illusions: the initial proposals are misguided, essentially Moscow talk, which makes Ukraine a scapegoat, a juicy target with little chance of defending itself.”

These plans “almost guarantee that the war will resume because Russia has designed weaknesses that it will have to exploit.”

Sir Alex said it was “obvious” that Zelensky could not agree to such terms, instead it should be used as a “negotiating framework”.

He argued that Trump’s plan was “an attempt to stop the killing, and that’s good, but we need to make it less crooked.”

In the end, it is about Ukraine that has sovereignty and can defend itself, and that is much more important.

“It was Europe’s moment to stand up and show leadership,” said Sir Alex.

“There is a significant weakness in the US approach: it seems to uncritically accept that Russia is winning,” he said.

He claimed that this analysis was wrong. “The answer is more pressure on Russia, not less.”