Volodymyr Zelensky has called for the creation of an “army of Europe”, suggesting the continent could not rely on Donald Trump’s United States for its defence.
The President of Ukraine told the Munich Security Conference: “As we fight this war and lay the groundwork for peace and security, we must build the armed forces of Europe so that Europe’s future depends only on Europeans, and decisions about Europe are made in Europe.”
He also suggested that the “old days” of America supporting Europe were gone, and that no ceasefire deal would be agreed without Ukraine’s involvement.
On Friday, a suspected Russian drone strike on Chernobyl has sparked fears of a radioactive leak but the situation is under control, the chief engineer at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant said.
The strike has caused severe damage to the nuclear power plant’s confinement structure, rendering it non-functional, the engineer Alexander Titarchuk said. “There is now a possibility of a leak of radioactive substances, but the situation is under control,” he said.
He also warned that Russia may be preparing to launch intensified offensive operations into northern Ukraine or attack Nato’s eastern flank in 2026.
Key Points
Zelensky calls for ‘armed forces of Europe’ to be created
Ukraine suggests Europe could not rely on Trump for defence
Russia denies attacking Chernobyl nuclear plant: ‘False flag’
Ukraine wants ‘security guarantees’, Zelensky tells Vance in Munich
Putin preparing the war against Nato countries next year, says Zelensky
Trump’s deputy Vance threatens European leaders
The betrayal of Ukraine is also a betrayal of America’s friends and allies in Europe
11:18 , Holly Evans
For a man who prides himself on his mastery of the “art of the deal”, Donald Trump has made an unpromising start to his negotiations with Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.
According to the US president’s vainglorious business guide, published in 1987: “My style of deal-making is quite simple and straightforward. I aim very high, and then I just keep pushing and pushing and pushing to get what I’m after.”
If so, then he has broken his own rule by aiming rather low as a starting point. Between the president, vice-president JD Vance and the defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, significant concessions have been gifted to Mr Putin before the two leaders have even met – and, apparently, without any prior consultation with the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky.
Read our full editorial here:
The betrayal of Ukraine is also a betrayal of America’s friends and allies in Europe
Lammy and Healey call for UK to ‘do more’ to share burden of regional stability
11:10 , Holly Evans
The Ukrainian leader’s comments came after Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Defence Secretary John Healey called on the UK and Europe to “do more” to “share the burden” of regional security in a joint article for the Daily Telegraph.
They also said that a “durable peace” would need a “continuing US commitment to its allies through Nato”.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told Mr Zelensky that Britain is committed to Ukraine being on an “irreversible path” to joining Nato, after the US appeared to rule out its membership.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Healey and Mr Lammy said that for two decades the Russian leader has been “seeking to recreate the Russian empire and suffocate the countries around its borders”.
“Too often in the past, the West has let him,” they added. “We did too little in 2008 when he invaded Georgia, and in 2014 when he first went into Ukraine.”
Zelensky insists Ukraine will not accept deals ‘made behind our backs’
10:52 , Holly Evans
Washington has suggested Nato membership for Ukraine is off the table and Mr Zelensky will have to cede territory to Russia, but he said: “Ukraine will never accept deals made behind our backs without our involvement.”
Mr Zelensky said he wanted allies to gather in Kyiv or online on February 24 to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale assault.
He added: “This meeting must deliver a clear vision for our next steps on peace, security guarantees and the future of our collective policy.
“And I do not believe in security guarantees without America. Yes, it will be just weak.
“But America will not offer guarantees unless Europe’s own guarantees are strong.
“And I also will not take Nato membership for Ukraine off the table, but right now the most influential member of Nato seems to be Putin because his whims have the power to block Nato decisions.”
Ukraine suggests Europe could not rely on Trump for defence
10:28 , Holly Evans
Volodymyr Zelensky called for the creation of an “army of Europe”, suggesting the continent could not rely on Donald Trump’s United States for its defence.
The President of Ukraine told the Munich Security Conference: “As we fight this war and lay the groundwork for peace and security, we must build the armed forces of Europe so that Europe’s future depends only on Europeans, and decisions about Europe are made in Europe.”
He told the gathering in Germany: “Some in Europe may not fully understand what’s happening in Washington right now, but let’s focus on understanding ourselves right here in Europe, we must give strength to Europe first.
“Does America need Europe as a market? Yes. But as an ally? I don’t know.
“For the answer to be yes. Europe needs a single voice, not a dozen different ones.”
Zelensky calls for ‘armed forces of Europe’ to be created
10:08 , Holly Evans
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says the time has come for the creation of an “armed forces of Europe”, and says his country’s fight against Russia has proved that a foundation for it already exists.
The Ukrainian leader said Europe cannot rule out the possibility that “American might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it”, and noted that many leaders have long spoken about how Europe needs its own military.
“I really believe that time has come,” Mr Zelensky told the Munich Security Conference.
“The armed forces of Europe must be created.”
European leaders to respond to Trump’s hard line stance on Ukraine
09:51 , Holly Evans
European leaders trying to make sense of a tough new line from Washington on issues including democracy and Ukraine’s future were set to express their reactions on Saturday, as the Trump administration continues to upend trans-Atlantic conventions that have been in place since after World War II.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky were to speak on the second day of the Munich Security Conference, a day after U.S. Vice President JD Vance all but scolded European allies over democracy and raised questions about the U.S. commitment to help Ukraine’s defense against Russian forces.
President Donald Trump held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin this week in which he said the two leaders would likely meet soon to negotiate a peace deal.
Trump later assured Zelensky that he, too, would have a seat at the table. The war was sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine three years ago.
Already Friday, the Ukrainian leader said that his country wants security guarantees before any talks with Russia.
Shortly before meeting with Vance in Munich, Zelensky said he will only agree to meet in-person with Putin after a common plan is negotiated with Trump. After a 40-minute meeting with Zelensky, Vance said the Trump administration wants the war to end.
Video: Chernobyl nuclear plant appears to be hit by Russian drone attack
08:02 , Arpan Rai
The protective cover encasing the leaking Chernobyl nuclear power plant has been damaged by a Russian drone, CCTV appears to show.
The drone destroyed the plant’s fourth power unit during an overnight attack, according to Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Mr Zelensky confirmed that a fire caused by the strike has been extinguished, with radiation levels remaining stable and under constant monitoring.
Sharing a clip of the explosion on X, Mr Zelensky wrote: “The only country in the world that attacks such sites, occupies nuclear power plants, and wages war without any regard for the consequences is today’s Russia. This is a terrorist threat to the entire world.” He added that “the damage to the shelter is significant.”
Video: Chernobyl nuclear plant appears to be hit by Russian drone attack
Russia denies attacking Chernobyl nuclear plant: ‘False flag’
06:50 , Arpan Rai
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied Russia was responsible for yesterday’s attack on Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear facility.
“There is no talk about strikes on nuclear infrastructure, nuclear energy facilities. Any such claim isn’t true. Our military doesn’t do that,” Mr Peskov said in a conference call with reporters.
It was not possible to independently confirm who was behind the strike.
Both sides frequently trade blame when nuclear sites come under attack.
Mr Peskov alleged that the strike was a “false flag” attack staged by Ukraine to incriminate Russia and to thwart efforts to end the war through negotiations between Trump and Putin.
“It’s obvious that there are those (in the Ukrainian government) who will continue to oppose any attempts to launch a negotiation process, and it’s obvious that those people will do everything to try to derail this process,” Mr Peskov said.
Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova described the drone attack as a “reckless” act by Kyiv and noted that Russia had been part of the international effort to build the structure that was hit.
Photos show damage to Chernobyl nuclear plant by ‘Russian drone’
06:14 , Arpan Rai
A drone armed with a warhead hit the protective outer shell of Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear plant early yesterday, punching a hole in the structure and briefly starting a fire, in an attack Kyiv blamed on Russia. The Kremlin denied it was responsible.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is Europe’s biggest, has occasionally been hit by drones during the war without causing significant damage.
Starmer backs Ukraine’s ‘irreversible path to Nato’ in apparent swipe at Trump
06:01 , Andy Gregory
Sir Keir Starmer has reaffirmed Britain’s support for Ukraine joining Nato in a call with Volodymyr Zelensky as world leaders gather for a major security summit in Munich.
In the first talks between the pair since Donald Trump and his defence secretary said it was unlikely Ukraine would join Nato, but in an apparent swipe at that stance, the prime minister reiterated the UK’s commitment to the country’s path into the alliance.
“The prime minister reiterated the UK’s commitment to Ukraine being on an irreversible path to Nato, as agreed by Allies at the Washington Summit last year,” a readout of the call said, in a pointed message to the US.
Our political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:
Starmer backs Ukraine’s ‘irreversible path to Nato’ in apparent swipe at Trump
Russia could launch attack on Nato’s eastern flank next year, warns Zelensky
05:12 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russia may be preparing to launch intensified offensive operations into northern Ukraine or attack Nato’s eastern flank in 2026.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference yesterday, Mr Zelensky said that Russia is preparing upwards of 100,000 to 150,000 troops organised into 15 divisions to “aggravate the situation in the Belarus direction”.
Mr Zelensky said that Russia may intend to attack into Ukraine, Poland, or possibly the Baltic countries.
Europe quietly works on a plan to send troops to Ukraine for post-war security
05:03 , Andy Gregory
Increasingly alarmed that US security priorities lie elsewhere, a group of European countries has been quietly working on a plan to send troops into Ukraine to help enforce any future peace settlement with Russia.
Britain and France are at the forefront of the effort, though details remain scarce. The countries involved in the discussions are reluctant to tip their hand and give Russian president Vladimir Putin an edge should he agree to negotiate an end to the war he launched three years ago.
What is clear is that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky needs a guarantee that his country’s security will be assured until peace takes hold. The best protection would be the Nato membership that Ukraine has long been promised, but the US has taken that option off the table.
“I won’t get into the particular capabilities, but I do accept that if there is peace then there needs to be some sort of security guarantee for Ukraine and the UK will play its part in that,” prime minister Keir Starmer said in cautious remarks on Thursday.
Europe quietly works on a plan to send troops to Ukraine for post-war security
Donald Trump has been pumped up and preened by Putin… and royally played
04:38 , Arpan Rai
The last 24 hours have been disappointing for Ukraine and the rest of Europe (“Ukraine says it has no plans to attend Trump’s peace talks”, Friday 14 February).
However, we must wait and see what unravels from the first contact of any substance between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, without any apparent input from Volodymyr Zelensky.
The initial signs are not encouraging, though. It seems Putin has played Trump with all the expertise of a former FSB officer, par excellence.
I suspect that Trump’s feathers have been preened, his ego stroked, and his peacock pride inflated to bursting point. Trump appears to be putty in Putin’s manipulative hands, no match for the guile and cunning of this wily Russian fox.
Read the full letters to the editor here:
Letters: Donald Trump has been pumped up and preened by Putin… and royally played
Ukraine-US talks in Munich end without agreement on critical minerals deal
04:28 , Arpan Rai
Talks between Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and US vice president JD Vance ended in Munich yesterday without an announcement of a critical minerals deal that is central to Kyiv’s push to win the backing of president Donald Trump.
Kyiv came back to the US earlier with a revised draft agreement of the deal that could open up its vast resources of key minerals to US investment, amid concerns in Kyiv over a US version that was presented to Ukraine on Wednesday.
“Our teams will continue to work on the document,” Mr Zelensky wrote on X, adding that he had had a “good meeting” with Mr Vance and that Kyiv was “ready to move towards as quickly as possible towards a real and guaranteed peace”.
Two members of the Ukrainian delegation told Reuters that “some details” still needed to be worked out.
It was not immediately clear what the sticking point was, but Ukraine is pressing for robust security guarantees from Europe and the United States that would protect it from Russia in the future if a peace deal is reached.
A drone strike at Chernobyl has raised Ukraine’s nuclear ghosts. What are the dangers?
04:06 , Andy Gregory
Ukraine’s nuclear ghosts were raised again on Friday after a drone armed with a warhead hit the protective outer shell of the plant at Chernobyl, the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident.
The strike, which Kyiv blamed on Moscow, did not breach the plant’s inner containment shell and radiation levels did not increase, according to the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Russia denied involvement, and accused Ukraine of waging a false flag attack. Their competing claims could not be independently verified.
What’s at stake?
A drone strike at Chernobyl has raised Ukraine’s nuclear ghosts. What are the dangers?
Trump’s deputy Vance threatens European leaders
04:02 , Arpan Rai
Before his meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, the US vice president JD Vance lectured European officials on free speech and illegal migration on the continent, warning that they risk losing public support if they don’t quickly change course.
“The threat that I worry the most about vis-a-vis Europe is not Russia. It’s not China. It’s not any other external actor,” Mr Vance said in an address to the Munich Security Conference.
“What I worry about is the threat from within – the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America,” Mr Vance said.
He further warned European officials: “If you’re running in fear of your own voters there’s nothing America can do for you.”
The speech and Donald Trump’s push for a quick way out of Ukraine have been met with intense concern and uncertainty at the annual gathering of world leaders and national security officials.
The vice president also warned the European officials against illegal migration, saying Europeans didn’t vote to open “floodgates to millions of unvetted immigrants” and referencing an attack on Thursday in Munich where the suspect is a 24-year-old Afghan who arrived in Germany as an asylum-seeker in 2016.
Ukraine wants ‘security guarantees’, Zelensky tells Vance in Munich
03:41 , Arpan Rai
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said that his country wants “security guarantees” before any talks with Russia, as the Trump administration presses both countries to find a quick endgame to the three-year war.
Shortly before sitting down with vice president JD Vance for highly anticipated talks at the Munich Security Conference, Mr Zelensky said he will only agree to meet in-person with Russian leader Vladimir Putin after a common plan is negotiated with US president Donald Trump.
The roughly 40-minute meeting between Mr Vance and Mr Zelensky produced no major announcements detailing the way out of the deadliest war in Europe since the Second World War.
Mr Zelensky made a plaintive statement about the state of play.
“We want peace very much,” Mr Zelensky said. “But we need real security guarantees.”
A drone strike at Chernobyl has raised Ukraine’s nuclear ghosts. What are the dangers?
03:20 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s nuclear ghosts were raised again yesterday after a drone armed with a warhead hit the protective outer shell of the plant at Chernobyl, the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident.
The strike, which Kyiv blamed on Moscow, did not breach the plant’s inner containment shell and radiation levels did not increase, according to the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Russia denied involvement, and accused Ukraine of waging a false flag attack. Their competing claims could not be independently verified.
A drone strike at Chernobyl has raised Ukraine’s nuclear ghosts. What are the dangers?
Ukraine has low chance of survival without US backing, Zelensky says on NBC
03:13 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine has a low chance of surviving Russia’s assault without U.S. support, president Volodymyr Zelensky said in a interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker” program.
“Probably it will be very, very, very difficult. And of course, in all the difficult situations, you have a chance. But we will have low chance — low chance to survive without support of the United States,” Mr Zelensky said in the interview.
An excerpt from the program was released on Friday and the full show will be broadcast on Sunday.
His comments come after phone calls held earlier in the week by US president Donald Trump with Mr Zelensky and Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Russia detains another US citizen on drugs charges days after swap, reports say
03:09 , Andy Gregory
Russia has detained another US citizen after customs officials found cannabis-laced marmalade in his luggage, Russian state media has reported, days after a Moscow-Washington prisoner swap that the White House called a diplomatic thaw and a step toward ending the fighting in Ukraine.
Russian police said the 28-year-old American had attempted to smuggle a “significant amount” of drugs into the country, the Interfax agency reported, citing Russia’s Federal Customs Service. The agency said the American was detained at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport after flying in from Istanbul last Friday.
Mash, a Russian Telegram channel with links to the security services, said the US citizen, identified only as K. Byers, faced up to seven years in prison if convicted.
The Washington-Moscow prisoner exchange this month saw Alexander Vinnik, a Russian cryptocurrency expert who faced Bitcoin fraud charges in the United States, returned to Russia after being freed for American Marc Fogel, a teacher from Pennsylvania who was detained in 2021 when traveling to Russia to work at a school.
Russia detains another US citizen on drugs charges days after swap, reports say
Russia claims its forces have taken control of two settlements in Ukraine
03:01 , Arpan Rai
Russian forces have taken control of two frontline settlements in eastern Donetsk region, the Russian defence ministry said this morning.
A ministry report said Russian forces had captured the village of Zelene Pole located between Pokrovsk, the focal point of Russian attacks in the region, and Velyuka Novosilka, a settlement that Russia’s military said it captured late last month.
Also captured, according to the Russian report, was the village of Dachne, west of the town of Kurakhove, which Russia’s military said it also captured last month.
The town had been subjected to weeks of heavy fighting.
The General Staff of Ukraine’s military, in a late evening report, said both villages were among 11 settlements that had come under Russian attack in the Pokrovsk sector.
But it made no mention of them coming under Russian control.
The only people applauding JD Vance’s blathering are the far right – and Russia
02:58 , Arpan Rai
The vice-president of the United States fired a broadside of half-truths and conspiracy theories about his allies in Europe – a continent already close to war with Russia – in a rallying cry that will be roared out and multiplied by the far right everywhere.
In his keynote address at the Munich Security Conference, delivered to an auditorium packed with ministers of defence, generals and leaders from across Europe and beyond, JD Vance said: “The threat that I worry the most about vis-a-vis Europe is not Russia, it’s not China, it’s not any other external actor.”
“What I worry about is the threat from within,” he announced to the assembled securocrats.
They would have walked into the hall pretty sure that it’s Russia’s open military and violent designs on Ukraine, the Baltic nations, Poland, and much of the rest of eastern Europe, that’s been keeping them up at night.
The only people applauding JD Vance’s blathering are the far right – and Russia
Watch: JD Vance joke about Greta Thunberg bombs at Munich security conference
02:11 , Andy Gregory
01:16 , Andy Gregory
“We are some way from a negotiated peace” between Russia and Ukraine, Britain’s foreign secretary David Lammy has suggested, after discussing the conflict in a meeting with US vice president JD Vance.
Speaking to broadcasters after the meeting he said “we are some way from a negotiated peace” and pledged the UK’s continued support for Ukraine.
He said he and the vice president “share the view that there has to be an enduring peace” and agreed that Ukraine would “have to be part of that negotiated deal”.
The Foreign Secretary also described his meeting with Mr Vance as “very good” and that the pair built on “the special relationship that the United States and the UK enjoy”.
He added: “Negotiations have not yet begun. These are talks, if you like, about talks, and we will continue to support Ukraine.”
“I was very encouraged in our conversations about Ukraine. All of us have this desire to bring this horrendous war to an end,” Mr Lammy said.
Drone exploded inside Chernobyl containment vessel, chief engineer says
00:20 , Andy Gregory
Oleksandr Tytarchuk, chief engineer at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, said the drone which struck the disused plant has pierced the outer cover of the containment vessel – completed in 2019 – and exploded inside.
Russian drone attack damaged Chernobyl plant’s confinement structure, chief engineer says
Friday 14 February 2025 23:29 , Andy Gregory
A Russian drone attack had badly damaged the confinement structure around the disused Chernobyl nuclear power plant, a senior nuclear industry official has warned.
“The barrier which was supposed to prevent the spread of radioactive substances has ceased to function according to its original design,” Oleksandr Tytarchuk, the plant’s chief engineer, told reporters at the plant.
Editorial | The betrayal of Ukraine is also a betrayal of America’s friends and allies in Europe
Friday 14 February 2025 22:30 , Andy Gregory
For a man who prides himself on his mastery of the “art of the deal”, Donald Trump has made an unpromising start to his negotiations with Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.
The betrayal of Ukraine that is now underway is also a betrayal of America’s friends and allies in Europe. If Ukraine is effectively indefensible, for lack of American support, then Europe as a whole is far weaker. It further undermines Nato, already being treated as a purely contingent and transactional obligation by President Trump.
Read The Independent’s editorial here:
The betrayal of Ukraine is also a betrayal of America’s friends and allies in Europe
Watch: Zelensky says the United States ‘never wanted’ Ukraine in Nato
Friday 14 February 2025 21:31 , Andy Gregory
EU foreign policy chief accuses JD Vance of ‘trying to pick fight with us’
Friday 14 February 2025 20:38 , Andy Gregory
The European Union’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has said that the speech by US vice president JD Vance at Munich felt as if the United States was “trying to pick a fight” with Europe.
“Listening to that speech, they try to pick a fight with us and we don’t want to a pick a fight with our friends,” Ms Kallas said at the Munich event.
Ms Kallas added that allies should be focusing on bigger threats like Russia’s aggression on Ukraine.
Italy president’s ‘Third Reich’ comments spark Rome-Moscow dispute
Friday 14 February 2025 19:41 , Andy Gregory
Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni has accused Russia of “offending the entire Italian nation” – as she stood by comments by the Italian president that compared modern-day Russia to Nazi Germany.
In a speech last week, Italian president Sergio Mattarella criticised the “wars of aggression” that led to the Second World War. “This was the project of the Third Reich in Europe. The current Russian aggression against Ukraine is of this nature,” he said.
Reacting to those statements with some delay, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova on Friday lambasted Mr Mattarella’s remarks as “blasphemous inventions”.
In a strongly-worded retort, Ms Meloni said: “The insults of the spokeswoman offend the entire Italian nation, which the head of state represents.”
“I express my full solidarity, as well as that of the entire government, to President Mattarella, who has always firmly condemned the aggression perpetrated against Ukraine,” she added.
Watch: Zelensky warns Putin is preparing war against Nato
Friday 14 February 2025 18:49 , Andy Gregory
Ukraine and US still working on draft critical minerals deal, Kyiv says
Friday 14 February 2025 18:15 , Andy Gregory
Kyiv and Washington were still working on agreeing a critical mineral deal after talks between Volodymyr Zelensky and JD Vance on Friday, two members Ukraine’s delegation to Munich have told Reuters.
Ukraine handed the United States its proposals for a bilateral minerals deal after finishing working on them, two Ukrainian sources said earlier, as Kyiv tries to win the backing of US president Donald Trump in his bid to end the war with Russia.
Vance praises US and Ukraine delegations
Friday 14 February 2025 17:49 , Andy Gregory
Following his meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky in Munich, US vice president JD Vance was pressed by a reporter on how Washington can move ahead with its plans if Ukraine is not ready to negotiate with Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
Mr Vance replied: “The way that this conversation moves us forward is, first of all, you have great members of the Ukrainian delegation, you have our incredible secretary of state Marco Rubio here, we have General Kellog – it’s important for us to get together and start to have the conversations that are going to be necessary to bring this thing to a close.”
Friday 14 February 2025 17:44 , Ukraine must have ‘real security guarantees’, Zelensky warns
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Kyiv must have security guarantees as well as a plan to end Russia’s invasion.
Speaking after a meeting in Munich with US vice president JD Vance, Mr Zelensky told reporters: “We are very thankful for American support. We had a good conversation today. (It was) our first meeting, not last, I’m sure.
While a plan is needed to stop Vladimir Putin and end the war, Ukraine needs “real security guarantees, and we will continue our meetings and our work”, said Mr Zelensky.
JD Vance insists Trump’s goal is ‘durable, lasting peace’ in Ukraine
Friday 14 February 2025 17:39 , Andy Gregory
US vice president JD Vance has insisted that Washington is seeking a “durable, lasting peace” in Ukraine, in his first remarks following a meeting with president Volodymyr Zelensky at Munich.
Mr Vance told reporters: “We had a number of fruitful conversations and there are a number of things for us to follow up and work on.
“Fundamentally the goal is as President Trump outlined that we want the war to come to a close, we want the killing to stop, but we want to achieve a durable, lasting peace – not the kind of peace that’s going to have Eastern Europe in conflict just a couple of years down the road.
“So we had a number of good conversations about how we might accomplish that together, and certainly we’ll have many more in the days, weeks and months to come.”
Zelensky: we need a plan for how to stop Putin
Friday 14 February 2025 17:33 , Andy Gregory
Volodymyr Zelensky and US vice president JD Vance have now spoken publicly following their meeting on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.
Mr Zelensky said he had a good conversation with Mr Vance and that more work needed to be done on a plan for ending the war in Ukraine.
“We need to speak more, to work more and to prepare the plan (for) how to stop Putin,” Mr Zelensky said.
Putin must have no veto over Ukraine’s Nato membership, says ex-president
Friday 14 February 2025 17:23 , Andy Gregory
Former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko has warned that Vladimir Putin must have no right of veto over Ukraine’s Nato membership ambitions.
Mr Poroshenko, who was sanctioned this week by his successor Volodymyr Zelensky, told the BBC: “I can declare you the absolutely crystal clear Ukrainian position – I want to remind you of the words of President Reagan that ‘we maintain peace through strength’. Exactly this phrase was used (by) President Trump.
“Because peace through weakness is only inviting aggression.”
Stating Ukraine’s red lines of not compromising on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, limits on its armed forces, sanctions against Russia, and on Nato, he added: “President Trump is absolutely right. I hate the idea that we will discuss Nato membership of Ukraine with Putin.
“Putin shouldn’t have any veto right … Putin (doesn’t) want peace. Don’t trust Putin.”
Nato chief seeks to downplay fears of Trump risk to international order
Friday 14 February 2025 16:55 , Andy Gregory
Nato chief Mark Rutte has insisted that he does not share the concern of other officials in Munich this week that the rules-based international order is at risk.
Mr Rutte told the BBC: “I don’t (share these concerns). I think what we have to do is concentrate on the work at hand – and the work at hand is to make sure that we bring Ukraine to a situation of peace.
“That has to be a lasting peace, never to be challenged again by Putin. We have to make sure that we get all the training and all the military gear into Ukraine to make sure it can prevail in the meantime – and that is the order of the day.
“All the other stuff I don’t have time for.”
Pressed further on concerns that Donald Trump is “rewarding” Mr Putin for his aggression, he said: “What I really see is that Trump (is trying) to bring this to an end.”
New traces of tear gas found on Ukraine battlefield by chemical weapons watchdog
Friday 14 February 2025 16:47 , Andy Gregory
The world’s chemical weapons watchdog has once again found traces of tear gas on the frontline with Russia in Ukraine’s central-east Dnipropetrovsk region.
The use of riot control agents such as tear gas as a method of warfare is prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention, the non-proliferation treaty overseen by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Ukraine had requested the assistance of the agency, which deployed a team. The team was not mandated to assign blame, but Ukraine and the United States have said Russia has illegally deployed tear gas to clear trenches. Tear gas is not lethal, but causes temporary irritation to the eyes and respiratory system.
The OPCW said it had retrieved evidence related to three incidents in the region in October and had found traces of tear gas on the grenade shells and soil samples collected there. In November it had also reported finding traces of tear gas in the region.
Top diplomats from Turkey and US ‘extensively discuss’ achieving peace in Ukraine, source says
Friday 14 February 2025 16:23 , Andy Gregory
Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan “extensively discussed” possible developments on the achievement of peace between Ukraine and Russia with US secretary of state Marco Rubio, a Turkish foreign ministry source has told Reuters.
The exchange in Munich on Thursday marked their first face-to-face meeting since Mr Rubio was appointed as part of Donald Trump’s new US administration.
Trump can stop the war – Zelensky
Friday 14 February 2025 15:57 , Alex Ross
Donald Trump announced he had started talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin to end the Ukraine war this week.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said he hopes he and Europe can be involved in the negotiations – but only if they have a common plan.
Speaking about Mr Trump on the edge of the Munich Security Conference, Mr Zelensky said: “I really count on him…. he is the president of US, the people of US voted for him.
“He is a strong man and if he will choose our side and if he will not be in the middle I think he will pressure and he will push Putin to stop the war. He can do it.”
US needs to be together with Europe supporting Ukraine – Zelensky
Friday 14 February 2025 15:51 , Alex Ross
The importance of US and Europe working together to support Ukraine has been emphasised by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Asked about what he needs for any peace talks, he told a session outside the Munich Security Conference: “I think that US need to be together with Europe supporting Ukraine.
“It is a message to Putin. It’s important to stay together. When it is security guarantees from US and Europe, they have to be together.”
Zelensky will only meet with Putin when Ukraine has common plan with US and Europe
Friday 14 February 2025 15:42 , Alex Ross
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said he would be prepared to talk to was President Vladimir Putin – but only once Ukraine had agreed a common plan with Donald Trump and European leaders.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky said Trump had given him his personal phone number and told him that he could call any time he wanted.
Ukraine will need to double size of army if it doesn’t join Nato – Zelensky
Friday 14 February 2025 15:38 , Alex Ross
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine would need to double the size of its army to 1.5 million people if it is unable to join the Nato military alliance.
“We have to fight for money for a bigger army for Ukraine and also we need find the possibility of increase of production and increase army in Europe, he said.
‘US really didn’t want us in Nato’ – Zelensky
Friday 14 February 2025 15:31 , Alex Ross
As we’ve previously reported, US vice president JD Vance said earlier this week that it was an unrealistic objective for Ukraine to join Nato – despite European countries, including the UK, seeing the country becoming a member of the alliance.
During a question and answer session on the sideline of the Munich Security Conference, Mr Zelensky said on his first phone call to former US president Joe Biden, he asked if Ukraine will be in Nato.
“He said no,” Mr Zelensky said.
“I said we will see. We had more meetings, more questions but to be very honest the US, they never saw us in Nato, they just spoke about it, they really didn’t want us in Nato, it’s true.”
He added: “It doesn’t mean we can’t change this, now we see that Nato in Europe consists of strong soldiers mostly in Ukraine.
“We are not in Nato but we have a strong army that can make a stronger Nato everywhere.”
US agree Zelensky must be part of Ukraine peace talks, says David Lammy
Friday 14 February 2025 15:21 , Alex Ross
Foreign minister David Lammy said he and US vice president JD Vance agreed Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky must be part of any peace talks to end the war with Russia.
“I was very encouraged in our conversations about Ukraine,” Lammy said, speaking on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference after meeting with Mr Vance earlier in the day.
“All of us have this desire to bring this horrendous war to an end. We share the view that there has to be an enduring peace… there was an agreement that Zelensky and the Ukrainians have to be part of that negotiated deal.”
On Wednesday, Donald Trump startled US allies by calling Russian president Vladimir Putin and announcing the start of talks to end the war in Ukraine.
“It is not surprising that Donald Trump wanted to speak to Vladimir Putin, and indeed wanted to speak to Volodymyr Zelensky, but these are just talks at the moment. We are some way from a negotiated peace,” Mr Lammy said.
Meanwhile, Mr Zelensky, speaking in a question and answer session at the conference said he “counted on” Mr Trump involving him and Europe in the peace talks.
Nato defence spending – what’s been said today so far on it
Friday 14 February 2025 15:05 , Alex Ross
Along with talks to end the Ukraine war, there has also been an ongoing discussion among leaders over defence, and how much countries should spend on it.
Currently, 23 of Nato’s 32 member nations are hitting the Western military alliance’s target of spending 2 per cent of the nation’s GDP on defence.
But US president Donald Trump argues countries should be spending closer to 5 per cent.
US vice president JD Vance has reiterated Mr Trump’s call at the Munich Security Conference today.
“Nato is a very important military alliance, of course, that we’re the most significant part of,” Mr Vance told Mark Rutte, Nato’s secretary general. “But we want to make sure that NATO is actually built for the future, and we think a big part of that is ensuring that NATO does a little bit more burden sharing in Europe, so the United States can focus on some of our challenges in East Asia.”
Mr Rutte said he agreed that Europe needs to step up. “We have to grow up in that sense and spend much more,” he said.
Zelensky won’t accept agreements made without Ukraine
Friday 14 February 2025 14:50 , Alex Ross
US reassurances that Ukraine will be involved in any peace talks with Russia may have somewhat allayed Zelensky’s fears, although they will not replace any lost military or economic support that President Joe Biden’s administration had provided.
The Ukrainian leader conceded Thursday that it was “not very pleasant” that Donald Trump spoke first to Vladimir Putin.
But he said the main issue was to “not allow everything to go according to Putin’s plan.”
“We cannot accept it, as an independent country, any agreements (made) without us,” Mr Zelensky said.
Plane mechanical issue holds up US secretary of state’s journey to join JD Vance and Zelensky
Friday 14 February 2025 14:41 , Alex Ross
As we’ve been reporting today, Ukraine’s president Volodymr Zelensky is meeting US vice president JD Vance at 4pm, UK time.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio is supposed to join Vance and Zelenskyy but was delayed when his Air Force plane had to return to Washington after developing a mechanical problem en route to Munich.
He took a different aircraft, but it was unclear whether he would arrive in time for the meeting.
Chernobyl strike was Putin’s message to security gathering, says Zelensky
Friday 14 February 2025 14:28 , Jane Dalton
President Volodymr Zelensky has said the strike on Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear plant was a “very clear greeting from Putin and Russian Federation to the security conference”.
The Kremlin denied this, while Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova accused the Munich organisers of making a “strange and politicised” decision not to invite Russia.
The Chernobyl plant is a defunct facility where the world’s worst civil nuclear catastrophe happened in April 1986. It was the result of human error by the Soviet engineers operating the plant.
Ukraine must be allowed to join Nato, says PM
Friday 14 February 2025 14:17 , Jane Dalton
Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky that Ukraine must be allowed to join Nato.
Both Donald Trump and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth this week undermined Ukraine’s hopes of joining, a process that the alliance said was “irreversible” less than a year ago, or of recovering its territory captured by Russia, which currently occupies close to 20 per cent, including Crimea.
“I don’t see any way that a country in Russia’s position could allow … them to join Nato,” Mr Trump said on Thursday.
“I don’t see that happening.”
Europe plans to send troops to Ukraine
Friday 14 February 2025 13:59 , Jane Dalton
Europe quietly works on a plan to send troops to Ukraine for post-war security
Starmer must tell Trump his plan unacceptable, says Lib Dem leader
Friday 14 February 2025 13:50 , Jane Dalton
The UK’s Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey says the Prime Minister should “seize the moment” and go to the Munich Security Conference to make clear to Donald Trump that his proposals on Ukraine are “unacceptable”.
Responding to news of Sir Keir Starmer’s call with the US president on Thursday, Sir Ed said: “Keir Starmer must be clear with Donald Trump that his proposals on Ukraine are unacceptable.
“There is not a moment to lose. It is critical that the Prime Minister joins the gathering of global leaders taking place this weekend at the Munich Security Conference, and does all he can to bolster support for Ukraine.
“Keir Starmer must seize the moment and ensure that Trump’s plans to lock Ukraine, the UK and European allies out of decisions about our shared future do not succeed.”
Starmer discusses trip to US with Trump – but no mention of Ukraine
Friday 14 February 2025 13:07 , Alex Ross
Sir Keir Starmer spoke to Donald Trump on Thursday night to discuss “his forthcoming visit to the US”, Downing Street has said.
Sir Keir discussed the visit when he met Mark Burnett, Washington’s special envoy to the UK, No 10 revealed.
A spokeswoman said: “Mr Burnett and the Prime Minister agreed on the unique and special nature of the UK-US relationship, the strength of our alliance and the warmth of the connection between the two countries.”
However, the readout of the call between the two leaders made no mention of Ukraine.
Earlier today, Sir Keir reaffirmed Ukraine is on an “irreversible path” to becoming a member of the alliance, as Britain, its European allies, and Kyiv all insist they should not be left out in the cold as negotiations to end the war begin.
US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has indicated European Nato allies should give more aid to Ukraine, and cast doubt on whether Kyiv could join the alliance in the future.
‘We have to spend more’ – Nato secretary general Mark Rutte
Friday 14 February 2025 12:56 , Alex Ross
Nato security general Mark Rutte says members have to invest more in defence spending.
The organisation’s current target is 2 per cent of GDP on military spending – but that figure has come under scrutiny amid the threat from Russia and the war in Ukraine.
US president Donald Trump has called for defence spending to rise to up to 5 per cent of GDP.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Mr Rutte said spending must increase to make it “fair for the Americans” and to improve the protection of member countries.
Earlier, Germany’s defence minister Boris Pistorious also said more needed to be spent on defence by Nato countries.
“Nobody can believe any longer than 2% is enough,” he said.
European countries need to come up with plans for ending war in Ukraine – Nato secretary general
Friday 14 February 2025 12:39 , Alex Ross
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte says European countries should come up with concrete plans for Ukraine if they want to have a say in a peace deal for the country.
He was speaking on the side of the Munich Security Conference, where US president Donald Trump’s announcement of the start of talks to end the war in Ukraine has dominated the agenda.
“I really believe that what my Europeans friends need to do is to come up with concrete plans (…) and then they’ll be part of the conversation,” Mr Rutte said.
