Amid raucous questioning by opposition members in Italy’s Parliament this month, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni noted that she had been asked repeatedly: “Are you with Europe or with the United States?” The prime minister responded that she was always with Italy and by extension, Europe. “I don’t blindly follow Europe or the United States,” she … Read more
The war in Ukraine is at an inflection point, with President Trump seeking rapprochement with the Russian leader, Vladimir V. Putin, and pressing for an end to the fighting. But for nearly three years before Mr. Trump’s return to power, the United States and Ukraine were joined in an extraordinary partnership of intelligence, strategy, planning … Read more
If progress in ending the war in Ukraine requires cohesion between allies, there seems to be little or none for now. A flurry of diplomatic talks this week did less to advance a truce, let alone a peace, than to illustrate the uneasy discord growing between Europe and the United States. As they huddled in … Read more
More than a month after Washington and Kyiv first haggled over a deal to grant the United States a major stake in Ukraine’s mineral, oil and gas development projects, the two sides are back to square one in the negotiations. Washington has sent Kyiv a new proposal that restates the sweeping financial demands from an … Read more
European leaders will convene in Paris on Thursday to shore up support for Ukraine, a “coalition of the willing” that wants to help the war-torn country fight back against Russia despite wavering American commitment, and safeguard an eventual peace. France and Britain have been spearheading those efforts, which led to a first meeting in Paris … Read more
Russia and Ukraine have agreed to cease fighting in the Black Sea in a U.S.-brokered deal, but it remains unclear whether the agreement can come into force soon — if at all. Russia had a major caveat: it would abide by the deal only after various restrictions were removed from its agricultural exports. The penalties … Read more
While the Trump administration has drastically changed how it talks about the danger posed by Russia, American intelligence agencies said in an annual report on Tuesday that Russia remained an “enduring potential threat to U.S. power, presence and global interests.” On the same day the report was released, the director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, … Read more
Ukrainian and U.S. officials on Tuesday held a second session of negotiations in Saudi Arabia to discuss a possible limited cease-fire, a day after Russian and American delegations held similar discussions that lasted more than 12 hours. Kyiv and Moscow have been holding separate U.S.-mediated talks in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, to discuss … Read more
After President Trump spoke on the phone with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine last week, the White House wanted to make one thing clear: The Ukrainian leader was grateful to the American president. Very grateful. The statement recounting the call mentioned four times that Mr. Zelensky had thanked the president for his efforts to negotiate … Read more
The United States will hold separate talks with Russia and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia to iron out details of a possible limited cease-fire in what could be a crucial step toward a full cessation of hostilities in the war. Russia and Ukraine both agreed this past week to temporarily halt strikes on energy infrastructure, but … Read more