Ukraine continues to remain in the focus of global politics. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Trump's special representative Keith Kellogg discussed new formats for security and defense. US President Donald Trump hints at a "hard blow" to Putin, the EU is preparing a new sanctions package, and Poland and Lithuania are closing the border with Belarus.
It turned out that the US has air defense no worse than "Patriots, - this is Keith Kellogg, - Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky decided to support memes about Trump's special representative, who is visiting Kyiv for the third time in the last six months, speaking at the annual meeting "Yalta European Strategy" (YES).
“I want to thank General Kellogg. Indeed, we didn’t know this before, but it turned out that the US has air defense no worse than Patriot. They really talk about this every time you are here. When you are in Kyiv, Kyiv residents can definitely get some sleep,” said the guarantor.
He also added that he is ready to provide Kellogg with citizenship and an apartment if this brings the ceasefire closer.
In general, Zelensky and Kellogg also had a personal meetingduring which they discussed various vectors of cooperation. Namely, security guarantees for Ukraine, pressure on Russia to end the war, the return of kidnapped Ukrainian children and international cooperation, etc.
“These are separate projects within the PURL initiative to finance the production and purchase of Patriot air defense systems, strong bilateral agreements on the joint production of drones and weapons, which we proposed to America. We are counting on a positive reaction from the USA,” the president told the details of the meeting.
Zelensky also expressed condolences to the American people over the horrific murder of Charlie Kirk and thanked President Trump for his condolences and response to the brutal murder of Ukrainian citizen Iryna Zarutska in North Carolina.
The Ukrainian president also said that sanctions against Russia should force the country to a meeting at the leadership level - between the president of Ukraine and the head of the Russian Federation Putin with the participation of US President Donald Trump.
EU and US prepare new package of sanctions against Russia
The European Commission and EU diplomats announced, що 19 пакет санкцій проти рф перебуває в розробці. that the 19th package of sanctions against Russia is being developed. This package is likely to include sanctions against Russian banks, the oil industry, as well as restrictions on the "shadow fleet" of tankers.
Also under discussion are tariffs of up to 100% on Russian oil, proposals from the US, and new sanctions on India and China over their energy purchases from Russia.
President Donald Trump said, that his patience with Putin is “running out fast” and has threatened new economic sanctions for continuing the war against Ukraine.
“Well, that would be a very tough application of sanctions on banks and on oil and on tariffs. But I’ve done that before, I’ve done a lot. Look, India was their biggest customer. I put a 50% tariff on India because they buy oil from Russia. It’s not easy to do, it’s a big deal. And it creates a rift with India,” Trump says.
The United States plans to tell G-7 countries that they should create a legal path to seize frozen Russian sovereign assets and consider seizing or using those assets to fund Ukraine’s defense, according to a U.S. proposal.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said this week that sanctions would not change Moscow’s position, calling previous measures “futile.”
U.S. senators propose designating Russia, Belarus state sponsors of terrorism
Senators Lindsey Graham, Richard Blumenthal, Amy Klobuchar and Katie Britt have introduced a bill that would designate Russia and Belarus as state sponsors of terrorism unless they return more than 19,000 Ukrainian children who Ukraine says were abducted during the war. The children were taken from occupied territories, placed for adoption or used in educational or military programs.
The bill is part of an effort to pressure the Kremlin to hold it accountable for its actions in child abductions and human rights abuses. If Russia and Belarus are designated as state sponsors of terrorism, this automatically entails a different set of restrictions in the United States: sanctions, bans on the export of military or dual-use technologies, restrictions on international financial assistance, the possibility of lawsuits by injured parties, etc.
Poland completely closes border with Belarus
On the night of September 11-12, Poland completely closed its border with Belarus - all border traffic in both directions, including road and rail (freight) transport, was suspended.
The decision applies to the last two operating checkpoints - in Terespol and Kukuriki (Lublin Voivodeship). In total, six crossing points with Belarus operated in Poland, four of which were closed earlier. Now the movement has been completely suspended.
The Polish Ministry of Internal Affairs explained the decision by two factors: the large-scale joint exercises of Russia and Belarus "West-2025" and increased migration pressure on the border.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs emphasized that this is "a clear signal of Poland's readiness for radical actions in the event of an aggravation of the security situation." In addition, the UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting at Poland's request regarding Russia's violation of Polish airspace, reported the Polish Foreign Ministry.
Following Poland, Latvia also announced the complete closure of its borders with Russia and Belarus for the period of the exercises.
Trump will continue his efforts to end Russia's war against Ukraine, - Rubio
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured that Donald Trump will continue his efforts to end the Russian-Ukrainian war.
"I just had a long conversation with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during which I thanked him for the peace efforts of Donald Trump and the US government. Trump is the only leader who has the power to return peace to Central Europe, and, unlike some European politicians, Hungary firmly supports his mission," said Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó.
He said Rubio assured him that Trump would not abandon his efforts to end the war, and "it gives real hope that this devastating war can finally end."
Photo: suspilne.media
Author: Inna Mikhno
