Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a surprise three-day ceasefire from May 8-10, coinciding with Moscow's World War II Victory Day commemorations, the Kremlin said on Monday. Moscow said it expected Kyiv to issue a similar order, and that it stood ready to respond to any violations of the possible halt in fighting.  Putin made a similar order to stop combat over Easter, a truce that both sides accused the other of violating hundreds of times, but did lead to a temporary reduction in fighting.

US President Donald Trump said a deal to halt the Ukraine war was "very close" but hit out at Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky over his refusal to formally cede Crimea to Russia. Trump's comments came as Vice President JD Vance warned that the United States would "walk away" unless Russia and Ukraine agree a peace deal, and as envoys from Washington, Kyiv and European nations gathered for downgraded talks in Britain.

On April 9, at an international conference in Baku, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev delivered a statement on the ongoing peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United States. Reaffirming Azerbaijan’s steadfast commitment to Ukraine’s territorial integrity, Aliyev sharply criticized proposals that urge Ukraine to cede parts of its territory in exchange for a ceasefire. “No country, at least in my understanding, will agree to compromise on territorial integrity, and to expect Ukraine to agree that they will sacrifice their internationally recognized territory in exchange for peace is not fair and not realistic,” he declared.

US envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to visit Russia this week, a Kremlin aide said Tuesday, as US President Donald Trump seeks a speedy deal to end the three-year Ukraine conflict. Trump, who promised on the campaign trail to strike a deal between Moscow and Kyiv in 24 hours, has failed since his return to office three months ago to wrangle concessions from Russian President Vladimir Putin to halt his troops in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday that Russia will host a special Russian-Arab summit later this year. The announcement came during Putin's meeting at the Kremlin with the Omani sultan, Haitham bin Tariq Al-Said, the first-ever state visit of the Arab country's sultan to Russia.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s special envoy, is travelling to Paris for talks with European allies on U.S. efforts to negotiate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. The State Department said Rubio and Witkoff would be in the French capital Thursday for the meetings. The officials will have “talks with European counterparts to advance President Trump’s goal to end the Russia-Ukraine war and stop the bloodshed,” department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement on Wednesday.

The President of the OSCE’s Parliamentary Assembly, Finnish MP Pia Kauma (NCP), met with a Russian representative during the annual meeting of the organisation’s Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Tashkent, Uzbekistan drawing fire for violating the EU policy of isolating Russia after the invasion of Ukraine three years ago.

Finland's prime minister has announced that Finland plans to withdraw from the international treaty banning the use of anti-personnel mines, citing the threat from Russia. The announcement comes two weeks after Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia took a first step towards also quitting the treaty, with them all pointing to the increased security risk from Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.Finland's prime minister has announced that Finland plans to withdraw from the international treaty banning the use of anti-personnel mines, citing the threat from Russia. The announcement comes two weeks after Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia took a first step towards also quitting the treaty, with them all pointing to the increased security risk from Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump lashed out at the leaders of both warring parties in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, expressing frustration as efforts to kick-start ceasefire talks remain deadlocked. Trump is trying to broker a ceasefire between Ukraine and its Russian invader, and has been pushing Zelensky to sign an agreement to give US firms exclusive access to Ukrainian rare earth minerals.