Ukraine
MOSCOW BLOG: Dmitriev goes to Washington
That didn’t work well. Kirill Dmitriev, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy on Ukraine who has been leading business talks with the US, shot off to Washington within two days of US President Donald Trump imposing oil sanctions.
Zelenskiy accuses China of aiding Russia’s war effort through industrial and military support
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused China of materially supporting Russia’s military-industrial complex, providing key technologies and resources that have enabled Moscow to sustain and scale its war effort against Ukraine.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent blasts “Russian propagandist” special envoy Dmitriev in Washington PR debacle
A trip to Washington by the Kremlin’s special business envoy Kirill Dmitriev days after the US imposed new oil sanctions turned into a debacle after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blasted him as a “Russian propagandist.”
COMMENT: Europe’s “fake it till you make it” war approach cannot hold off Russia’s trillion dollar war machine
In their speeches on the war in Ukraine, European leaders appear like a video clip looped on repeat. Standing before the cameras they declare new packages of support for Kyiv and threaten new measures to pressure Russia as if it was still 2022.
US expands oil sanctions on Russia
US President Donald Trump imposed his first sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies on October 22, the state-owned Rosneft and the privately-owned Lukoil in the latest flip flop by the US president.
Russia test fires its Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile
Russia’s Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile has no analogues in the world, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, as the Kremlin escalates the unfolding missile arms race with Ukraine another notch.
Russia claims to surround Pokrovsk
Russia’s chief of the general staff Valery Gerasimov triumphantly reported to Putin that 31 Ukrainian battalions have been encircled in Pokrovsk and 18 battalions in Kupyansk, the hottest spot in the war.
EU pledges ongoing support for Ukraine, defers decision on Russian assets
European Union leaders pledged continued financial backing for Ukraine over the next two years, but delayed a decision on tapping billions of euros in frozen Russian assets to fund Kyiv’s defence
Emerging Europe’s growth holds up but risks loom, says wiiw
Fiscal fragility, weakening industrial demand from Germany, and the prolonged fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine threaten to undermine growth momentum in parts of the region.
Hungarian foreign minister says "many actors" worked to prevent Budapest summit
The White House has suspended plans for a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest.
Slovak Foreign Minister Blanár reiterates support for Ukraine’s EU bid
Juraj Blanár says Ukraine is "ready in a way" for accession, but notes objections from some EU member states.
Kremlin says leaders’ good relations helped Budapest secure summit
Hungary is expected to host a second summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump on Ukraine after their talks in Alaska in August did not lead to a breakthrough.
EU mulls partial membership plan to ease enlargement and bypass veto risks
Move is aimed at moving forward with enlargement and overcoming resistance from EU members such as Hungary, but reaching consensus to be a challenge.
Ukrainian M&A market grows 22% despite war, driven by local investors
Two large acquisitions by agriculture holding MHP and mobile operator Kyivstar accounted for more than half of the total deal value.
Ukraine’s growing energy crisis promises a cold and dark winter
Since the summer, Kyiv has changed tactics. Given the almost complete failure of Western oil sanctions to curb Russian oil exports, it has been targeting Russian oil refineries. The Kremlin has struck back, targeting Ukraine's power system.
Minsk asks for talks with Kyiv, as Lukashenko seeks to end Belarus’ isolation
Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko has opened the door to direct dialogue with Kyiv as part of negotiations to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, as he launches a diplomatic drive to break the republic’s isolation and dependence on Russia.
Putin's meeting with Trump in Budapest is a slap in the face for the EU
As preparations get underway for a highly anticipated summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and former US President Donald Trump in Budapest, attention is turning to an unusual but politically sensitive detail: how will Putin get there?
Zelenskiy leaves Washington empty handed, Trump and Putin head to Budapest to talk business
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy went into a White House meeting with US President Donald Trump on October 17 hoping for a big arms deal. He came out of the meeting empty handed.
Ukraine’s credibility crisis: corruption perception still haunts economic recovery
Despite an active reform narrative and growing international engagement, corruption remains the biggest drag on Ukraine’s economic credibility, according to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology.
No Tomahawks for Ukraine, Trump to meet Putin in Hungary
The US cannot deplete its own stockpile of Tomahawk cruise missiles by supplying them to Ukraine, President Donald Trump said at a press conference on October 16 following a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.