Real estate developer Steve Witkoff (C) and Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner (R) with a translator in their Kremlin meeting with Vladimir Putin, Moscow, Russia, December 2, 2025

Friday’s Coverage: Macron to Europe’s Leaders — “A Chance the US Will Betray Ukraine”

UPDATE 1121 GMT:

The protective shield over the Chornobyl nuclear reactor in northern Ukraine, the site of the April 1986 disaster, can no longer block radiation after a Russian drone strike in February.

The International Atomic Energy Agency carried out an inspection last week. The steel confinement structure, built at a cost of €1.5 billion ($1.75 billion) next to the destroyed reactor, “had lost its primary safety functions,” said IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.

He noted that while some repairs have been carried out, “comprehensive restoration remains essential to prevent further degradation and ensure long-term nuclear safety.

UPDATE 1113 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has commented on overnight Russian missile and drone strikes which injured civilians and knocked out power across the country.

Russia’s aim is to inflict suffering on millions of Ukrainians, and they stoop so low as to launch missiles at peaceful cities on St. Nicholas Day. That is exactly why additional pressure is needed. Sanctions must work, and so must our air defenses, which means we must maintain support for those defending lives.

UPDATE 0829 GMT:

Ukraine has reportedly struck the Ryazan Oil Refinery, around 180 km (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, for the ninth time this year.

Residents reported the attack overnight. Video showed flames and smoke billowing from the refinery.

Ryazan Governor Pavel Malkov confirmed reports of falling drone debris but did not mention a strike on the refinery.

The Ryazan refinery produces up to 17.1 million tons of oil per year.

UPDATE 0808 GMT:

Russian troops have reportedly executed another Ukrainian prisoner of war.

Ukraine military officials said the Russians captured the soldier near Svyato-Pokrovske village in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

The 10th Mountain Assault Brigade said of a video of the incident:

The footage shows a Ukrainian soldier raising his hands and demonstrating his willingness to surrender, meaning he was no longer participating in hostilities. Despite this, the occupiers continued to keep him at gunpoint and probably opened fire, which could have led to his death.

The Prosecutor General’s office said the wounded Ukrainian tried to take cover, but a Russian soldier “finished him off with a shot from an assault rifle”.

The office is investigating evidence that Russian forces have executed at least 322 Ukrainian POWs during Moscow’s full-scale invasion.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Talks between Donald Trump’s envoys, real estate developer Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, and top Ukraine official Rustem Umerov are entering a third day in Florida.

Details of the discussions have been tightly guarded, following Witkoff and Kushner’s conference with Vladimir Putin and his senior advisors in the Kremlin on Tuesday.

There has been no reference to the Kremlin’s demand for the rest of the strategic Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, agreed by Witkoff and Kushner in a 28-point proposal with Putin’s senior economic advisor Kirill Dmitriev in Florida. Nor has there been any update on the proposal’s ban on Ukrainian membership in NATO and its strict restrictions on Kyiv’s military forces and Western assistance.

On Friday, a statement indirectly addressed a European counter-proposal — supported by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio — which begins with a ceasefire on the current frontlines.

“Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia’s readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings,” the statement summarized.

It also referred to the profit-making ambitions of the Trump camp as well as Ukraine’s economic future: “Parties also separately reviewed the future prosperity agenda which aims to support Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction, joint US–Ukraine economic initiatives, and long-term recovery projects.”

The discussions are being conducted near Miami at the Shell Bay Club, a private golf and lifestyle resort owned by Witkoff’s real estate development company. Umerov is the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and European partners, who earlier in the week warned about a Trump Administration “betrayal” of Kyiv and advised Zelensky of the “danger”, made no comment on Friday.

Zelensky said in his nightly address to the nation on Thursday that his officials wanted to know “what other pretexts Putin has come up with to drag out the war and to pressure Ukraine”.

Large Russian Missile and Drone Attacks Injure 3 Civilians in Kyiv Region

At least three civilians have been injured in the Kyiv region amid a large Russian missile and drone strike across Ukraine overnight.

Russia fired a barrage of missiles and dozens of drones. Reports of UAVs came as far west as the Lviv region. The latest round of launches was just before 7 a.m.

Explosions were reported in Poltava, Lutsk, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, and Bila Tserkva.

Ukraine’s rail authority said Russia carried out a “massive shelling of railway infrastructure” in the Kyiv region. The capital’s main rail station was reportedly hit.