Ukraine President Volydymyr Zelensky and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Brussels, Belgium, August 17, 2025 (Times News)

EA-Times Radio VideoCast: Ukraine — Can Zelensky and Europe Counter Putin’s Manipulation of Trump?

EA on WION and BBC: Ukraine — What Next After Putin’s Humbling of Trump?

UPDATE 1814 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has concluded his press appearance with Donald Trump in what appears to be a big win for Kyiv and its European partners.

Trump spent most of the time flattering himself and expressing his grievances, from the media to the Biden Administration to mail-in ballots. Zelensky sat by silently, avoiding any intervention that could upset the reality TV star.

Avoiding a repetition of the ambush by Vice President J.D. Vance and Trump on February 28, Zelensky also ensured he did not raise any point that could be contentious. Instead, he repeatedly praised Trump as a peacemaker and gave him a letter from First Lady Olena Zelenska to Trump’s wife Melania.

The big victory for Ukraine was Trump’s repeated assurance that the Administration will join Europe in security guarantees for Kyiv: “We will give them very good protection, very good security.”

And Zelensky and the Europeans appear to have boxed Vladimir Putin into either accepting a trilateral meeting, thus recognizing Zelensky’s legitimacy, or rejecting it and offending Trump.

“We are ready for trilateral talks. As the President said, it’s a good signal about trilateral,” Zelensky said.

“If everything works out well today, we’ll have a trilat — and I think there will be a reasonable chance of ending the war when we do that,” added Trump.

UPDATE 1702 GMT:

Just before entering the White House for a press appearance and meeting with Donald Trump, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky posted:

UPDATE 1444 GMT:

Contrary to media depictions of rapid Russian advance or even “victory”, Moscow’s forces have captured less than 1% of Ukrainian territory since November 2022, concludes the battlefield monitoring group DeepState reported.

In the last 33 months, Russian forces have only seized 5,842 square km (2,256 square miles), expanding their occupation from 108,651 square km to 114,493 square km.

Around 20% of Ukrainian land is currently occupied.

UPDATE 1436 GMT:

Gasoline prices in Russia have surged to historic highs after Ukrainian drone strikes forced at least three major refineries to halt production.

On the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange, the cost of Ai-92 gasoline reached 71,500 rubles ($888) per ton, while Ai-95 climbed to 80,430 rubles ($999) per ton. Prices rose by up to 2.2% in a single day and have jumped 38% and 49% respectively since the start of 2025.

Since early August, Ukrainian drones have struck numerous refineries, including Rosneft’s plants in Novokuybyshevsk and Saratov and Lukoil’s Volgograd refinery — the largest in southern Russia and among the top 10 nationwide.

In occupied Crimea and parts of the Zabaykalsky Krai in eastern Russia, Ai-95 gasoline is being sold only by coupons to enterprises.

Russia’s Energy Ministry insisted that “the situation is under control”, with sufficient supply, increasing domestic deliveries, and no logistical problems.

Ukraine’s military said on Friday that its long-range strikes in 2025 have caused losses worth 4.11% of Russia’s annual GDP, or about $74.1 billion. Oil refineries have been the most common targets, with 42% of Ukrainian attacks this year.

UPDATE 1326 GMT:

An entire family, including an 18-month-old girl and her 16-year-old brother, are among the seven civilians killed in Russia’s overnight drone strike on a residential neighbourhood in Kharkiv city.

Twenty-three people were wounded.

UPDATE 1104 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has commented on the latest Russian attacks on the country’s civilians:

The Russian war machine continues to destroy lives despite everything. Putin will commit demonstrative killings to maintain pressure on Ukraine and Europe, as well as to humiliate diplomatic efforts.

That is precisely why we are seeking assistance to put an end to the killings. That is why reliable security guarantees are required. That is why Russia should not be rewarded for its participation in this war.

The war must be ended. And it is Moscow that must hear the word: “Stop.”

He noted that the toll in Zaporizhzhia in southern Ukraine from a Russian missile strike has risen to three killed and 20 injured.

UPDATE 0937 GMT:

The toll has risen to seven murdered, including an 18-month-old girl and a 16-year-old boy, and at least 20 injured from Russia’s drone strikes on a residential building in Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv this morning.

Six children aged 6 to 17 were among the wounded.

In the Zaporizhzhia region in the south, 17 people have been injured by shelling.

UPDATE 0903 GMT:

Former Russian Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev posts an observation on VLadimir Putin’s breaking of agreements:

UPDATE 0713 GMT:

At least 10 civilians have been killed, including two children, and 35 injured by Russian strikes across Ukraine over the past day.

Air defenses intercepted 88 of 140 drones, with 25 UAVs striking 10 locations.

The Russians also launched four Iskander-M ballistic missiles.

Six civilians were murdered and 18 injured in Kharkiv city (see entry below).

Three people were slain and seven wounded in the neighboring Donetsk region.

A child was killed and six injured in the Zaporizhzia region in the south amid 502 attacks on 14 settlements.

Casualties were also reported in the Kherson and Sumy regions.

UPDATE 0708 GMT:

The toll has risen to six murdered, including an 18-month-old girl and a 16-year-old boy, and more than 18 injured from Russia’s drone attack on a five-story apartment block in Kharkiv before dawn on Monday.

The strike by four drones collapsed part of the building and set fires on at least three floors. Rescuers attempted to break through the rubble to reach a trapped resident.

Earlier the city was hit by a ballistic missile that wounded at least 11 people.

Russia also attacked the Odesa region in the south with drones early Monday, sparking a fire at a fuel facility.

UPDATE 0703 GMT:

Ukraine Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has posted a reminder that the Kremlin, rejecting a ceasefire, is continuing deadly attacks on Ukrainian civilians.

Sybiha posted after Russian strikes on Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv:

UPDATE 0649 GMT:

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul says pressure should be increased on Russia and more aid given to Ukraine, pushing the Kremlin towards a “just and lasting peace”.

Spekaing in Tokyo, Wadephul said, “It is probably not an exaggeration to say the whole world is looking to Washington.

“Firm security guarantees are central, he stressed, because “Ukraine must be able to defend itself effectively even after a ceasefire and peace agreement”.

UPDATE 0640 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has updated, with a reminder from history that he will not cede territory to a “Greater Russia”:

We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably. And peace must be lasting. Not like it was years ago, when Ukraine was forced to give up Crimea and part of our East — part of Donbas — and Putin simply used it as a springboard for a new attack. Or when Ukraine was given so called “security guarantees” in 1994, but they didn’t work.

Of course, Crimea should not have been given up then, just as Ukrainians did not give up Kyiv, Odesa, or Kharkiv after 2022. Ukrainians are fighting for their land, for their independence.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Europe’s leaders will see Donald Trump in the White House on Monday, hoping to re-establish the terms for an end to Russia’s 42-month invasion.

In late February, as the Trump Administration cut all assistance to Ukraine’s defense, Zelensky was ambushed by Vice President Donald Trump and US Vice President J.D. Vance. This time, he will accompanied by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, and the leaders of five European countries: Germany’s Friedrich Merz, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, France’s Emmanuel Macron, Finland’s Alexander Stubb, and the UK’s Keir Starmer.

Zelensky and the Europeans coordinated their approach in a video call on Sunday. The Ukraine President posted:

We have to stop the killings. Putin has many demands but we do not know all of them. If there are really as many as we heard, then it will take time to go through them all. It is impossible to do this under the pressure of weapons…

We need real negotiations, which means they can start where the frontline is now. The contact line is the best line for talking. Europeans support this.

Trump capitulated to Vladimir Putin in their meeting on Friday in Alaska, giving up the priority of a ceasefire and his threat of toughened sanctions on Russia and its trading partners. Putin demanded all of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine, including areas currently held by Ukraine, as well as Crimea and the occupied parts of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in the south.

However, a glimmer of an advance came through mentions of security guarantees for Ukraine from the US as well as European partners. On Sunday, Trump’s envoy to Russia Steve Witkoff said the Russians had agreed to a guarantee for Ukraine similar to NATO’s Article 5.

Under Article 5, each NATO members commits to the defense of another who is attacked.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, also speaking on US television, was more cautious and did not indicate a Russian commitment:

There’s going to have to be some security guarantees as part of [a peace deal]. How that’s structured, how that’s built, and what our role will be, that will be the kinds of things we’ll have to work through.

It’s one of [Ukraine’s] fundamental demands, is that if this were to end, they have to make sure this never happens again. They don’t want to get reinvaded.

In a major shift of the Kremlin’s position, Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s envoy to international organisations in Vienna, said Russia agrees that any future Ukraine peace agreement must provide security guarantees to Kyiv. He added that Russia “has equal right to expect that Moscow will also get efficient security guarantees”, without defining them.

Late Sunday, Trump added another uncertainty when he blustered:

President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and no going into Nato by Ukraine. Some things never change!!!”

Trump did not say whether the acceptance must be of continued Russian occupation of Crimea, seized by Moscow in 2014, or of legal recognition of the Kremlin’s “annexation”.

Zelensky and the Europeans have indicated that they can accept short-term Russian occupation as part of a settlement to end the invasion and provide security guarantees.

But they have ruled out any recognition of the illegal takeover of the areas, and the Ukraine Constitution forbids any cession without support in a referendum. Zelensky posted earlier Sunday:

Russia is still unsuccessful in the Donetsk region, Putin has been unable to take it for 12 years.

Ukraine’s Constitution makes it impossible to give up or trade land. Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral – Ukraine, the U.S., Russia. So far, Russia gives no sign this will happen, and if Russia refuses, new sanctions must follow.