Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Riyadh, March 26, 2026

EA-War and Politics 24 Special: How Ukraine Defeated Putin’s “3-Day War”…and Is Donald Trump A Russian Asset?

Thursday’s Coverage: US Links Security Guarantees to Kyiv’s Abandonment of Donetsk Region

UPDATE 0759 GMT:

Russia is auctioning off natural resource assets in occupied Ukrainian territories, including a gold deposit in the Luhansk region.

Auction documents confirm that the rights to develop the Bobrykivske gold ore deposit were sold for $9.7 million. The buyer is a company controlled by Russian mining firm Polyanka.

The deposit has an estimated 1.64 metric tons of gold, worth almost $260 million at current market prices.

Before Russia’s intervention alongside separatists in eastern Ukraine in 2014, the site was being developed by Australian company Korab Resources.

Russia is also conducting online auctions for mines, quarries, and agricultural land.

UPDATE 0745 GMT:

Russia has threatened retaliation after UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer authorized the military to board and detain Russian ships in British waters.

Starmer said the measure will disrupt Russia’s “shadow fleet”, used to evade international sanction on Moscow’s maritime oil exports.

The Kremlin said Starmer’s announcement was “yet another deeply hostile step directed at Russia” and threatenend, “Such actions have consequences … Russia will use all political, legal, and other tools at our disposal, including asymmetric ones, to protect our interests.”

The UK Government said on Friday that it is committing an additional £100 million ($133 million) to bolster Ukraine’s air defences, bringing total support over the past two months to £600 million ($799 million).

UPDATE 0736 GMT:

Vladimir Putin has reportedly asked Russia’s oligarchs to contribute to the defense budget to maintain the invasion of Ukraine.

At least two businessmen told Putin that they are willing to contribute after talks on Thursday.

The Kremlin’s defence bill soared 42% to 13.1 trillion rubles ($161.7 billion) last year. Russia’s budget deficit for January and February rose to more than 90% of the figure projected for all of 2026, as the Government’s oil revenues fell 47%.

The Government has cut spending on social programs and infrastructure, and increased VAT to 22% to raise an extra 600 billion rubles ($7.3bn) over three years from small and medium-sized businesses.

Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said on Thursday that Russia is considering another windfall tax this year if the ruble continues to weaken.

Putin said Russia will continue the invasion until it captures the rest of the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. He complained that Kyiv had refused to withdraw unilaterally from the Donbas, which comprises the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, in Ukraine-Russia-US talks earlier this year.

Ukraine holds around 20% of Donetsk, and Russia has struggled to advance in high-casualty offensives.

According to one person in Thursday’s meeting, Putin supported a compromise proposal to turn the Donbas into a “demilitarised zone” or US-backed “special economic zone”. He dropped the idea after Ukraine made it clear that surrendering the region was a red line.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Saudi Arabia for talks with leaders, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Neither Zelensky nor the Saudi court offered any details of the discussions. The Saudi State news agency said topics included the regional escalation around the US-Israel War on Iran and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky posted:

Ukraine is providing anti-drone interceptors and experts to the Gulf States, Jordan, and US forces for defense against Iran’s retaliatory missile and drone strikes.

Kyiv is hoping that the assistance will encourage the Trump Administration to support Ukraine’s security against Russia. However, Zelensky said on Wednesday that the Trump camp is demanding Kyiv’s full withdrawal from the strategic Donetsk region, handing it to Russia, in return for any security guarantees.

Amid the US waiving its sanctions until April 11 on any country importing Russian maritime oil, Zelensky thanked Canada for extending its measures, including restrictions on another 100 tankers of Russia’s “shadow fleet”.