Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Riyadh, April 24, 2026

EA-Times Radio VideoCast: The Kremlin’s Lies About Cost of Its Ukraine Invasion

EA-Ukraine VideoCast: Kyiv’s Pressure on Russia

Friday’s Coverage: Fires Still Burning At Damaged Russian Oil Refinery

UPDATE 0806 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has posted about the latest Russian strikes on Ukraine’s civilians, killing at least four and injuring more than 30.

Each such strike must remind our partners that the situation requires immediate and decisive action. We need rapid strengthening of our air defense….We must also move forward now toward the 21st package of European sanctions against Russia.

UPDATE 0701 GMT:

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry has punished two commanders after photos circulated of a group of emaciated soldiers, left on the frontline for months without adequate food and water.

The commander of the 14th Brigade was fired, and the commander of the 10th Corps demoted.

The wife of one of the soldiers posted images on social media of the four men, pale and malnourished with prominent ribcages and thin arms.

The brigade acknowledged there were logistical problems and said deliveries were only possible by air because their location was extremely close to enemy lines.

The men were defending an area near Kupyansk in northeast Ukraine.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Pursuing security and energy cooperation, Volodymyr Zelensky is holding talks with leaders in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.

Zelensky’s visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday was his second to the Kingdom in less than seven weeks, amid the US-Israel War on Iran. Kyiv has provided anti-drone weapons, technology, and experts as they face Iranian retaliatory strikes.

The meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on March 10 yielded a 10-year defense cooperation agreement.

Zelensky posted about Friday’s follow-up over “the export of Ukrainian security expertise and capabilities in air defense”, energy cooperation, and food security.

We are working together to strengthen our peoples and our partners. We have set tasks for our teams, and I expect their prompt and full implementation. Now, when international relations are significantly destabilized, it is precisely this kind of bilateral engagement that restores confidence.

A Ukrainian official confirmed that President Zelensky arrived in Azerbaijan on Friday night for discussions on “security and energy cooperation and coordination”.

Zelensky is expected to meet President Ilham Aliyev in Baku.

Relations between the Kremlin and Azerbaijan, a former Soviet republic, have soured during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

On February 22, 2022, two days before the invasion, Azerbaijan and Russia signed a strategic partnership declaration in Moscow.

However Azerbaijan repeatedly expressed support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sent humanitarian aid. A pro-Ukraine rally in Baku signaled a shift towards support for Ukraine’s resistance.

In December 2024, an Azerbaijani passenger plane was mistakenly hit by a Russian anti-aircraft missile, killing 38 people. For 10 months, Vladimir Putin refused to accept responsibility, finally doing so in a meeting with Aliyev in October 2025.

Zelensky called Aliyev to offer help with the investigation and discuss assistance in bringing the case to an international court.