February 24, 2022
4:34 pm
LIVE – Russian invasion of Ukraine
Catch up on the headlines from Russia and Ukraine with our Live reporting from Ukraine.Â
You can follow all the news as it comes in – Live reporting invasion from Ukraine.
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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has attracted an incredible amount of propaganda and fake news stories.Â
The people who are suffering are the Ukrainians who have been displaced, killed and captured. No-one disagrees with that.
But so many people are suggesting that their is an endgame that is involves Russian sanctions and isolation.Â
The cost of the war in Ukraine
Whilst Ukraine will be left in ruins and in need of a rebuild. The unfortunate cost of the war will leave the country with debt for the arms that have been supplied by the United States and being used as a proxy for the US.
Russia has a perspective which is monitored and blocked by major search engines.
Ukraine and specifically the President Zelensky is on a PR war. Rallying as many world leaders to join to condemn the Russian invasion. Â
Will Ukraine join NATO?
The questions everyone is still asking is Will Ukraine be able to join NATO and the EU.
And if that happens will Russia take this war to the next level.
On the Ground reporting from WTX News
Follow WTX News for the latest news from the ground in Ukraine.Â
We have staff and reporters on the ground in Ukraine who are reporting to us around the clock.Â
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You can also follow our YouTube Channel, where we bring you a constant stream of videos from the European Union.
On WTX News EU – A new channel after our last one was banned, for sharing the Truth about the War.
Zelenskyy urges pressure on Russia as US-Ukraine talks begin
We have concluded our meeting with the American team.
The discussion was productive and focused — we addressed key points including energy.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s goal is to secure a just and lasting peace for our country and our people — and, by extension, for all of…— Rustem Umerov (@rustem_umerov) March 23, 2025
Cliff Notes – Zelenskyy urges pressure on Russia as US-Ukraine talks begin
- President Zelenskyy calls for renewed pressure on Russia after a drone attack resulted in seven deaths, highlighting the urgent need to end the conflict.
- The US-Ukraine talks on a partial ceasefire began in Saudi Arabia, with Ukrainian Defence Minister describing the discussions as “constructive and meaningful.”
Zelenskyy urges pressure on Russia as US-Ukraine talks begin
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday called on Ukraine’s allies to apply new pressure on Moscow to stop the war.
The call came after nearly 150 Russian drones targeted Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities overnight, killing at least seven people.
“New decisions and new pressure on Moscow are needed to put an end to these strikes and this war,”
“New decisions and new pressure on Moscow are needed to put an end to these strikes and this war,” Zelenskyy posted on social media ahead of talks on a partial ceasefire.
Originally scheduled for Monday in Saudi Arabia, the US-Ukraine talks on a partial ceasefire began on Sunday.
After the meeting, Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov took to his X account to label the talks with the US delegation in Saudi Arabia “constructive and meaningful.”
“We discussed key issues, particularly the energy sector,” the Ukrainian minister said. The US team would meet separately with the Russian delegation.
In a post on Instagram earlier, Zelenskyy also said, over 1,580 guided aerial bombs, nearly 1,100 attack drones, and 15 missiles of various types were used against the Ukrainian people this week alone, stressing that all of this weaponry contains at least 102,000 foreign components.
“That’s why sanctions against Russian terrorists must be more effective. Every loophole that allows them to bypass the sanctions regime must be eliminated,” he wrote.
Russia warns of ‘difficult negotiations’
Meanwhile, Russia downplayed expectations of a quick resolution to the war in Ukraine, saying talks were just beginning and that “difficult negotiations” lay ahead.
“We are only at the beginning of this path,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state TV.
According to Peskov, Russia’s “main” focus in its talks with the United States would be to discuss the possible resumption of a 2022 Black Sea grain deal, which would ensure safe navigation for Ukrainian agricultural exports in the Black Sea.
US expects real progress in talks
US President Donald Trump‘s envoy Steve Witkoff said he expects Ukraine and Russia to make progress on a ceasefire in the Black Sea at the talks in Saudi Arabia.
“I think you’re going to see in Saudi Arabia on Monday some real progress, particularly as it affects a Black Sea ceasefire on ships between both countries. And from that, you’ll naturally gravitate to a full-on shooting ceasefire,” he told Fox News.
Witkoff also said he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin wants peace and is not planning to invade “all of Europe.”
“I feel that he wants peace,” Witkoff said.
Meanwhile, White House National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said the United States is discussing a range of confidence-building measures aimed at ending the war, including the future of Ukrainian children taken to Russia.
Earlier, Putin rejected a joint US-Ukrainian proposal for a full and immediate 30-day ceasefire. Instead, he proposed halting strikes only on energy facilities. But on the eve of the negotiations, both sides launched new drone attacks.
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Europe launches defense push amid Russia threat, US worries
Cliff Notes – Europe launches defense push amid Russia threat, US worries
- The EU has introduced a white paper to bolster member states’ defence capabilities, with plans to mobilise up to €800 billion through loans and relaxed fiscal rules amid concerns over US support and Russian aggression.
- EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas emphasised the urgency for collective security measures, noting an increase in European defence spending of over 30% since the onset of the war in Ukraine.
- The white paper proposes mechanisms for joint procurement and the involvement of non-EU countries, but some diplomats believe it lacks sufficient measures for transformative funding akin to that seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Europe launches defence push amid Russia threat, US worries
The European Union (EU) on Wednesday presented a white paper laying out plans to facilitate member states’ rearmament amid growing concerns that the continent may not be able to depend on support from the United States in the face of Russian aggression.
“The international order is undergoing changes of a magnitude not seen since 1945,” said the EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, the former prime minister of Estonia. “This is a pivotal moment for European security. It is a pivotal moment for action.”
What does the EU defense white paper propose?
Earlier this month, Brussels unveiled a raft of proposals to mobilize up to €800 billion ($875 billion) through EU-guaranteed loans and a relaxation of the bloc’s fiscal rules to allow states to spend more on defense.
Wednesday’s white paper, published by the European Commission, the EU’s primary executive arm, puts flesh on the bones of those plans by setting a concrete timeline for countries to react by pooling resources on joint defense and buying more European arms — starting next month.
“Regardless of the ongoing negotiations for peace in Ukraine, this is a long-term investment in [response to] a long-term plan of aggression,” Kallas said, referring to a Russian economy, which she said was in “full war mode” with 40% of its federal budget going on military expenditure.
EU countries ramped up their collective defense spending by over 30% between 2021 and 2024 in response to Russia’s threats against and then full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Poland and the Baltic states, countries with lived memories of occupation by the Soviet Union and land borders with the Russian Federation, are already spending significantly more than the NATO threshold of 2% of GDP.
German lawmakers on Tuesday took the seismic step of voting for a colossal defence and infrastructure spending package proposed by the likely incoming chancellor, Friedrich Merz.
But their efforts have acquired more urgency as a result of the apparent rapprochement between Moscow and Washington since the return of US President Donald Trump to the White House.
“450 million EU citizens should not have to depend on 340 million Americans to defend ourselves against 140 million Russians who can’t defeat 38 million Ukrainians,” said EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius, the hawkish former prime minister of Lithuania.
“We really can do better,” he added. “It’s time for us to take responsibility for the defense of Europe.”
What about non-EU countries?
Key to the new defense blueprint is a proposal to allow EU member states to take out centrally backed loans together, which would also have the effect of encouraging closer defense cooperation and the procurement of compatible equipment.
According to an analysis by New York consulting firm McKinsey, European armies currently operate 19 different main battle tanks (compared to just one in the US Army) and 17 types of torpedoes (compared to just two in the US).
The white paper also foresees mechanisms to enable the involvement of non-EU countries such as Norway, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, South Korea, Japan — and indeed Ukraine.
As an official EUÂ candidate country, Turkey can already take part in certain common procurement projects, while a bespoke defense cooperation deal would have to be agreed with the UK, which left the bloc in 2020.
One EU diplomat told the Reuters news agency that the white paper reflected the “threat and urgency” of the challenge facing the 27-member bloc but did not go far enough on ways to boost funding.
“All in all there is no big bang,” they said.
Indeed, the proposals steered clear of recommending a comprehensive program of joint borrowing, despite some EU countries arguing that the bloc would benefit from a massive infusion of cash comparable to that pumped in during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Right now, it’s just not there,” Kallas said. “But is it completely off the table? I don’t think so.”
Moscow has condemned the EU’s rearmament push as an incitement to war based on an “invented story” of a Russian threat — words that have not reassured European leaders since similar statements were made prior to the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“If Russia is allowed to achieve its goals in Ukraine, its territorial claims will expand,” warned the EU Commission in the white paper, adding: “Russia will remain a fundamental threat to the security of Europe for the foreseeable future.”
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awesome – Thank you