‘Vladimir, STOP!’, Trump demands, as he says he’s ‘not happy’ with ‘not necessary’ Russian strikes on Kyiv
US president Donald Trump has just responded to the overnight attacks on Kyiv, saying he is “not happy,” and calling them “not necessary” and criticising “very bad timing”.
In a social media post, he said:
I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!
Key events
-
Europe must never again risk blackmail from Russia, Starmer says, as he calls for ‘partnership with EU that meets needs of our time’
-
Pope Francis’ funeral is loaded with potential for diplomatic awkwardness
-
Student killed and three injured in stabbing attack at French high school
-
Polish, Israeli presidents join thousands in March of the Living
-
‘US anger should be directed at … Putin,’ Macron says, as he urged Russian leader to ‘stop lying’
-
Zelenskyy calls for more pressure on Russia after massive Kyiv attack – video
-
‘Vladimir, STOP!’, Trump demands, as he says he’s ‘not happy’ with ‘not necessary’ Russian strikes on Kyiv
-
Zelenskyy cannot be expected to accept ceasefire while Kyiv is bombarded, Macron says
-
Thousands of pilgrims pay respects to Pope Francis
-
Zelenskyy’s press conference with SA’s Ramaphosa – snap analysis
-
‘Clear message from Kremlin: Russia has no real interest in peace,’ Danish PM says
-
Not enough strong pressure on Russia, Ukraine’s Zelenskyy says
-
Russia seeks to put pressure, isolate Ukraine, Zelenskyy warns, as he thanks for ‘not easy, but constructive’ London talks
-
It is on Russia to issue orders to stop attacks, Zelenskyy says
-
South Africa ‘deeply concerned’ about continuing Ukraine conflict, calls for ceasefire, Ramaphosa says
-
Russia’s attacks ‘make a mockery’ of its claims about peace, EU’s Kallas says
-
Swedish jets intercept Russian plane near Poland
-
Britain does not recognise Russian claims to illegally occupied territory of Ukraine, minister says
-
Russia claims strikes targeted Ukrainian defence industry
-
Zelenskyy meets South Africa’s Ramaphosa in Pretoria
-
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight – map
-
Russia blames Ukraine’s Zelenskyy for wrecking peace diplomacy
-
Zelenskyy cuts visit to South Africa short after overnight attacks
-
215 Russian strikes on Ukraine over night, Ukrainian air force says
-
‘Particularly horrible’ attack on Kyiv leaves nine dead, over 70 injured, foreign minister says
-
People shelter in the metro as Russian missiles hit Ukraine’s capital – video
-
‘Major rescue operation’ after Russian attack, minister says
-
Morning opening: Is this your idea of peace?
Europe must never again risk blackmail from Russia, Starmer says, as he calls for ‘partnership with EU that meets needs of our time’
Back to Russia and Ukraine, UK prime minister Keir Starmer and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen are both at the Summit on the Future of Energy Security in London and spoke about the importance of getting off Russian sources of energy and their backing for Ukraine.
Starmer said that “every family and every business across the United Kingdom has paid the price for Russia weaponising energy,” as he added:
Europe must never again be in a position where Russia thinks that they can blackmail us on energy and until Russia comes to the table and agrees a full and unconditional ceasefire.
We must continue to crack down on their energy revenues, which are still fuelling Putin’s war chest.
But then in comments that are likely to attract some attention ahead of next month’s UK-EU summit on reset, Starmer added that “it’s the moment to build a partnership with the EU that meets the needs of our time”.
Pope Francis’ funeral is loaded with potential for diplomatic awkwardness
St Peter’s Basilica has reopened for thousands of people to pay their final respects to Pope Francis for a second day, following a brief pause after keeping its doors open all night.
The 16th-century basilica, where Francis’s simple wooden coffin is placed on the main altar, was scheduled to close at midnight but remained open until 5.30am to allow in those who still wished to enter.
The Vatican said on Thursday that more than 60,000 people had viewed the late pontiff’s body since the basilica opened to the faithful on Wednesday morning.
But as world leaders head to Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday, fraught Vatican officials will be poring over logistics in an effort to avoid diplomatic awkwardness.
Should Donald Trump be kept away from the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy? Or the French president, Emmanuel Macron, or Brazil’s leftist leader, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, or any Iranians that might appear? There may be relief that Vladimir Putin has said he will not attend, but will everyone expect front row seats?
The pope’s funeral provides an unexpected opportunity for impromptu international diplomacy and uncomfortable encounters. The 10am start means most heads of state and political leaders will arrive in Rome on Friday evening, with a brief window for meetings if desired.
“There will be some potentially really interesting dynamics at the funeral,” said Francis Campbell, who was the UK’s ambassador to the Holy See between 2005 and 2011.
The last comparable occasion, the funeral of Pope John Paul II in April 2005, was the “diplomatic event of the year”, according to the Center on Public Diplomacy at the University of Southern California.
Student killed and three injured in stabbing attack at French high school
A student at a French high school stabbed four other students at his school on Thursday, killing at least one and injuring three others before being arrested, police said.
The circumstances of the attack were not immediately clear. A national police official said it had taken place at the private Notre-Dame-de-Toutes-Aides high school in Nantes on the Atlantic coast.
The student stabbed four people with a knife during a lunch break before teachers subdued him, and he was later taken in by police, the official – who was not authorised to be named publicly – said.
A police spokesperson said there was no indication of a terrorist motive. Teachers had overpowered the student, 15, before police arrived, they said.
Polish, Israeli presidents join thousands in March of the Living
The Polish and Israeli presidents joined thousands of Israeli youth and others in an annual march at the former German Nazi Auschwitz death camp on Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day, AP reported.
The group included Holocaust survivors and former Israeli hostages who were captured by Hamas and held in the Gaza Strip, organisers said.
AP explained that every year young Israelis, many with their national flag around their shoulders, are among those making the March of the Living to remember the victims of the Holocaust.
Polish President Andrzej Duda and his Israeli counterpart, Isaac Herzog, spoke to reporters ahead of the march, describing their presence as part of an effort to stand against antisemitism.
Jakub Krupa
Let’s take a quick look at other events around Europe now.
‘US anger should be directed at … Putin,’ Macron says, as he urged Russian leader to ‘stop lying’
We now have more lines from Emmanuel Macron (14:27).
The French president said Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin needed to “stop lying” over wanting peace in Ukraine while continuing to strike the country, he said in comments reported by the AFP.
“The only thing to do is for President Putin to finally stop lying,” Macron said during a visit to Madagascar.
He accused the Russian leader of telling US negotiators “he wants peace” but then continuing “to bombard Ukraine”.
“In Ukraine, they only want a single answer: Does President Putin agree to an unconditional ceasefire?” Macron said.
Macron said Putin was the only person holding up the US-proposed and European-backed proposal.
“If President Putin says yes, the weapons will fall silent tomorrow, lives will be saved.”
“US anger should be directed at only one person, President Putin,” he added.
Zelenskyy calls for more pressure on Russia after massive Kyiv attack – video
You can watch Zelenskyy’s comments from Pretoria earlier in this short clip.
‘Vladimir, STOP!’, Trump demands, as he says he’s ‘not happy’ with ‘not necessary’ Russian strikes on Kyiv
US president Donald Trump has just responded to the overnight attacks on Kyiv, saying he is “not happy,” and calling them “not necessary” and criticising “very bad timing”.
In a social media post, he said:
I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!
Zelenskyy cannot be expected to accept ceasefire while Kyiv is bombarded, Macron says
French president Emmanuel Macron has also expressed his support for Ukraine and the country’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, despite mounting pressure from the US.
Reuters said that speaking during a visit to Madagascar, he told reporters that one cannot expect Zelenskyy to accept ceasefire terms while Kyiv, the country’s capital, is being bombarded.
Thousands of pilgrims pay respects to Pope Francis
Elsewhere, thousands of pilgrims continue to pay their final respects to Pope Francis, as he lies in state in St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.
Despite earlier announcements, the basilica closed for just one hour overnight for cleaning, in a push to accommodate more visits before Friday night.
By Thursday lunchtime, more than 60,000 people had stood in line for hours in St Peter’s Square to make their way into the basilica to catch a glimpse of Francis’s body, which is laid out in an open coffin, PA noted.
The Vatican also confirmed today that the public will be able to visit Pope Francis’s tomb at the Roman basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore “as early as Sunday morning,” after his funeral on Saturday.
Zelenskyy’s press conference with SA’s Ramaphosa – snap analysis
Rachel Savage
The atmosphere at Zelenskyy’s joint press conference with President Cyril Ramaphosa was mostly serious, perhaps paying heed to the loss of life in Ukraine overnight.
It warmed up towards the end of the question and answer session, when Zelenskyy switched from Ukrainian to English to joke with Ramaphosa about whether he had managed to answer the multiple questions posed by journalists.
Zelenskyy refused to be drawn on what Ukraine was willing to compromise on, returning again and again to the need for more pressure on Russia to agree to a comprehensive, unconditional ceasefire.
Ramaphosa was more cautious in his language, calling on “both parties” to agree to a ceasefire and saying the war had negatively affected both Russia and Ukraine. However, he later said that Ukraine should be commended for agreeing to an unconditional ceasefire, saying it was “a positive signal that should be embraced.”
Jakub Krupa
Let’s quickly go to our Southern Africa correspondent Rachel Savage for her take on this press conference.
‘Clear message from Kremlin: Russia has no real interest in peace,’ Danish PM says
In the last half hour, Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen also reacted to the overnight strikes on Kyiv, saying in her social media that the strikes sent “a clear message from Kremlin: Russia has no real interest in peace.”
Here is what she said:
“Kyiv was brutally attacked by Russia again last night.
A clear message from the Kremlin: Russia has no real interest in peace.
Peace cannot be negotiated under fire. Denmark stands with Ukraine against this brutality.”
Closing the press conference, South Africa’s Ramaphosa highlights the Ukrainian willingness to talk about an unconditional ceasefire, which he says could be “a key ingredient in a negotiation process.”
He gets asked about the US threat to withdraw from the peace process, and says that “it is for the US to decide on the role they want to play,” but adds “we believe the US has an important role to play, as does Europe,” and others, like China and Brazil.
And that concludes their press conference, with Zelenskyy confirming earlier that he will cut the visit short to return to Ukraine, with foreign ministry officials picking up the rest of the programme.
Not enough strong pressure on Russia, Ukraine’s Zelenskyy says
Responding to another round of questions, Zelenskyy stresses once again that Ukraine, unlike Russia, agreed to president Trump’s request for an unconditional ceasefire.
He says that Ukraine has done as much as possible to progress in talks with the US by signing a memorandum on minerals, after removing provisions that would contradict its constitution.
He says Ukraine does not “see strong pressure on Russia now” nor new sanctions against Moscow, despite its unwillingness to progress the talks.
“We believe that with greater pressure on the Russian Federation, we will be able to bring our sides closer,” he says.
He adds that any further compromises can be discussed once the ceasefire is agreed.
But he notes that after over three years of fighting a war of aggression with thousands killed, the willingness to sit down for talks with the aggressor is already a compromise.
The Ukrainian president says that agreeing to the ceasefire would demonstrate “political goodwill” from all sides.
He repeats that Ukraine’s focus is on ending the war, and stresses the importance of returning the Ukrainian children abducted by Russia back home.
Zelenskyy also specifically calls on the US to play a substantial role in guaranteeing peace as he says that the outcome of London talks should be now on president Trump’s desk for consideration.
In his responses, South Africa’s Ramaphosa sticks to his earlier lines, calling for a diplomatic and negotiated solution to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
He also says that “the world as a whole is ready to act as guarantors” of peace, adding that both South Africa and other African leaders “would be willing to play that positive role as well.”
“All wars do come to an end, and it depends at what stage they come to an end, and we say it should be sooner rather than later, because the continuation of this war continues to wreak havoc, destruction of lives, infrastructure, economies of both countries,” he says.
Russia seeks to put pressure, isolate Ukraine, Zelenskyy warns, as he thanks for ‘not easy, but constructive’ London talks
Responding to questions, Zelenskyy also says that while he wouldn’t associate the attack with his visit to South Africa, he believes that “Putin does not like Ukraine’s presence” in Africa, as it wants it to block from having normal relations with other states.
He says Russia seeks to put pressure on Ukraine and the US in the peace process, as he describes yesterday’s talks in London as “not easy, but constructive.”
“[The meeting] ended not with disagreements, but with a will to work further,” he says, adding that Russia must have been hoping for “a big scandal,” as he dismisses some later comments – presumably Trump’s burst overnight – as “emotions.”
He says Russia hopes to isolate Ukraine to make it an easier target, but notes that “even in the first days of the war, when we were almost alone, we were able to hold up,” and Ukraine is now “much stronger.”
He returns to his main message:
“If Russia declares that it is ready for a ceasefire, they need to stop the strikes on Ukraine.”
#Vladimir #stop #Trump #criticises #Putin #attack #Kyiv #Europe #live #Ukraine
