Bloomberg
Bloomberg is an American financial, software, data, and media company founded by Michael Bloomberg in 1981. It is best known for its Bloomberg Terminal, which provides real-time financial data and analytics to financial professionals, as well as its news services, Bloomberg TV, Bloomberg Radio, and Bloomberg.com. The company is headquartered in New York City. Michael Bloomberg, the founder and majority owner, also used the company as a vehicle for his political activities, most notably his 2020 campaign for the Democratic nomination for U.S. President.
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Russia launches massive combined strike on Kyiv overnight, killing one and damaging metro, shopping centre and energy infrastructure
On the night of 18–19 October, Russia struck Ukraine with Iskander-M/S-400 ballistic missiles, Iskander-K cruise missiles and 269 strike drones, including 59 jet-powered Shaheds. Kyiv was hit by two waves of ballistic strikes at around 23:00 and 03:00, killing a 21-year-old woman and damaging residential buildings, a medical facility, an educational institution, a metro station and the Cosmo Multimall shopping centre. Ukrainian officials say the first wave arrived without partner warning; US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he did not know exactly what happened.
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Putin proposes Trump–Xi trilateral on Ukraine, without Zelensky; Rubio confirms talks
Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a trilateral summit with US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to discuss ending the war in Ukraine on terms favourable to Moscow, according to The Wall Street Journal. The Kremlin suggested the APEC summit in Shenzhen on 18–19 November as a possible venue. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on 19 October in Samarkand that discussions had taken place but said he did not know whether the meeting had been finalised. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would not be included in the proposed format.
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Zelensky says US has resumed sharing intelligence with Ukraine after a three-day pause
In an interview broadcast on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, October 18, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the United States has resumed sharing intelligence with Ukraine after it was blocked for "a certain period of time." According to Zelensky's office, the pause lasted three days and coincided with Russian ballistic missile strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure on October 12 and the night of October 14. Zelensky also said he hopes negotiations with Washington can take place during the same week, and warned that US alignment with Russia would be "a historic mistake and a great tragedy."
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Trump suspends Russia sanctions under "Graham Law" days before they were to take effect
President Donald Trump on October 16, 2026 signed an executive order suspending the application of sanctions, restrictions, and tariffs against Russia that had been due to take effect on October 18 under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act. Using a waiver provision in the law, Trump certified to Congress that the suspension serves the national interests of the United States. The order keeps the new measures formally on the books but does not apply them for now, while previously imposed US sanctions against Russia remain in force. Critics including the law's co-author Senator Richard Blumenthal and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the move; Russia's Kirill Dmitriev welcomed it as a "truly historic moment."
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European leaders brace for Trump siding with Moscow as energy sanctions are rolled back
European leaders gathering at an EU summit in Brussels this week are bracing for a scenario in which US President Donald Trump effectively sides with Moscow after a week of steps that rolled back years of US energy sanctions on Russia, pressured Kyiv to stop strikes on Russian oil refineries, and publicly questioned the legitimacy of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told reporters in Brussels that "the Western alliance is now in a weaker position than it was a few days ago," and several EU leaders privately said Trump is inclined to attack Kyiv and back Moscow, and is unlikely to change. Zelenskyy has said he feels betrayed and publicly criticised Trump. Despite the friction, the US continues to sell weapons and share intelligence with Ukraine.
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Zelensky confirms US warned it could halt intelligence sharing if Ukraine keeps striking Russian oil refineries
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed in an NPR interview that the Trump administration warned Ukraine it could stop sharing intelligence if Ukrainian forces continued to attack Russian oil refineries. Zelensky said the warning was conveyed to his generals, not to him personally, and that as of the interview the exchange had not actually been halted. The warning comes as Kyiv was hit by ballistic missiles on the evenings of October 12 and 13 without advance US warning, and SpaceX imposed speed-based restrictions on Starlink and Starshield terminals used by the Ukrainian military. Trump publicly denied that intelligence sharing had been stopped.
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Russia hits Kyiv energy grid with 39 ballistic missiles and 128 drones, knocking out power for 600,000
Russia launched a massive combined strike on Ukraine overnight on 13–14 October, using 39 ballistic missiles and 128 strike drones against energy and critical infrastructure in Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast and Kharkiv. President Zelensky said at least 600,000 people were left without electricity and that the main target of the Kyiv attack was the TEC-4 combined heat and power plant, which sustained direct hits. Three people were killed in Kyiv, more than 20 were injured, and the attack came days after U.S. President Donald Trump announced an "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine.
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Kellogg breaks with Trump, says Ukraine should be free to strike inside Russia
Former US special envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said at the Warsaw Security Forum that Kyiv should be free to hit targets in Russia, including oil refineries. His remarks put him at odds with US President Donald Trump, who over the weekend called on Ukraine to stop such attacks. Kellogg dismissed Trump's recent statements, including the suggestion that Volodymyr Zelensky consider leaving the presidency, as "noise."
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NATO estimates Russian losses in September exceeded 50,000, roughly 10 times Ukraine's
A senior NATO military official told Bloomberg that Russian personnel losses in Ukraine in September exceeded 50,000, including up to 28,000 killed, compared with about 5,000 Ukrainian losses over the same period. The official attributed Russia's high attrition to offensive tactics that send troops into "kill zones" saturated with Ukrainian drones, mines and artillery. Bloomberg said it could not independently verify the figures.
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Trump announces "energy ceasefire" with Russia; Kremlin declines to confirm, Ukraine says it wasn't told
On 11 October, US President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that an "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine was taking effect immediately, claiming both sides had agreed. The White House later told Axios that the proposal referred specifically to mutual cessation of strikes on oil refineries, described as "refinery for refinery." The Kremlin declined to confirm any deal, and within hours Russian forces struck energy infrastructure in Ukraine, including the TEC-5 thermal power plant in Kharkiv. Speaking by video link at the Warsaw Security Forum on 12 October, President Volodymyr Zelensky said the announcement was news to him, that Ukraine has only one oil refinery while Russia has an extensive network, and that if Russia does not agree to an energy ceasefire this winter, Ukraine will respond.
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Trump announces Russia diesel deal after Putin call; Ukraine and European leaders condemn move
On 9 October 2026, US President Donald Trump announced he had spoken by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin and agreed to lift US sanctions on Russian diesel, allowing large-scale exports to American and global markets. The US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License No. 135 authorising the imports until 7 April 2027. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sharply criticised the decision, calling it a "weak" and "unfair and dishonest" birthday gift to Putin that gives Russia additional billions for the war, while EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, the UK, Germany, France, Finland, Sweden, Estonia, and US Democrats all condemned or distanced themselves from the deal. Talks between Ukrainian, US and European delegations in Miami ended early after the announcement, and a senior Ukrainian official told the Financial Times that long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries would continue.
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NATO's top Europe general drafts 'Theory of Victory' for a Russian attack, built on drones and AI
NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Alexus Grinkevich, is preparing a strategy document titled "Theory of Victory" that sets out how the Alliance would rapidly repel a possible Russian attack on its eastern flank using drones, minimally-crewed systems and artificial intelligence. The document is to be presented in Poland on October 12, and a non-classified version has been obtained by the agency ahead of the unveiling.
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Poland and Romania refuse to expand Ukrainian grain transit as Black Sea blockade drives export crisis
Poland and Romania have declined Ukraine's request to increase grain transit through their territories, citing the interests of their own farmers. Ukraine's agriculture minister traveled to Brussels to warn of a "very, very critical" situation, with up to 35 million tons of grain potentially stuck in the country and next year's sown area projected to shrink by 35–40% if the Black Sea blockade continues.
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Zelensky says Ukraine ready for trilateral talks with US and Russia by end of October
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine is prepared to join a US-proposed trilateral technical-level meeting with the United States and Russia before the end of October, with the United Arab Emirates or another American-suggested venue under consideration. He made the statement at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Kyiv on October 4, a day after confirming Ukraine's readiness to the American negotiating group. Kyiv is now waiting for Moscow's response to the proposal.
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Merz accuses Russia of supporting Germany's far-right AfD, offers no evidence
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in a speech in Münster that Russia supports the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, without providing concrete evidence. The remarks came at the International Westphalian Peace Prize ceremony, whose 2025 laureate is NATO, and follow a sharp drop in support for Merz's CDU in two regional elections.
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Turkey and UN to mediate new Russia–Ukraine Black Sea ceasefire talks in early October
Turkey and the United Nations are organizing a new round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine on a ceasefire in the Black Sea to protect grain and food exports. Meetings are scheduled for early October, with the Swiss NGO Center for Humanitarian Dialogue acting as mediator. The initiative, launched in September, seeks to recreate the 2022 Black Sea Grain Initiative and was discussed at a closed meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly attended by officials from Turkey, the US, European countries, India and Egypt.
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More than half of Ukraine's F-16s grounded by Belgian maintenance delays
A Wall Street Journal report says more than half of Ukraine's F-16 fighters are non-combat-ready because phased technical inspections carried out by Belgian contractor Sabena Aerospace Engineering under a U.S. contract are taking far longer than in the United States. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed to the Financial Times that roughly half the fleet is in long-term repair in Europe and said Ukraine wants to move most of that maintenance onto its own territory with Western support. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry spokesman publicly disputed the 'catastrophically low' readiness framing, saying turnaround times are actually shortening.
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Russia's weekly seaborne oil revenue hits record $2.75 billion since full-scale invasion
Russia's seaborne crude export earnings reached $2.75 billion in the week to September 27, the highest weekly figure since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, driven by higher volumes and rising Urals and ESPO prices. The jump comes as Ukrainian drone strikes have reshaped Russia's export mix and Moscow's own diesel export ban partially offsets the gains.
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Ukraine's farmers face funding crunch as Black Sea exports remain blocked, minister warns
Ukraine's Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky has warned that Ukrainian farmers are running out of money, with a more severe funding crisis likely in spring due to the continued blocking of Black Sea grain exports. The European Commission declined Ukraine's request for €220 million in farmer support, and Ukraine is instead counting on a $250 million concessional loan from the World Bank.
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IMF estimates Ukraine's financing gap at $54 billion through 2029 as donors meet in Brussels
On September 29, Ukraine's donors gathered in Brussels to accelerate talks on further financial assistance, as IMF estimates put Ukraine's financing gap at about $54 billion through 2029. EU member states remain divided on whether to use roughly €210 billion in frozen Russian central-bank assets or issue new common debt, while the European Commission and IMF tie further assistance to Ukraine's implementation of a reform plan.