Putin
Vladimir Putin is a Russian politician who has served as President of the Russian Federation since 2000, with a break from 2008 to 2012 when he held the office of Prime Minister.
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Zelensky tells Financial Times Ukraine cooperation benefits France, as Le Pen vows to halt funding
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded in a Financial Times interview to Marine Le Pen's stated intention to stop French financing of Ukraine if she wins the 2027 presidential election. Zelensky argued that French industry benefits from Ukrainian battlefield experience, technologies and joint production, and said that if Le Pen takes office, she must be persuaded that she "has the most powerful European system that works." Le Pen, who leads polls ahead of the 2027 vote, has said France can no longer sustain its current level of aid and would phase out financial support six months after taking office.
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Trump administration weighs easing sanctions on Russian 'shadow fleet' tankers to cut freight rates
The Trump administration is considering easing US sanctions on vessels of the so-called Russian "shadow fleet" so they can carry non-sanctioned oil and petroleum products, aiming to lower record-high global tanker freight rates and boost Persian Gulf exports. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright raised the issue in a video address to the World Petroleum Congress in Riyadh this week. The move comes days after Trump temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian diesel, a step that drew sharp criticism from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, European countries, and some Republican senators.
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France's foreign minister says Europe now supplies two-thirds of Ukraine's intelligence
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said in a France Inter interview on 15 October that two-thirds of the intelligence currently received by Ukraine comes from European countries, including France. His comments come amid uncertainty over US intelligence sharing following reported threats from Washington to halt it if Kyiv continues striking Russian energy infrastructure. Barrot said Europe has long shouldered the main share of support to Ukraine and accused the Kremlin of using social media to spread demoralisation. He did not directly confirm or deny that Washington had reduced intelligence sharing.
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Trump announces deal for Russia to supply 300,000 tonnes of diesel to US market
On 9 October 2026, Donald Trump announced that Russia would immediately supply 300,000 tonnes of diesel fuel to American and world markets under a deal with Vladimir Putin reached during a phone call. On the same day, the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued General License 135, authorizing specified transactions involving Russian diesel through 7 April 2027. The deal was justified by Trump as a way to lower diesel prices that had risen because of a war with Iran ahead of the 3 November midterm elections; critics from both parties argued it contradicts a 2022 law banning Russian energy imports and the sanctions Trump himself signed in September.
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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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SpaceX throttles military Starlink terminals in Ukraine without warning, disrupting drone operations
In the night of October 13–14, SpaceX unilaterally restricted the speed of Starshield — the military package of Starlink satellite terminals — used by Ukraine's Defense Forces, without prior notice. The cap of roughly 100 mph (160 km/h), later reported to have been tightened to 60–70 km/h in some units, disrupted drone operations on the Huliaipole direction, hampered the use of interceptor drones against Russian Shaheds, and forced the cancellation of several missions. President Zelensky called the move a "big mistake," presidential adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov said it was linked to the political situation, and Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski publicly accused Elon Musk of politicizing his products.
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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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Polish president's circle negotiates with far-right MEP Grzegorz Braun over Senate pact
Representatives of Polish President Karol Nawrocki are in talks with associates of Grzegorz Braun about adding Braun's party, Konfederacja Korony Polskiej, to a right-wing electoral pact for the Senate elections. The move would lift the political cordon sanitaire around a figure known for anti-Semitic, pro-Russian and anti-Ukrainian actions, including the recent destruction of a UPA memorial in eastern Poland.
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Ukrainian parliament summons Kyiv mayor Klitschko to report on winter preparations
The Verkhovna Rada voted 151 in favor on October 13 to summon Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko for a report, on an initiative by Servant of the People MP Maryana Bezuhla. Klitschko delivered a 5-minute address the following day, calling the accusations of sabotaging heating-season preparations baseless and arguing that the summons was an attempt to remove him and erode local self-government. The vote came after repeated Russian strikes on Kyiv's energy infrastructure, which Klitschko said have destroyed the city's own generation capacity and forced full dependence on the national grid.
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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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Finland pushes EU-wide tourist visa ban for Russian citizens
Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen is urging EU member states to co-sign a letter to the European Commission demanding a full ban on tourist Schengen visas for Russian citizens until Russia ends its war against Ukraine. The initiative, set out in five proposals, has drawn immediate public backing from Estonia.
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US and Europe draft four-part Ukraine peace plan as Trump–Putin diesel deal overshadows Miami talks
On 9 October, US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner hosted a six-hour meeting at Witkoff's Shell Bay golf club near Miami with a Ukrainian delegation and representatives of the UK, France, Germany, the EU and NATO. The US envoys asked Ukraine to stop strikes on Russian oil refineries, relayed that Vladimir Putin is not yet ready to negotiate and is conditioning talks on receiving the remaining roughly 11% of the Donbas under Ukrainian control, and announced that Donald Trump had struck a separate deal with Putin on Russian diesel exports. President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the strike demand and called the diesel decision "unfair and dishonest." The Washington Post subsequently reported that Washington and European capitals are shaping a four-part peace proposal covering reconstruction financing, NATO-Article-5-style security guarantees, economic and energy integration including a possible Russia–Europe pipeline, and a ceasefire along the current front line. Ukraine's presidential office dismissed the leak as "not bad PR" rather than a joint US–European document.
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EU figure contradicts Trump’s $250 billion claim on payments to Russia for energy
An EU source told European Pravda that EU countries paid Russia about 197 billion euros (around 209 billion dollars) for fossil fuels from March 2022 to July 2026, undercutting US President Donald Trump’s claim of 250 billion dollars. The figures come as Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky criticised a parallel Trump-Putin understanding to allow Russian diesel fuel exports, calling it “unfair and dishonest.”
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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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Kremlin endorses Trump's call for new Ukrainian president; European leaders rally behind Zelensky
The Kremlin publicly backed US President Donald Trump's statement that Ukraine should elect a new leader, with spokesperson Dmitry Peskov citing Volodymyr Zelensky's alleged unwillingness to make difficult decisions to end the war. Zelensky responded by offering to hold elections if Russia agrees to a 60-day ceasefire and said Ukraine will defend itself against Russian aggression regardless of American pressure. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Foreign Minister and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer publicly expressed solidarity with Zelensky ahead of the 12 October EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg, where EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said wartime elections are constitutionally barred and that international pressure should be directed at Russia.
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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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Ukraine's HUR publishes 3D model and enterprise data for Russia's 'Kinzhal' missile on War&Sanctions portal
Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) of the Ministry of Defence has released an interactive 3D model and detailed information on the components and production cooperation of the Russian aeroballistic missile Kh-47M2 'Kinzhal' on the War&Sanctions portal. The package names 58 Russian enterprises involved in the missile's production, 22 of them not currently under measures from any sanctions coalition country. HUR called on partners to synchronise sanctions against all involved enterprises and tighten control over technologies used by Russia.
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Sikorski urges NATO to prepare decisive response to potential deadly Russian hybrid attacks
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, in a Financial Times interview during a visit to London, called on NATO to prepare a decisive response to potential deadly Russian hybrid attacks in Europe. He proposed concrete measures including closing Russian consulates, restricting Russian diplomats, requiring biometric passports for Russians entering the EU, and reducing tourist visas issued to Russian citizens.
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Eleven children, including an infant, returned from Russian-occupied Kherson Oblast to Ukraine-controlled territory
Eleven children aged from 1 year and 4 months to 17 were returned from the Russian-occupied part of Kherson Oblast to Ukrainian-controlled territory, the head of the Kherson Oblast Military Administration, Oleksandr Prokudin, said. The operation was carried out with the charity Save Ukraine under the presidential Bring Kids Back UA initiative. Among those brought back, several said they had been subjected to militarization and intimidation in occupation schools.
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Ukrainian drones hit Yandex data center in Vladimir, third strike in four days
Ukrainian drones struck a Yandex data center in the Russian city of Vladimir overnight on October 11, forcing Yandex to halt operations at the facility and knocking out a wide range of its consumer and cloud services. The attack is the third on a Yandex data center within four days, following strikes on facilities in Sasovo, Ryazan region on October 8 and in the Kaluga region on October 9. Outages hit the Alice voice assistant, Yandex Music, Telemost, Yandex Dom, taxi and other consumer apps, and more than 80 Yandex Cloud services, with disruptions reported in Russian cities and in Kazakhstan, Belarus, Armenia and Serbia.