Ukraine-Russia war live: Trump exempts Russia from tariffs amid visit by Putin’s top negotiator

Nato’s assets could be key in aiding proposed European military mission to guarantee a peace deal in Ukraine in plans being worked out by the war-hit nation’s western allies.

In one of the proposals being discussed by the UK and France, Nato’s command and control structures would be used in a deployment of a so-called reassurance force in Ukraine, five officials aware of the plan told the Financial Times.

The reassurance force would also use Nato’s shared intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, under the proposal, FT reported.

This proposal is one of the several options being discussed by European allies and could be changed before any final agreement, according to the officials aware of the plan.

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In the premier episode, world affairs editor Sam Kiley is joined by Alex Younger, the former chief of MI6, Britain’s secret intelligence service, and leading security strategist Rachel Ellehuus, director-general of The Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) and former Pentagon official with expertise in Nato and transatlantic defence.

Russian forces unleashed an hour-long barrage of drones on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city, late last night, triggering a number of fires but causing no casualties in the second such attack in the course of the day, the regional governor said.

“In the space of just one hour, the enemy deployed 17 (Iranian-designed) Shahed drones,” said governor Oleh Syniehubov.

“Most of the strikes were in the Kyiv district. Local fires broke out. Fortunately, there were no casualties,” he said.

The same district had come under attack earlier in the day, with officials reporting five people injured.

A team from Ukraine may be coming to the United States as soon as this week or next week, US treasury secretary Scott Bessent told Bloomberg Television yesterday, amid efforts to end the war with Russia.

Last week, the top US official had said Ukraine may sign an economic deal this week.

“We have passed along a completed document for the economic partnership (that) is currently being reviewed by Ukrainians, and we hope to go to full discussions and perhaps even get signatures next week,” Mr Bessent had said.

The Trump administration has not included Russia on its expansive list of countries that will face major new tariffs.

The White House has not explained why Russia will not face tariffs.

President Donald Trump announced plans for sweeping tariffs last night, saying “our country has been looted, pillaged, raped, plundered” by other nations.

Ukraine was slapped with a 10 per cent levy, according to a fact sheet released by the White House.

This comes as Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev met with US officials in Washington yesterday as the Trump administration continues to press Russia and Ukraine to agree to a ceasefire, two US officials familiar with the matter said.

At least 11 more Ukrainian children have been brought home from parts of Russia and Russian-occupied Ukraine where they had been taken without permission, Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff said yesterday.

“Today we have one more piece of good news,” Andriy Yermak, the chief of staff, wrote on his Telegram channel.

“Within the framework of the president of Ukraine’s Bring Kids Back UA initiative, another 11 Ukrainian children were brought back from temporarily occupied areas (of Ukraine) and the territory of the Russian Federation,” he said.

Among the children, Mr Yermak said, were brothers aged 10 and 12 whose father died after being tortured for expressing pro-Ukrainian views.

Also brought home, Mr Yermak wrote, was a pregnant mother who had been prevented from leaving occupied Ukraine because she had refused to take out Russian identity papers, and her two-year-old toddler.

The mother gave birth to another child in Ukrainian-held territory.

Mr Yermak thanked the office of Ukraine’s ombudsman for its help in arranging the return of the children.

Russia has not issued a statement on returning Ukrainian citizens.

Half of the US Senate, including 25 Republicans and 25 Democrats, banded together to introduce prospective sanctions on Russia which would be imposed if it refuses to engage in good faith negotiations with Ukraine.

Led by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, the group said it would impose primary and secondary sanctions against Russia if Moscow does not engage in talks or initiated another attempt to undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty.

“The sanctions against Russia require tariffs on countries who purchase Russian oil, gas, uranium and other products. They are hard hitting for a reason,” the two senators said in a statement, a rare moment of bipartisanship in a divided Congress.

“The dominating view in the United States Senate is that Russia is the aggressor, and that this horrific war and Putin’s aggression must end now and be deterred in the future,” they said.

Donald Trump has hailed “good cooperation” between Russia and Ukraine as he underlined his desire to stop the war.

Speaking from the White House as he announced tariffs on US imports of goods from around the world, Mr Trump said: “We’re going to get it stopped.”

He added: “It’s a senseless war that would have never happened if I was president and it shouldn’t be allowed to go on.

“And I think we’ve been given good cooperation by Russia and by Ukraine, but we have to get it stopped.

“It’s humanity. It’s humanity. It’s a terrible thing.”