{"id":358665,"date":"2025-08-20T05:42:13","date_gmt":"2025-08-20T05:42:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/358665\/"},"modified":"2025-08-20T05:42:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-20T05:42:13","slug":"ukraine-russia-war-latest-10-european-nations-to-provide-peacekeeping-force-after-trump-rules-out-us-troops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/358665\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine-Russia war latest: \u201810 European nations\u2019 to provide peacekeeping force after Trump rules out US troops"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>We had one chance to sink the Russian economy and we blew it \u2013 Putin knew we would<\/p>\n

Though Vladimir Putin\u2019s economy is floundering, it is by no means crippled. <\/p>\n

And while Putin has failed to subjugate the whole of Ukraine to his will, he is on course to accomplish many of his war aims, including the \u201cliberation\u201d of the Russian-speaking region of the country and blocking Kyiv\u2019s membership of Nato.<\/p>\n

The West carries much of the blame for this failure. Oil<\/a> and gas are the lifeblood of Russia\u2019s war machine \u2013 yet from the outset of the war, the US prioritised protecting steady world oil supplies over properly punishing Putin. Europe, too, has imposed 18 rounds of sanctions against Russia<\/a> \u2013 yet itself has continued to find ways to import Russian oil, piped and liquefied gas (LNG), and refined oil products.<\/p>\n

Europe had one chance to sink the Russian economy and blew it. Since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has pocketed nearly \u20ac1 trillion from oil and gas. After China, the EU has been the second biggest buyer of Putin\u2019s gas, handing over \u20ac260bn, writes Owen Matthews:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Arpan Rai20 August 2025 06:33<\/p>\n

<\/a>Witkoff calls Trump ‘legend’ at dealmaking \u2014 Americans aren’t so sure, poll shows<\/p>\n

On Tuesday evening, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff told Sean Hannity on Fox News that President Donald Trump is a \u201clegend\u201d when it comes to dealmaking.<\/p>\n

Witkoff made the remark during a discussion about the talks Trump has held over the past week with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and the leaders of European allied nations.<\/p>\n

However, Americans might need more convincing, given the results of the latest Economist\/YouGov<\/a> poll.<\/p>\n

Donald Trump claims to have ended six wars in six months and has been angling for a Nobel Peace Prize. Americans are less convinced of his diplomatic prowess. In February, his net approval rating\u2014the share who approve, less the share who disapprove\u2014for foreign policy was 2. It has since fallen steadily. In this week\u2019s survey\u2014which began on the day that Mr Trump met Vladimir Putin, Russia\u2019s president, in Alaska and ended on the day Volodymyr Zelensky, his Ukrainian counterpart, visited the White House\u2014it was -14. More Americans think Mr Trump is an ineffective negotiator with foreign leaders than believe he is an effective one. Just 32% said that the American and Russian presidents made at least some progress towards ending the war. Mr Trump\u2019s net approval rating for his handling of the Ukraine-Russia conflict is -10.<\/p>\n

Oliver O’Connell20 August 2025 06:15<\/p>\n

<\/a>Russia’s drone strikes spark fire at energy facility in Odesa region<\/p>\n

Russia launched a “massive drone strike” on the southern Ukrainian region of Odesa, injuring one person and causing a large fire at a fuel and energy facility, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said this morning.<\/p>\n

The Izmail district administration said on social media that port infrastructure in the city was damaged.<\/p>\n

Arpan Rai20 August 2025 06:13<\/p>\n

<\/a>Trump says he wants to go to heaven as reason to end war in Ukraine<\/p>\n

Donald Trump has said ending the Ukraine war and preventing thousands more deaths could help him get to heaven.<\/p>\n

“If I can save 7,000 people a week from being killed, I think that’s a pretty… I want to try to get to heaven if possible, I’m hearing that I’m not doing well,” Trump said, speaking of his spiritual motivation to end the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n

The remarks by Trump were confirmed by the White House.<\/p>\n

On being asked by a reporter whether the US president was joking about his motivation to end the Russian invasion in Ukraine, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said: \u201cI think the president was serious. I think the president wants to get to heaven, as I hope we all do in this room as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Arpan Rai20 August 2025 06:06<\/p>\n

<\/a>Trump believes ‘it would be better’ for Putin and Zelensky to meet first without him<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump has again spoken about Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky being in the process of arranging a meeting to discuss an end to the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Speaking in a radio interview on The Mark Levin Show on Tuesday, Trump reiterated that \u201cthe killing\u201d in the conflict, raging since Russia\u2019s invasion in 2022, \u201chas to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n

The president suggested he believed it would be \u201cbetter if they met without me, just to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

He elaborated on his reasoning, saying: \u201cI want to see what goes on. You know, they had a hard relationship, very bad, very bad relationship. And now we\u2019ll see how they do and, if necessary, and it probably would be, but if necessary, I\u2019ll go and I\u2019ll probably be able to get it close.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added about the potential talks: \u201cI just want to see what happens at the meeting. So they\u2019re in the process of setting it up, and we\u2019re going to see what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n

These comments follow a social media post yesterday in which Trump claimed he was arranging such a meeting after discussions with Zelensky and other European leaders, suggesting that a trilateral meeting including the U.S. would follow. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later confirmed that Putin had told Trump he would meet with Zelensky.<\/p>\n

Oliver O’Connell20 August 2025 06:00<\/p>\n

<\/a>Watch: Trump blames Ukraine for \u2018taking on nation 10 times your size\u2019 despite Russia being the one that invadedTrump blames Ukraine for \u2018taking on nation that\u2019s 10 times your size\u2019 despite Russia being the one that invaded<\/p>\n

Oliver O’Connell20 August 2025 05:45<\/p>\n

<\/a>What support can Trump offer Ukraine as part of peace deal with Putin?<\/p>\n

Donald Trump has said the US might provide air support as part of a deal to end Russia’s war in the country.<\/p>\n

However, he offered his assurances that US troops would not be sent to help defend Ukraine against Russia after seeming to leave open the possibility the day before.<\/p>\n

“When it comes to security, (Europeans) are willing to put people on the ground. We’re willing to help them with things, especially, probably… by air,” Trump told Fox News.<\/p>\n

The nature of US military aid for Ukraine under a peace deal was unclear. Air support could take many forms, such as missile defence systems or fighter jets enforcing a no-fly zone.<\/p>\n

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that US air support was “an option and a possibility,” but, like Trump, she did not provide any details.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president has definitively stated US boots will not be on the ground in Ukraine, but we can certainly help in the coordination and perhaps provide other means of security guarantees to our European allies,” she said at a news briefing yesterday.<\/p>\n

\"PresidentPresident Donald Trump disembarks Air Force One as he arrives at Joint Base Andrews from a summit with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Anchorage (AP)<\/p>\n

Arpan Rai20 August 2025 05:45<\/p>\n

<\/a>Trump admits Putin may not be interested in ending Ukraine war<\/p>\n

Donald Trump has admitted that ending the Ukraine conflict is proving to be tougher than he thought as he pushed to arrange a summit between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky.<\/p>\n

The US president has admitted that it is possible Putin might not want to make a deal at all to end hostilities in Ukraine and prolong the war despite the high-level summit in Alaska.<\/p>\n

“We’re going to find out about president Putin in the next couple of weeks. That I can tell you,” he said yesterday. “It’s possible that he doesn’t want to make a deal\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Russian leader will face a \u201crough situation\u201d if that were the case, Trump said, without providing any further details.<\/p>\n

He also added: \u201cI think Putin is tired of it. I think they’re all tired of it. But you never know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"USUS president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin hold a press conference following their meeting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine in Anchorage (Reuters)<\/p>\n

Arpan Rai20 August 2025 05:35<\/p>\n

<\/a>ANALYSIS: The White House just watered down the only concession it can claim Trump won from Putin \u2014 Ukraine security<\/p>\n

The U.S. won\u2019t send troops, and Russia won\u2019t accept forces from NATO states in Ukraine. So, what kind of security guarantee is it, really?<\/p>\n

Oliver O’Connell20 August 2025 05:30<\/p>\n

<\/a>US and European allies begin planning for Ukraine security options<\/p>\n

U.S. and European military planners have started exploring post-conflict security guarantees for Ukraine, U.S. officials and sources told Reuters on Tuesday. This follows a pledge from President Donald Trump to help defend the country under any agreement to end Russia\u2019s war. Ukraine and its European allies were encouraged by Trump\u2019s promise of security assurances for Kyiv, made during a Monday summit, though many questions still remain unanswered.<\/p>\n

The Pentagon is conducting planning exercises on the support Washington could offer beyond providing weapons, officials said. They cautioned, however, that determining what would be both militarily feasible and acceptable to the Kremlin would take time. One option involves sending European forces to Ukraine, with the U.S. in charge of their command and control. Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters these troops would operate under their own nations’ flags, not a Nato banner.<\/p>\n

Neither the Pentagon nor Nato has commented on the idea. The White House stated the U.S. could help coordinate a security guarantee for Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s Foreign Ministry has ruled out the deployment of Nato troops to help secure a peace deal.<\/p>\n

While Trump has publicly ruled out deploying US troops in Ukraine, he appeared to leave the door open to other military involvement on Tuesday. In a Fox News interview, he suggested Washington could provide air support.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to security, [Europeans] are willing to put people on the ground, we’re willing to help them with things, especially, probably, … by air because nobody has stuff we have, really they don\u2019t have,\u201d Trump said, without elaborating. U.S. air support could involve more air defence systems or enforcing a no-fly zone with US fighter jets.<\/p>\n

Since Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion in 2022, the United States has shipped billions of dollars\u2019 worth of weapons and munitions to Kyiv. The Trump administration briefly halted these shipments, including after contentious White House meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in February and July. Shipments have since resumed, and Trump has pledged to send primarily defensive weapons to assist the war-torn country.<\/p>\n

Nato military chiefs will focus on Ukraine and the way forward during a virtual meeting on Wednesday, first reported by Reuters. U.S. Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, who also oversees Nato operations in Europe, will brief defence chiefs on last week\u2019s Alaska meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.<\/p>\n

A U.S. official, speaking anonymously, confirmed that U.S. General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is expected to attend and will meet European counterparts in Washington on Tuesday evening.<\/p>\n

As Trump continues to press for a quick end to Europe\u2019s deadliest war in 80 years, Kyiv and its allies worry he could seek to force an agreement on Russia\u2019s terms, especially after the warm welcome he extended to Putin last week.<\/p>\n

Russia maintains its actions in Ukraine are a \u201cspecial military operation\u201d to protect national security, claiming Nato\u2019s eastward expansion and Western military support pose existential threats. Kyiv and its Western allies, conversely, describe the invasion as an imperial-style land grab.<\/p>\n

With reporting from Reuters<\/p>\n

Oliver O’Connell20 August 2025 05:15<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We had one chance to sink the Russian economy and we blew it \u2013 Putin knew we would…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":358666,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7655],"tags":[332],"class_list":{"0":"post-358665","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-russia","8":"tag-russia"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115059500404896445","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=358665"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358665\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/358666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=358665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=358665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=358665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}