Russia Ukraine war latest: German military says Putin is rapidly rearming for possible attack on Nato

The chief of Russia’s $23 billion sovereign wealth fund mentioned new US president Donald Trump’s decisive management may “change the course of historical past” on Tuesday.

His reward got here after MR Trump signed a batch of government orders straight after his inauguration. Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Funding Fund (RDIF), mentioned Mr Trump’s actions may increase development and open alternatives for dialogue.

“President Trump’s daring actions at present show that decisive management can change the course of historical past, unlocking financial development and reworking world challenges into alternatives for dialogue and backbone by means of downside fixing,” Mr Dmitriev mentioned.

Mr Dmitriev, who’s at the moment underneath US sanctions deemed unlawful by Russian officers, is a US-educated former Goldman Sachs banker who performed a key function in early contracts between Moscow and Trump’s first administration, after election in 2016.

In Ukraine’s capital, they know that the forty seventh president of the US isn’t any explicit good friend. Additionally they imagine he’s potty about Vladimir Putin, and that could be to their benefit when Trump comes round to renewing army help for a nation combating off the Kremlin.

Officers listed below are philosophical and diplomatic, even when talking privately, in regards to the incoming president. They’re eager to make a brand new relationship work – but in addition know that if there’s one legacy Trump received’t need connected to his title is that he was a patsy for the Russian president.

World affairs editor Sam Kiley writes:

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has congratulated US president Donald Trump on his inauguration on Monday.

“He’s a person of energy,” Mr Zelensky wrote alongside a video messgae. “I want President Trump and all of America success.

“Ukrainians are able to work along with Individuals to realize peace—a real peace. This can be a probability that have to be seized.”

The Ukrainian army chief has mentioned that 150,000 of Vladimir Putin’s troops had been killed in 2024, because the nations put together for a brand new period of their battle after Donald Trump re-enters the White Home.

A report 434,000 casualties, together with the wounded, had been suffered final yr taking whole Russian casualties to 819,000, claimed Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. “This yr of fight has price them greater than the earlier two years of the warfare mixed,” Mr Syrskyi advised Ukrainian TV channel TSN.

Russia has gained floor in japanese Ukraine over the previous yr, however at the price of heavy casualties because it throws waves of troopers at Ukraine’s defensive traces.

Moscow and Kyiv are additionally searching for battlefield good points to strengthen their negotiating positions forward of any potential talks to finish the three-year-old warfare.

Russia attacked Ukraine with 131 drones and 4 missiles in a single day, the Ukrainian air power mentioned at present.

Out of the 131 launched, Ukraine’s air power mentioned it shot down 72 of the drones, whereas one other 59 disappeared with out reaching their targets.

The air power mentioned that some buildings had been broken by the assault in two areas of Ukraine, however that there had been no human casualties.

The authorities of a closed city in Russia’s Orenburg area have been requested to brace for a attainable drone assault, based on Russia media experiences.

Orenburg, a city in Komarovsky which is almost 1,455km from Moscow, hosts a base for Russia’s strategic missile forces, the Kommersant newspaper reported.

The Russian ministry of defence mentioned that 55 Ukrainian drones had been destroyed final evening over Russian territory, however didn’t point out Orenburg area.

Donald Trump has given essential remarks about his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, saying he could be higher off ending the warfare in Ukraine and pointing to Moscow’s large battlefield losses as “no approach to run a rustic”.

“He (Putin) can’t be thrilled, he’s not doing so effectively [in Ukraine],” Mr Trump mentioned. “I imply, he’s grinding it out however most individuals thought that warfare would have been over in a single week and now we’re into three years. So he can’t be thrilled, not making him look superb. Now finally, it’s an enormous machine, so issues will occur.”

He added: “However I feel he could be very effectively off to finish that warfare. Now we have numbers that nearly one million Russian troopers have been killed, about 700,000 Ukrainian troopers are killed. Russia’s larger, they’ve extra troopers to lose. However that’s no approach to run a rustic.”

Mr Trump has pledged to dealer a quick peace deal in Ukraine, although officers have rowed again on his promise to finish the warfare in a day. His nominee for envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, says a deal could possibly be brokered in 100 days.

Russia would wish 100 years to beat all of Ukraine if it continued gaining territory at its present “gradual” price, based on the international secretary.

David Lammy mentioned Vladimir Putin may finish the battle tomorrow by withdrawing from Ukraine, including that the Russian president’s place is “not considered one of energy” because the invasion has been a “monumental strategic failure”.

He additionally mentioned US president Donald Trump understands the significance of the warfare in Ukraine and “shouldn’t be ready to be a loser”, as he sought to allay issues over the method of the US underneath the brand new administration.

One space the place the incoming Trump administration and Labour are prone to conflict is on defence spending. The incoming president has mentioned he feels the US spends extra on defence than most Nato nations, calling for a brand new goal of fie per cent GDP.

That is up significantly from the present two per cent goal. The UK at the moment pledges 2.3 per cent, with intentions ro elevate it to 2.5 per cent by this yr. Given the tight financial contraints outlined by the Treasury, it’s unlikely calls to extend this futher could be welcomed by UK officers.

The incoming president has additionally mentioned he want to convey the warfare in Ukraine to a speedy finish – and can now have the ability to use the US’s large expenditure on Zelensky’s forces as a bargaining chip in discussions.

However a few of his feedback have prompted concern that Mr Trump might cede key Russian calls for as a part of a deal. This might embrace granting Vladimir Putin’s regime massive areas of the nation, or deferring Ukraine’s Nato membership bid. The incoming president has beforehand mentioned that he “understands [Russia’s] emotions” about having “any person proper on their doorstep.”

If the warfare in Ukraine does transfer from army help to a attainable peacekeeping operation, the prime minister has mentioned that the UK will play “full half” within the plans.

Learn Albert Toth’s full report right here:

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has launched footage of captured North Korean troopers being questioned by Ukrainian investigators.

Sharing the footage to X, Mr Zelensky wrote: “Communication between captured North Korean troopers and SSU investigators continues.

“Intelligence information on the motion of such troops to Russian territory, their coaching and full info isolation have been confirmed by the prisoners.

“All of the info about North Korea’s involvement on this warfare can be established.”