RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

France helped Zelensky write apology letter to Trump – Politico

French diplomats reportedly helped Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky write a conciliatory letter to US President Donald Trump in a bid to help the two leaders mend ties, Politico reported on Wednesday, citing an anonymous official.

Relations between Trump and Zelensky soured following the Ukrainian leader’s visit to Washington in late February. During a meeting at the White House, which included US Vice President J.D. Vance, Zelensky pushed back against Trump’s attempts to get Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table.

In response, Trump and Vance accused Zelensky of being ungrateful for US support and “gambling with World War III” by refusing to engage in peace talks with Moscow. The meeting was cut short and Zelensky was told to leave and come back only when he is ready for peace. Trump also temporarily halted all US military assistance to Ukraine after the heated exchange, but later resumed support after Kiev agreed to a 30-day ceasefire proposal.

Despite resumed contacts, relations between Zelensky and Trump have remained strained, Politico noted. In the weeks after the row, diplomats in France, Germany and the UK “sweated over how to try and repair the badly damaged relationship between Trump and Zelensky,” the outlet claimed.

While British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was holding calls with both leaders and sent advisors to both Washington and Kiev, French diplomats were helping Zelensky write a letter seeking reconciliation with Trump, Politico wrote, citing a French official.

While the content of the letter has not been made public, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has stated that it contained an apology from the Ukrainian leader for the Oval Office scandal. The US president also confirmed receiving an “important” letter from Zelensky in which the latter had expressed his readiness to “come to the negotiating table as soon as possible.” 

Russia and Ukraine subsequently agreed to a 30-day partial ceasefire under which the two sides were to refrain from targeting each other’s energy infrastructure. However, Moscow has since accused Kiev of breaching the truce on an almost daily basis.

Meanwhile, following a five-hour-long meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, Witkoff stated on Monday that the Ukraine peace process was on “the verge” of a breakthrough. He also acknowledged that the Russian leader is pursuing a permanent resolution of the conflict, a position that Moscow has consistently articulated from the beginning.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Mass drone attack kills two, injures at least 16 in Ukraine's Dnipro, governor says

A Russian mass drone attack killed two people and injured at least 16 on Wednesday evening in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the regional governor said.

Serhiy Lysak, governor of Dnipropetrovsk region, wrote on the Telegram messaging app that a young woman and an elderly woman had been killed.

Lysak said 16 people had been injured, including three children, aged 11, six years old, and nine months. Five people were being treated in hospital.

Dnipro Mayor Borys Filatov, also writing on Telegram, put the number of injured at 28.

The attack triggered several fires.

Filatov said one strike came within 100 metres (110 yards) of the municipal offices. He also said at least 15 dwellings had been damaged, as well as a student residence, an educational institution and a food processing plant.

Pictures posted online showed a large blaze and firefighters working at the scene well into the night, as well as gutted vehicles and buildings with smashed windows and damaged facades.

In northeastern Kharkiv region, governor Oleh Syniehubov said a Russian missile attack injured two people in the town of Izium. The town was captured by Russian troops in the early days of the February 2022 invasion, but was retaken by Ukrainian forces later in the year.

RT/Reuters