US switches stance on Ukraine war, seeking $500bn in payback
A war of words has broken out between Trump and Zelenskyy, while Europe feels the US is no longer a dependable ally.
Read more >> : Cick here
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Ukraine talks latest: Russia and US teams begin peace negotiations in Saudi Arabia
Ukraine says no peace deal can be made on its behalf in the talks in Saudi Arabia today
👉 Click Here to read in detail 👈
Starmer says US ‘backstop’ only way to deter Russia from attacking Ukraine again
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails
I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy
Officials from the Donald Trump administration and from Vladimir Putin’s delegation are meeting in Riyadh today for talks aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The war-hit nation has said that no peace deal can be made on its behalf in the talks, to which Kyiv was not invited. European nations have also been eliminated in a shock process by the Trump administration.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has said he will also travel to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday but that his trip was unrelated to the US-Russia talks.
Just hours before the controversial meeting began, Russia launched another mass overnight drone attack using 176 drones. A mother and her two children were injured and 38 civilian apartments evacuated in the central city of Dolynska, Ukrainian officials reported.
It came after Sir Keir Starmer demanded that the Trump administration provide a “backstop” to deter Russia from attacking Ukraine again after he attended an emergency meeting of European leaders in Paris, and vowed to send British troops to Ukraine to enforce a peace deal with Russia if necessary.
Russia confirms talks in Saudi Arabia today, lays down its demands Moscow launches mass drone attack after another heavy day of fighting in Ukraine Starmer demands US provides 'backstop' to deter Russia from attacking Ukraine Zelensky says Ukraine will not take part in US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia More than 46,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed in Putin's war, says Zelensky Russia eyes easing of US sanctionsVladimir Putin and Donald Trump have said that, apart from the war, they are keen to discuss issues such as nuclear arms control and how to bring down global energy prices.
Under Joe Biden, the United States provided many tens of billions of dollars' worth of weapons and aid to Ukraine and joined other Western governments in slapping waves of sanctions on Russia.
“US businesses lost around $300bn from leaving Russia. So there is huge economic toll on many countries from, you know, what's happening right now," Kirill Dmitriev, the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, told reporters in Riyadh.
Moscow claimed that Sergei Lavrov and Marco Rubio discussed removing barriers to trade and investment in their call on Saturday.
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 10:37
US-Russia talks in Riyadh 'could last nearly all day'Today’s meeting between US and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia could last for most of the day, according to a BBC correspondent allowed briefly into the meeting room in Riyadh earlier today.
The broadcaster’s US state department correspondent Tom Bateman told BBC News: “We know that President Trump has said he expects to have a summit with Mr Putin, but of course it is the details being hammered out here that will give us a bit more clarity on just how feasible that might be.”
He added: “What Moscow is trying to do here is show to its own audience that this is the beginning of the end of Moscow’s isolation, which of course was led by Washington, has seen the West slap sanctions for three years on Russia after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“Certainly the Americans are going to be trying to pull away from that narrative after this and I think it’s pretty clear they will start to give some messaging after this meeting itself. But remember that all of this has sent waves of anxiety surging through Europe, right up to Kyiv.”
US and Russian officials are meeting in Saudi Arabia for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, but Ukrainian officials have not been invited (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP) (AP )Andy Gregory18 February 2025 10:21
John Healey ends major Tory defence reforms in 'biggest shakeup for 50 years'Our political correspondent Millie Cooke reports:
UK defence secretary John Healey has announced an end to major Tory defence reforms, saying they produced “produced too much duplication, too much waste”.
Lord Levene’s 2011 Defence Reform report made 53 recommendations on how to transform the Ministry of Defence (MoD) into a leaner and more effective organisation that could better support the needs of the Armed Forces.
But Mr Healey said “many recent failings” in the MoD can be “traced back to the conservative defence reforms known as the Levene Reforms, introduced in 2012.”
“They produced too much duplication, too much waste. A system where only two out of 49 major defence projects are now on time and on budget”, he said, announcing an end to the reforms.
He said the department will reduce the number of budget holders to four from 10, and will introduce three new “centrally determined financial budgets” – readiness, operations and investment.
These reforms “represent the biggest shake up of UK defence for over 50 years”, the defence secretary said, arguing they will help cut waste and reduce duplication, as well as ensuring that Britain is “buying better what our front line forces need”.
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 10:07
Britain must rearm itself, warns defence secretaryThe UK’s defence secretary has urged that Britain must rearm itself, as he touted his vision for “a new FTSE100 company within” the Ministry of Defence aimed at “building and sustaining our national arsenal”.
“Our new national armaments director will fundamentally change how defence works to partner with industry, and how defence becomes the engine for driving economic growth.
“So sitting alongside the permanent secretary and chief of defence staff, they’ll execute a £20bn-plus budget to build and sustain our national arsenal.
“Because at this time we must rearm Britain. And I see this as a new FTSE100 company within the MoD, tasked if you like with getting the very best capabilities needed into the hands of our frontline forces - delivering on our defence industrial strategy to create more defence jobs, more defence apprenticeships in every region and nation across the UK.”
They will save the taxpayer at least £10bn over the next decade, which will be reinvested directly into Britain’s defence, Mr Healey claimed.
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 10:05
Investment in defence will be matched by reform of the sector, says John HealeyOur political correspondent Millie Cooke reports:
Investment in defence will be matched by reform of the sector, John Healey has announced, announcing a new command structure in the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The defence secretary announced plans for four senior leadership roles in the department, which will act as “clear points of accountability at every level within UK defence”.
Giving a speech at the Institute of Directors, Mr Healey said: “I’m here to declare that investment in defence will be matched by reform.”
"They'll shift the approach as an organisation which too often has been obsessed with process to one focused on outcomes in which information flows quickly, accountabilities are clear and results are demanded. And this new quad will be up and running from the 31st of March."
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 09:52
Britain not getting value for money for armed forces, defence secretary warnsBritain is “simply not securing the value for money that our armed forces” need, the UK’s defence secretary has warned.
Speaking at an Institute for Government event, John Healey said: “When everyone agrees that defence spending needs to increase, it’s not just how much you spend, but it’s how well you spend it. And we’re simply not securing the value for money that our armed forces and our economy needs for every defence pound.
“We duplicate even the most central tasks. For example, we have 11 separate finance functions –2,500 people doing the same activity in different places, in different ways.”
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 09:51
UK defence secretary insists positive change is under wayThe UK’s defence secretary has insisted that the new Labour government is delivering on bringing the change promised ahead of the general election.
“In the middle of everything else last week, the new defence secretary Pete Hegseth from the US and I made time to discuss the aims we share on defence reform.
“Our new government was elected on a mandate in one word: change. We govern on an instruction in one word: delivery. And as a new government we’re delivering for defence over this first seven months.
“We’ve stepped up and speeded up support for Ukraine. We’ve increased defence spending this year by nearly £3bn and will set a path to spending 2.5 per cent of GDP in the spring. We’ve launched a new defence-industrial strategy, we’ve secured a deal to buy back 36,000 military homes to improve conditions for personnel.
“We’ve given the men and women of our armed forces the biggest pay increase in 20 years. We signed the landmark Trinity House agreement with Germany, and we’ve already progressed the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill through the Commons to give a strong independent voice to improve service life.
“We have within the MoD two major change programmes – both launched within the first month of government. One – the strategic defence review. Two – our defence reform programme. Each is essential for the other.”
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 09:44
Coming weeks will determine fate of global security for a generation to come, warns UK defence secretaryBritain’s defence secretary has warned that the coming weeks will determine not only the outcome of the Ukraine war but “the security of our world for a generation to come”.
John Healey told an Institute for Government event: “The pace of the geopolitical change ... that we’re seeing right now confirms what I would argue is the need for change within defence.”
He added: “The decisions that we make right now over the coming weeks will not only define the outcome of the conflict in Ukraine, but the security of our world for a generation to come.
“And the nature of government means dealing with these challenges. But in my view, the test of political leadership isn’t just about managing the immediate, it’s also about reforming for the future.
“We’re in a new of threat, and that demands a new era for defence.”
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 09:39
UK defence secretary John Healey arrives for discussion on bolstering armed forcesBritain’s defence secretary John Healey has arrived at an Institute for Government event in which he will discuss efforts to reform the UK’s armed forces in the face of a rapidly shifting Western security landscape.
We’ll be bringing you live updates from the event, which is due to start imminently.
(Getty Images )Andy Gregory18 February 2025 09:30
Readers criticise Donald Trump’s ‘simplistic’ plan for peace in UkraineMany readers shared concerns that Trump’s plan is too simplistic, with several warning that leaving Kyiv out of the talks and pushing Nato aside could weaken Ukraine and encourage Putin to take more land.
They argued that Trump’s approach focuses on quick deals instead of long-term peace and could hurt international support for Ukraine.
Some also criticised Trump for putting his own goals above global security. They stressed that any peace deal should protect Ukraine’s independence and Europe’s safety.
Read the full debate and get involved in the conversation here.
Andy Gregory18 February 2025 09:26
Newer1 / 7Older
 has announced she will not support President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kash Patel to serve as director of the FBI, %23nato)
