Trump says ‘very close’ to Ukraine mineral deal as Macron visits White House – live

It’s just past 8.30pm in Kyiv, 9.30pm in Moscow and 1.30pm in Washington. Here’s a recap of the latest developments:

• More than a dozen world leaders gathered in Kyiv on Monday to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion. A coordinated Europe-led show of solidarity took an overnight train for a summit with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, including the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, and Finland’s president, Alexander Stubb.

• President Zelenskyy said he hopes to finish the war in Ukraine “this year”. The Ukrainian leader said Kyiv and Washington are working “productively” on an economic deal at the centre of an effort to end Russia’s war. Donald Trump said the US and Ukraine are “very close” to coming to terms on a rare earth minerals agreement.

• The coordinated Europe-led show of solidarity on Monday came after a torrid week, in which Trump blamed Ukraine for starting the war against Russia, described Zelenskyy as a “dictator without elections”, and made it clear Europe would have to enforce and pay for any future peace settlement. There was strong collective pushback against the US president’s upside down version of recent history and a consensus that Ukraine had to take part in negotiations over its future.

• France’s president Emmanuel Macron is in Washington to discuss Ukraine and US-Europe relations with Trump. Macron told Trump that Europe is ready to “step up” defence spending but said he hoped for “strong” US involvement in securing any peace settlement in Ukraine. Macron said he and Trump would discuss “long-lasting peace” in Ukraine but that that Kyiv “must be involved” in talks to end the war.

• Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow will only cease its military actions if the outcome is “satisfactory” to Russia. He said that many more countries had become “realistic” in their position on Ukraine, and that the recent meeting in Riyadh raised the hope of having normal dialogue between Russia and the US.

• EU foreign ministers have discussed sending billions of military aid to Ukraine, ahead of a summit dedicated to European defence next week. At a meeting in Brussels on Monday a handful of countries proposed military aid for Ukraine in 2025 ranging from €20bn to €40bn, according to several diplomatic sources.

• The EU is spending more money on Russian fossil fuels than on financial aid to Ukraine, according to a new report. The EU bought €21.9bn (£18.1bn) of Russian oil and gas in the third year of the war, an amount equalling one-sixth greater than the €18.7bn the EU allocated to Ukraine in financial aid in 2024.

• Turkey said it was ready to host possible talks between Ukraine and Russia and would support any initiative leading to peace. Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan said Ankara valued a US initiative for peace as a “result-oriented” approach, but repeated that both sides must participate for a solution. Nato member Turkey hosted initial talks between the sides months after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, helping secure a deal for the safe passage of grain exports in the Black Sea.

• The US was forced to abstain in a UN general assembly vote in a resolution it drafted to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The vote on Monday came after the 193-member body agreed to amendments proposed by European states, which included adding references to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in line with the founding UN Charter and reaffirming the UN’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.

• The UK’s government announced 107 new sanctions against Russia. In a statement, the foreign secretary David Lammy said: “Every military supply line disrupted, every rouble blocked, and every enabler of Putin’s aggression exposed is a step towards a just and lasting peace.” Keir Starmer said the UK supported a “just and lasting peace for Ukraine”. Starmer will hold talks with Trump in Washington on Thursday.

Donald Trump said the US and Ukraine are “very close” to coming to terms on a rare earth minerals agreement.

Trump was joined at the White House by France’s president Emmanuel Macron where the two leaders were holding bilateral talks to discuss the situation in Ukraine.

“It looks like we’re getting very close,” Trump told reporters at the start of his meeting with Macron.

He added that Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy could potentially visit Washington this week or next to sign the deal.

Russia is open for economic cooperation with the US, President Vladimir Putin’s new special envoy on international economic cooperation said in response to President Donald Trump’s call for “major economic development transactions with Russia”.

Kirill Dmitriev said in a statement:

Russia is open for US-Russia economic cooperation and believes such cooperation is key for more resilient global economy.

The United States was forced to abstain in a United Nations General Assembly vote on Monday on a resolution it drafted to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s war in Ukraine after the 193-member body agreed to amendments proposed by European states.

The amendments made to the US resolution included adding references to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in line with the founding UN Charter and reaffirming the UN’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.

The amended US-drafted resolution won 93 votes in favor, while 73 states abstained and eight voted no, Reuters reports.

The US put forward its text on Friday, pitting it against Ukraine and European allies who spent the past month negotiating with their own resolution.

The General Assembly also adopted the resolution drafted by Ukraine and European countries on Monday with 93 votes in favor, 65 abstentions and 18 no votes.

Helena Smith

Greece’s prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has praised his Ukrainian counterpart’s “resilience and courage” in an address marking the third anniversary of Russia’s “brutal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.”

Speaking from Athens via video link, Mitsotakis said it was not only critical that the war-shattered country participated in a peace settlement “as it has the right to decide on its future” but that the sacrifices of Ukrainians, themselves, were not taken for granted.

“Three years after the invasion began, I think it is important to remember that the human toll has been immense. There has been so much suffering, so much destruction, so many lives that have been disrupted. It is imperative that we all work to bring this to an end and your sacrifices and the sacrifices of your people, dear Volodymyr, cannot be in vain. It is important to take a step back and recognise that your resilience, your courage, your personal courage has been remarkable.”

Only Ukraine “can, should and will decide on accepting or rejecting any peace formula” the Greek leader said. Describing the stakes as never being higher, Mitsotakis called on other EU and Nato member states to imitate Greece and increase spending on defence. Athens allocates over 3 % of the country’s GDP on the sector.

He said:

I think we have all agreed on two basic, simple principles that a just peace cannot be confused with an unjust capitulation, nor can a temporary ceasefire be confused with a lasting peace,” he said. “We need a peace settlement with very clear security guarantees which will act as deterrents and prevention in the future, guarantees that will be robust, that will be effective, so that any future aggression is deterred and peace preserved.”

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he hopes to finish the war “this year”.

When asked what his hopes are for Ukraine and its people after three years of war.

He told a Kyiv news conference with Western leaders:

We hope that we can finish the war this year.

Ukraine and the US are working productively on an economic deal at the centre of an effort to end Russia’s war on Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday.

He made the remark in Kyiv during an address through video link to the leaders of G7 countries, including US President Donald Trump, during which he repeated that both Europe and Ukraine should be involved in a peace process.

His comments come as the UN General Assembly are meeting to vote on two draft resolutions on Ukraine.

Jennifer Rankin

EU foreign ministers have discussed sending billions of military aid to Ukraine, ahead of a summit dedicated to European defence next week.

At a meeting in Brussels on Monday a handful of countries proposed military aid for Ukraine in 2025 ranging from €20bn to €40bn, although most member states did not offer any specific figure, according to several diplomatic sources. The €40bn figure was mentioned by one member state and is seen as an outlier.

The EU says it gave Ukraine €20bn in military aid in 2024, a figure that is a starting point for the latest plan on the table.

Under a proposal from the EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, the EU would send Ukraine “as soon as possible” at least 1.5m rounds of large-calibre ammunition, air-defence systems, missiles capable of deep precision strikes, drones, as well as offering training to brigades.

A decision is being passed to EU leaders, who will gather for an emergency summit in Brussels next Thursday, where they will also discuss European defence.

Separately in Brussels, Ukraine’s deputy head of mission to the EU, Oksana Diakun, said she hoped for “bold decisions” soon on increased military aid for Ukraine. At the European Policy Centre, she urged the EU to tighten sanctions, by outlawing the sale of Russian liquified natural gas and raw materials, as well as making use of around €200bn frozen Russian assets in the EU.

The Ukrainian diplomat said the Ukrainian army was “the most reliable shield” between Russian aggression and peace in the EU, and that Ukrainian resistance had given Europe valuable time to get its defense industry and capability prepared.