Putin praises US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia as ‘first step’ to restoring ties

Putin praises US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia as ‘first step’ to restoring ties
Daily newspapers with covers, dedicated to the recent phone call of Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, are laid out at a newsstand in a street in Moscow, Russia, February 13, 2025. (REUTERS)
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Updated 19 February 2025
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Putin praises US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia as ‘first step’ to restoring ties

Putin praises US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia as ‘first step’ to restoring ties
  • Riyadh talks first time US, Russian officials met to discuss ways to halt Ukraine conflict
  • Putin thanked the Saudi leadership for hosting talks
  • Kyiv said it will not accept any deal imposed without its consent

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump could meet as early as this month, although a face-to-face meeting will take time to prepare, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday, according to Russian news agencies.

Peskov said the US-Russia talks held on Tuesday in Riyadh were a “very, very important step” toward reaching a settlement on the Ukraine war, nearing its third year.

“In order to carry out, figuratively speaking, resuscitation measures, diplomats will now begin to work in light of the agreement (Russian Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov reached yesterday with (US Secretary of State Marco) Rubio,” Peskov was quoted by state media as saying.

“But this is the first step...Naturally, it’s impossible to fix everything in one day or a week. There is a long way to go,” he added.

The talks in Riyadh were the first time US and Russian officials met to discuss ways to halt the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two. No Ukrainian or European officials were invited. Kyiv has said it will not accept any deal imposed without its consent.

Putin thanked the Saudi leadership, King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for creating a good atmosphere for holding the talks.

The Russian president said he rated the bilateral talks in Saudi Arabia “highly,” describing them as a “first step” to restoring relations with Washington.

“In my opinion, we made the first step to restore work in various areas of mutual interests,” he told journalists while visiting a drone manufacturing plant in his native Saint Petersburg.

He added that Russia and the US needed to “trust” each other if talks were to be successful.

“It is impossible to solve many issues, including the Ukrainian crisis, without increasing the level of trust between Russia and the United States,” he said.

* With Reuters and AFP


Londoners march in support of Ukraine to mark three years of war

Londoners march in support of Ukraine to mark three years of war
Updated 56 min 6 sec ago
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Londoners march in support of Ukraine to mark three years of war

Londoners march in support of Ukraine to mark three years of war
  • Protesters started at a statue of St. Volodymyr in west London and marched toward the Russian embassy, waving Ukrainian flags and signs of support
  • At the rally, one sign read “Ukraine defends peace for the entire Europe“

LONDON: Hundreds gathered in London on Saturday to march in support of Ukraine, ahead of the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion on Monday and amid increasing tensions between Washington and Kyiv.
Protesters started at a statue of St. Volodymyr, a national saint of Ukraine, in west London and marched toward the Russian embassy, waving Ukrainian flags and signs of support.
The three-year long war was sparked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Britain has been a key backer of Ukraine since, sanctioning Moscow, providing financial and military support to Kyiv and opening its door to over 250,000 Ukrainian refugees.
At the rally, one sign read “Ukraine defends peace for the entire Europe,” while another said “If Ukraine falls, war will come to your house.”
“I’m not Ukrainian but I recognize the great danger they are in,” 68-year-old Briton Martin Vincent told AFP.
“We cannot abandon them it’s a duty for the UK to stand up with Ukraine,” the protester added.
Among the crowd were some Ukrainians, including Nataliya, a university student who did not want to share her last name for security reasons.
“I feel so homesick and so vulnerable right now. I don’t know If I’ll be able to come back to my country,” said Nataliya, wearing a floral crown in the yellow and blue of the Ukrainian flag.
“What’s next? Uncertainty and uncertainty,” she added.
Stella Robinson, 27, was “afraid of what might happen next” as well. “This is not only Ukraine, this is Europe.”
“We can’t turn a blind eye on the war just because Trump wants peace,” added Robinson, referring to recent diplomatic talks between the US and Russia on the future of the war that have sidelined Kyiv and its European backers.
“But what kind of a peace? Frankly, it’s terrifying,” added the law student.
British public support for Ukraine is strong, with 67 percent saying they both want Ukraine to win the war and care a “great deal or fair amount” that it does so, according to a YouGov poll from last week.
And eight in ten Britons said it is “unacceptable” for Ukraine not to be included in negotiations on the conflict, per the poll.
Thousands of Ukrainian civilians have been killed since the start of the war, although the exact toll is unclear.


Trump urges Musk to be more aggressive in bid to shrink US government

Trump urges Musk to be more aggressive in bid to shrink US government
Updated 22 February 2025
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Trump urges Musk to be more aggressive in bid to shrink US government

Trump urges Musk to be more aggressive in bid to shrink US government
  • "Elon is doing a great job, but I would like to see him get more aggressive," Trump posted

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged billionaire Elon Musk to be more aggressive in his efforts to shrink the federal government despite uproar over layoffs and deep spending cuts.
"Elon is doing a great job, but I would like to see him get more aggressive," Trump posted all in uppercase letters on his Truth Social platform. "Remember, we have a country to save, but ultimately, to make greater than ever before. MAGA!"
Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE - an entity created by Trump - has swept across federal government agencies, firing tens of thousands of federal government workers from scientists to park rangers, mostly those on probation.


Mali army opens an investigation into deaths of civilians blamed on soldiers

Mali army opens an investigation into deaths of civilians blamed on soldiers
Updated 22 February 2025
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Mali army opens an investigation into deaths of civilians blamed on soldiers

Mali army opens an investigation into deaths of civilians blamed on soldiers
  • Analysts say it’s unlikely the investigation would fault the troops or the Russian mercenaries.
  • “The objective of the investigations is going to be more about countering the allegations against (the army) and Wagner,” said Lyammouri

BAMAKO: Mali’s army said it’s investigating soldiers who were accused by separatist Tuareg rebels of killing at least 24 civilians earlier this week, in a rare probe of human rights abuses since the military took power in 2020.
The Front for the Liberation of Azawad, the Tuareg independence movement in the north of the country, accused soldiers and Russian mercenaries from the Wagner group of intercepting two civilian transport vehicles bound for Algeria from Gao on Monday, and “coldly executing” at least 24 people among the passengers.
The general staff of the Malian armed forces, without referring to the killings, on Wednesday denounced “intoxicating campaigns” against the army. On Friday, the authorities announced the opening of an investigation into the civilian deaths.
Analysts say it’s unlikely the investigation would fault the troops or the Russian mercenaries.
“The objective of the investigations is going to be more about countering the allegations against (the army) and Wagner, rather than trying to find any wrongdoing by the latter. The conclusion of the investigation is likely to say that those allegations are false,” said Rida Lyammouri, senior fellow at Policy Center for the New South, a Moroccan think tank.
Mali has been in a crisis for more than a decade. In 2020, a military group, riding on popular discontent over attacks by armed militant groups, seized power in a coup that toppled the democratically elected president.


Russian forces repel three Ukrainian counter attacks in Russia’s Kursk border region

Russian forces repel three Ukrainian counter attacks in Russia’s Kursk border region
Updated 22 February 2025
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Russian forces repel three Ukrainian counter attacks in Russia’s Kursk border region

Russian forces repel three Ukrainian counter attacks in Russia’s Kursk border region
  • Russia has been fighting to eject Ukrainian forces from Kursk since August

MOSCOW: Russian troops repelled three counter attacks by Ukrainian forces in Russia’s western Kursk region bordering Ukraine, the Russian defense ministry said on Saturday.
Reuters could not independently verify the report.
Russia has been fighting to eject Ukrainian forces from Kursk since August, when Kyiv’s troops staged a lightning incursion over the border and seized a chunk of Russian territory.


Peace in Ukraine cannot be ‘imposed’: Spanish PM

Peace in Ukraine cannot be ‘imposed’: Spanish PM
Updated 22 February 2025
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Peace in Ukraine cannot be ‘imposed’: Spanish PM

Peace in Ukraine cannot be ‘imposed’: Spanish PM
  • He added any “just and lasting peace” required Ukrainian and European participation

MADRID: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Saturday that peace in Ukraine cannot be “imposed,” as he prepares to visit the country.
“Peace in Ukraine and security in Europe cannot be imposed,” said Sanchez, who will embark on a visit to Kyiv on Monday as Ukraine prepares to mark three years since the start of the Russian invasion. He added any “just and lasting peace” required Ukrainian and European participation.