US wants Ukraine troops to withdraw from Donbas
You can read our report on today’s developments here
Closing summary
… and on that note, it’s a wrap for today!
Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte has warned allies “we are Russia’s next target,” in a stark speech in Berlin in which he said “too many don’t feel the urgency, too many believe that time is on our side” (13:35) and painted a vision of European war with Russia within next five years (13:39, 13:44)
The alliance’s top political chief warned that Russia’s Vladimir Putin “will not stop with Ukraine,” and urged allies to step up their defence spending to deter Moscow’s plans (13:06).
During his visit to Germany, German chancellor Friedrich Merz and foreign minister Johann Wadephul repeatedly urged the EU to back proposed measures to use frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine (10:52, 13:49).
Their comments came as the EU member states have agreed to freeze indefinitely Russian assets held in the union, paving the way for their use to aid Ukraine (17:40).
The Coalition of the Willing has met this afternoon to discuss the latest peace plan draft emerging from talks with the US (18:11), which Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy said included proposals to withdraw Ukrainian troops from Donbas and create a special “free economic zone” (17:18).
In other news,
Bulgarian prime minister Rosen Zhelyazkov has resigned from the post after growing street protests (13:29, 16:15).
Greece’s finance minister, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, has been elected the new president of Eurogroup, the group of finance ministers from countries that use the euro (17:52).
Lawmakers in Austria have voted overwhelmingly to ban headscarves in schools for girls under the age of 14, despite concerns the legislation will deepen societal divisions and marginalise Muslims (13:01).
And that’s all from me, Jakub Krupa, for today.
If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at [email protected].
I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.
