The Latest Breaking News from Rustem Umerov

The Kremlin said Kyiv’s calls for Russia to release its ceasefire memorandum before talks in June were ‘non-constructive’

Moscow proposed to Ukraine to meet again in Istanbul for the second round of talks next Monday. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said he presented Russia’s "specific proposals" for the next round of negotiations to Washington, but has not shared Moscow’s "peace memorandum" with Kyiv.

These are the key events on day 1,178 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Over three years after Russia invaded Ukraine, the countries are finally meeting for direct peace talks in Istanbul. Vladimir Putin will be not be attending.

A senior Ukrainian official at the peace talks in Istanbul accused Moscow of introducing “unacceptable demands” that had not been previously discussed, including calls for Kyiv’s forces to withdraw from large swaths of territory they control so a complete ceas efire to be implemented

There is one topic on which Kyiv and Moscow will never agree, and yet, for both sides, this point is of the utmost importance — Crimea. Olha Kuryshko, the Ukrainian president’s permanent representative in Crimea, told Euronews that Russia implemented its 2014 techniques on all occupied territories.

Rustem Umerov, who heads Ukraine's delegation at peace talks with Russia on Friday, is a skilled and pragmatic negotiator, hailed by his colleagues as a worker of diplomatic "wonders".

US president lashes out at Ukrainian leader, insisting Crimea was lost 11 years ago as he says agreement to end war ‘very close’

US secretary of state Marco Rubio did not attend the talks in London but defence and foreign ministers from the UK and Ukraine met.

The Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG), consisting of 51 nations and partners, led by Germany and UK, met on Friday in NATO headquarters in Brussels on Friday.

Britain has announced a ‘surge’ of military support to Ukraine, as the war-ravaged country’s Western backers gather at NATO headquarters to drum up weapons and ammunition