Russia-Ukraine war live: Kyiv says it is ready to negotiate but not surrender, after US repeats threat to abandon talks
Ukraine is ready to negotiate but not to surrender, deputy PM says
Ukraine is ready to negotiate but not to surrender, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said on Wednesday as details emerged in media reports of a US proposal for a deal which would see Ukraine give up almost all territory currently occupied by Russia.
“There will be no agreement that hands Russia the stronger foundations it needs to regroup and return with greater violence,” Svyrydenko wrote on X.
“A full ceasefire – on land, in the air, and at sea – is the necessary first step,” she said, adding that if Moscow instead opted for a limited pause, Kyiv would respond in kind.
Key events
Ukraine said Wednesday that it was “committed” to Washington-led efforts to end the war with Russia after US vice-president JD Vance threatened to abandon negotiations if a deal was not reached soon.
“We emphasised that we are committed to the peace efforts of US president Donald Trump,” Ukrainian presidential aide Andriy Yermak said after talks in London with representatives of Kyiv’s allies, adding: “We are grateful to our partners for their firm support and common desire to end the war as soon as possible.”
Russia on Wednesday added 21 British parliamentarians to its list of UK nationals banned from entering the country, reflecting the dire state of relations with London.
Moscow maintains extensive lists of foreign officials, business figures, journalists and others who are barred from entering Russian territory, mostly from countries officially designated as “unfriendly”.
In a statement, Russia’s foreign ministry said that the designated lawmakers had made “hostile statements and unfounded accusations” against Moscow.
They include six members of the House of Lords, along with 15 members of parliament from the governing Labour party, the centrist Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party and the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist party.
Members of the French Foreign Legion and British soldiers have started a joint military exercise in northeastern France, applying urban warfare lessons from the conflict in Ukraine, an AFP reporter said.
Here is an extract from the report:
A French officer, perched on a British armoured vehicle camouflaged with branches in the small town of Jeoffrecourt, translated commands for armoured infantry troops from Britain.
The FFL and the Royal Welsh First Battalion were part of a team trying to capture this town of 5,000 residents Tuesday during a two-week training exercise.
The exercises come as French president Emmanuel Macron and British prime minister Keir Starmer are spearheading European efforts to send what they call a “reassurance force” to Ukraine after any end to the war sparked by Russia’s 2022 invasion.
“We look at what is happening in theatres of operation and new modes of action to integrate them,” said Lt Col Romain, an FFL training officer who gave only his first name under French military policy.
A member of his 13th Demi-Brigade toggled a joystick from a basement where a video feed showed footage from the drone he controlled as it flew above the streets.
With just four radios, four laptops and a white sheet serving as a makeshift projection screen, the setup was spartan but for good reason, said the brigade’s commanding officer, Col Benjamin Brunet.
“We drill to change position every six hours,” Brunet said, a lesson gleaned from Ukraine, where adversaries quickly spot the electromagnetic radiation emitted from command posts to destroy them.
For Capt Ed, a British intelligence officer who also could give only his first name, France and Britain have a proven track record of working together because they “share a similar mindset and values”.
“Since 2018, the French and British have been together in Estonia” as part of a mission set up by Nato on its eastern flank, the captain said.
“We are training and we are ready to go anywhere in the world,” he said.
A top Dutch court said Wednesday that the government could stop its support for foreigners living in Ukraine who fled after Russia’s invasion, paving the way for their deportation, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
In its ruling, the Council of State (RvS), the country’s highest administrative court, said the government’s plan to end temporary asylum for the group of about 1,700 people could be implemented.
Many of the refugees hailed from places including Algeria, Turkey and Pakistan and were working or studying in Ukraine at the time of Russia’s invasion in February 2022, reports AFP.
Rights and refugee advocates have criticised the move to expel “third country nationals”. But the court “ruled today that the temporary protection for third-country nationals in Ukraine can end”, the Hague-based court said in a statement.
Government support for this group “can end earlier than for other Ukrainians, stateless persons and third country nationals with a permanent Ukrainian residency permit,” who are still temporarily being sheltered in the Netherlands, the statement said.
The ruling came after previous Dutch government plans to halt the protection for non-Ukrainian nationals ran into legal obstacles including several lawsuits.
The RvS had already ruled in January 2024 that temporary asylum for the group could end on 4 March 2024, before referring the matter to the European court of justice (ECJ) for a legal opinion.
In December, the ECJ confirmed that EU countries could end temporary residency for third-country nationals before other Ukrainian citizens, those with permanent residency status and stateless persons.
“The reason for this is because EU member countries are not obligated to protect this group, although they may choose do so,” said Pieter-Bas Beekman, an RvS spokesperson.
“The Council of State today confirms the decision by the European court of justice, which means that from 4 March last year, protection for third-country residents have ended in the Netherlands,” he said.
There are about 118,000 registered Ukrainian refugees in total in the Netherlands, according to the latest government figures.
Lithuania’s capital Vilnius presented on Wednesday an evacuation plan in case of war, as the Baltic nation worries Russia could target the former Soviet republic next after its invasion of Ukraine, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Lithuania, a Nato and EU member, has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Moscow’s 2022 invasion, and has since ramped up defence spending and training.
Emergency services have put out a fire at a car park in a shopping mall located in Moscow’s business district, the state Tass news agency reported on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
Videos posted by various Russian media outlets showed black smoke billowing among the district’s skyscrapers on the banks of the Moskva River.
The cause of the explosion and whether anyone was in the vehicle at the time was unclear, reports Reuters.
Europe requires Ukraine’s ‘territorial integrity’ in any peace deal, says French presidency
European countries think any peace deal to end the Ukraine war with Russia has to include the pro-EU nation’s “territorial integrity”, France’s presidency said on Wednesday.
“Ukraine’s territorial integrity and European aspirations are very strong requirements for Europeans,” president Emmanuel Macron’s office told Agence France-Presse (AFP), after US vice-president JD Vance suggested both sides would have to “give up some of the territory they currently own”.
Poland’s foreign minister on Wednesday used an annual address to parliament to send a sharp message to Russian leaders as war continues in neighbouring Ukraine, asking: “Don’t you have enough land?”
Foreign Minster Radek Sikorski described the difficult situation Poland faces with the war across the border and the threat of its expansion, and voiced concerns about the “disintegration” of western unity, AP reported.
Poland, on Nato’s eastern flank, is one of Kyiv’s strongest supporters, and Sikorski used his speech to strongly criticise Russia.
He said, addressing Russian leaders: “Don’t you have enough land? Eleven time zones and still not enough? Take care of better governing what is within your borders according to international law.”
Sikorski described the deteriorating security situation with a war next to Poland’s border: “Anxiety, and the question of what will happen, have settled in Polish homes. Are we also at risk of Russian aggression? Are the relations between Europe and the United States heading towards a crisis? Can Europe quickly improve its defense capabilities?”
Poland and European allies are trying to strengthen their defenses, fearing that Russian aggression won’t stop in Ukraine, while the Trump administration signals that Europe must take up more security responsibilities.
The UK remains “absolutely committed” to securing a “just and lasting peace in Ukraine” Downing Street has said, after US secretary of state Marco Rubio pulled out of talks in London on Wednesday.
Asked if Keir Starmer was disappointed at the decision, the prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “Today there will be substantive technical meetings with European, US and Ukrainian officials on how to stop the fighting and end Putin’s illegal invasion.”
The spokesperson said that foreign secretary David Lammy had “a productive call with Rubio yesterday, who confirmed that the US was looking forward to substantive and positive technical meetings in London today”.
“As you know, we remain absolutely committed to securing a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and these talks today are an important part of that,” he said.
Russia launches attacks across Ukraine before postponed London peace talks.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday that Ukraine insists on an immediate, full and unconditional ceasefire with Moscow.
Writing on Telegram, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine has repeatedly said that it does not rule out any format of talks that can lead to a ceasefire.
Ukraine is ready to negotiate but not to surrender, deputy PM says
Ukraine is ready to negotiate but not to surrender, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said on Wednesday as details emerged in media reports of a US proposal for a deal which would see Ukraine give up almost all territory currently occupied by Russia.
“There will be no agreement that hands Russia the stronger foundations it needs to regroup and return with greater violence,” Svyrydenko wrote on X.
“A full ceasefire – on land, in the air, and at sea – is the necessary first step,” she said, adding that if Moscow instead opted for a limited pause, Kyiv would respond in kind.
Agree a peace deal or US will walk away, Vance tells Ukraine and Russia
US vice-president JD Vance warned Wednesday that Moscow and Kyiv must strike a deal or Washington will end its efforts to reach a ceasefire.
“We’ve issued a very explicit proposal to both the Russians and the Ukrainians, and it’s time for them to either say yes, or for the United States to walk away from this process,” Vance told reporters in India, where he is on a four-day visit.
Vance spoke as envoys from Washington, Kyiv and European nations gathered for talks in Britain amid a new US push to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“It’s now time, I think, to take, if not the final step, one of the final steps, which is, at a broad level, the party saying we’re going to stop the killing, we’re going to freeze the territorial lines at some level close to where they are today,” Vance added.
“Now, of course, that means the Ukrainians and the Russians are both going to have to give up some of the territory they currently own,” he added.
Dan Sabbagh
Ministerial-level Ukraine peace talks that were due to take place in London on Wednesday have been postponed at the last minute amid speculation that Russia is willing to change its position and after the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said he could not attend.
The UK Foreign Office indicated that ministerial-level meetings would be replaced by discussions at an official level – though initial public comments from the Kremlin suggested Moscow still opposed Nato countries sending peacekeepers to Ukraine.
Posting on social media just before midnight, Lammy said his discussions with Rubio were productive but hinted that they would take place at a lower level. “Talks continue at pace and officials will meet in London tomorrow. This is a critical moment for Ukraine, Britain and Euro-Atlantic security,” he said.
Ukraine, nevertheless, brought along a senior delegation led by Andriy Yermak, Voldoymyr Zelenskyy’s powerful chief of staff, plus the foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, and defence minister, Rustem Umerov. “Despite everything, we will work for peace,” Yermak said.
Earlier Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha posted an image to social media ahead of the scaled-down meetings in London, which were postponed after US secretary of state Marco Rubio declined to attend.
Sybiha, alongside Ukraine’s foreign minister Rustem Umerov and the Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak, met with UK foreign secretary David Lammy and UK defence secretary John Healey.
Arrived in London together with @AndriyYermak and @rustem_umerov for a day of meetings with our partners as we work to achieve a fair and lasting peace for Ukraine and all of Europe.
Our first meeting in London is between ministers of foreign affairs and defence together with… pic.twitter.com/HW6VaSb8L3
— Andrii Sybiha 🇺🇦 (@andrii_sybiha) April 23, 2025
Russia’s armed forces still lack certain weapons despite significantly increasing arms production last year, president Vladimir Putin told a meeting of the state Military-Industrial Commission on Wednesday, Reuters reports.
Tass reports that Putin said the supply of weapons to the area of the special military operation – Russia’s preferred term for its invasion of Ukraine – was a top priority.
He said that the army of the Russian Federation needed to remain one step ahead, and Tass reports he ordered the acceleration of production of robotic systems, unmanned boats and combat lasers.
