Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 03-11-2025

During negotiations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine presented three key proposals: halting attacks from the air, on the Black Sea, and the release of prisoners.

Ukraine has accepted a US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in the air and at sea, President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed in an evening address. Now, it’s up to Washington to “convince Russia” to agree the deal.

During negotiations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine presented three key proposals: halting attacks from the air, and on the Black Sea, and the release of prisoners.

The White House will immediately resume intelligence sharing and security assistance to Ukraine, reversing a freeze Trump ordered after his well-publicized Feb. 28 Oval Office meeting with Zelensky.

Ukraine has agreed to a US proposal for a temporary 30-day ceasefire with Russia, while the Trump administration will lift restrictions on military aid and intelligence sharing, a press release issued by Ukraine’s Presidential Office after the talks says. 

Following talks in Saudi Arabia, both sides also pledged to finalize a deal on Ukrainian minerals as soon as possible.

The lifting of the existing ban, put in place following the Oval Office dispute, was announced in a press release issued by Ukraine’s Presidential Office after Tuesday’s Saudi talks.

The Trump administration has agreed to lift the recently introduced ban on arms support and intelligence sharing with Kyiv following a talk with the Ukrainian delegation in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. 

“The United States is immediately lifting the pause in intelligence sharing and restoring security assistance to Ukraine,” a press release issued by Ukraine’s Presidential Office after the talks says. 

Following a critique by his cousin, a US soldier who fought for Ukraine, US Vice President JD Vance called him “the toughest guy [he] knew” but questioned why he didn’t reach out via family.

US Vice President JD Vance responded to his older cousin Nate Vance’s criticism, calling Nate “the toughest guy [he] knew” but claimed that Nate did not reach out to him via their family members.

Nate Vance, a 47-year-old former US Marine, fought for nearly three years as a member of Ukraine’s “Da Vinci Wolves” elite infantry unit.

Tapping those assets could help plug a massive gap in defense budgets as Europe rushes to assume a greater role in defending Ukraine against Russia’s invasion

France on Tuesday said it did not rule out the EU seizing frozen Russian funds to help Ukraine but warned that such a move could risk Europe’s financial stability.

“Using the assets themselves can only be considered within the framework of the European Union,” French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou told lawmakers in Paris.

Ukraine plans to increase the amount of natural gas it imports next season because Russia’s attacks on infrastructure have taken a toll on its domestic production capacity.

Ukraine plans to increase natural gas imports to 3.5 billion cubic meters in the next heating season following Russia’s attacks on critical infrastructure, which have significantly reduced its own production capacity, Bloomberg reported.

Due to Russian strikes on energy infrastructure in February 2024, Ukraine could face a drop in local production of up to 40%, Reuters wrote, citing its “senior industry source.” 

Eighty years after its creation, the United Nations now faces “unprecedented pressure,” Kaja Kallas told a council meeting on relations with the European Union.

The EU’s foreign affairs chief told the UN Security Council on Tuesday that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was just one of a rising number of cases where the “rule of force” has replaced international law.

Eighty years after its creation, the United Nations now faces “unprecedented pressure,” Kaja Kallas told a council meeting on relations with the European Union.

Details of the high-stakes meeting remain scarce at the time of publication, with only scant updates from officials participating in the talks.

The Ukrainian and US delegations reportedly touched on Kyiv’s ceasefire proposal and the resources deal proposed by US President Donald Trump during the first round of the Saudi talks on Tuesday.

Ukrainian news outlet Suspilne, citing “a source familiar with the meeting,” reported the theme of the discussion without further elaboration.

In Point of Impact, former Squadron Leader for the US Navy’s SEAL Team Six, Chuck Pfarrer digs into issues surrounded the Russo-Ukrainian War

The majority of Ukrainians say Russia wants to destroy Ukrainian statehood, commit genocide and conquer more new territories.

The vast majority of Ukrainians – 66% – see Russia as an existential threat, believing Russia’s goal in the war is to commit physical genocide of Ukrainians, seize all or most of Ukraine’s territory, and destroy Ukraine as a nation. 

The Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) conducted a survey on Ukrainians’ perception of Russia’s goal in the war against Ukraine from Feb. 14 to March 4, 2025, a KIIS press release says. 

Alexander Temerko, a prominent donor of the Conservative Party, has called for Ukraine’s president to resign

A few hours before the Ukrainian delegation arrived in Saudi Arabia, ahead of the meeting with American representatives, a former Russian Defense ministry official and head of a Russian armaments manufacturer, now a British national and a Conservative Party donor, Alexander Temerko, called for the Ukrainian president to resign.

Temerko is well-known in the British Conservative circles. He has been a prominent donor of the Conservative Party before and after the large-scale invasion of Ukraine. He has also denied being an agent of the Kremlin and described the former PM David Cameron, whose bust he bought for the Carlton Club, once the nerve center of the Tory Party, as a “friend.” He uses the same term for Boris Johnson, whose bids for the premiership he supported in 2016 and 2019.

Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation refuted reports that the US planned to rule out talks on Ukraine returning to its 2014 and 2022 borders

The Center for Countering Disinformation under Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council has denied media reports that the US delegation at the Saudi Arabia talks demanded Kyiv abandon its claims to the 2014 and 2022 borders.

“The information that the US has excluded the issue of restoring the 2014 or 2022 borders from talks with Ukraine is not true,” the Center stated on Telegram.

The Elysee took the highly unusual step of issuing a denial that Macron had ever sought to “scare” the French, in a statement on the official social media account of the French presidency

French Sunday newspaper readers woke up this past weekend to starkly different visions of their country’s relationship with Russia.

“The bidding war of fear,” said the headline of Journal du Dimanche (JDD), accusing President Emmanuel Macron of seeking to panic France in an address to the nation last week when he described Russia as a “threat” to all of Europe.

Over the past year, there have been a number of incidents, including cyber attacks, drone flights over sensitive areas and cable breaks in the Baltic Sea, said Sapo chief Charlotte von Essen.

Sweden’s security has been strengthened since it joined NATO, but its membership has also made the Nordic country a higher priority for Russian intelligence, the Swedish Security Service (Sapo) said Tuesday.

“Foreign powers are carrying out vast activities that threaten Sweden’s security. We are seen as part of the collective West and are becoming a pawn in a global game, especially now that we are part of the NATO alliance,” Fredrik Hallstrom, head of operations at Sapo, told a press conference.

Musk faces backlash for labeling Senator Kelly a “traitor” over his Ukraine visit, blaming Ukraine for a cyberattack on X.

Lately it’s been bad news for the world’s richest man.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, Space X, and X, as well as the unelected head of US President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), didn’t earn many new friends this week when he called Democratic Senator Mark Kelly a “traitor” after the former US Navy pilot and astronaut visited Ukraine.

Ukraine’s presidential aide did not call for the outright seizure of frozen Russian assets, but instead said that it should remain in Europe, where the profits would go towards Ukraine’s recovery.

Andriy Yermak, head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office, said the frozen Russian assets held by Europe should remain in Europe’s hands, where the profit could go towards Ukraine’s recovery.

Yermak did not call for the seizure of the €300 billion ($328 billion) currently held by the West.

Ukrainian official and independent sources confirm ground lost but say defense lines still strong and that Russians are taking heavy losses. Some sources say Kyiv forces are on the way out of Russia.

Kremlin-controlled information platforms on Tuesday claimed a major victory in the Kursk sector, with a media blitz profiling medals awarded for heroism and images of Russian Federation flags raised in recently liberated villages.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense (RMoD) on Tuesday claimed a week-long offensive against a Ukraine-held salient inside Russia had by Tuesday liberated 12 settlements (Agronom, Bogdanovka, Bondarevka, Dmitryukov, Zazulevka, Ivashkovsky, Kolmakov, Kubatkin, Martynovka, Mikhailovka, Pravda, Yuzhny), and returned more than 100 square kilometers (38.6 square miles) of Russia’s Kursk region to Kremlin control.

Musk’s baseless accusation came after weeks of political attacks on Ukraine and its allies, even though a notorious hacking group had already said they were responsible for the attack.

X – the global social media platform, previously known as Twitter, owned by White House adviser Elon Musk – experienced a global outage on Monday that the billionaire claimed was caused by hackers in Ukraine, even though another group had already taken credit for the disruption.

The cyber attack lasted several hours and affected Android and iOS apps, causing numerous web client problems.

Unlike the Slovakian government, many Slovaks oppose Russia and support Ukraine with protests against the Fico government and financial aid for Ukraine’s army.

The Slovak “Ammunition for Ukraine” fundraiser raised €600,000 ($654,436) to purchase ammunition for the Ukrainian army, its organizers reported. 

The freshly collected funds are the third since the organization started raising funds in April 2024. 

Last week, President Trump responded to growing criticism over unprecedented cuts to the US government overseen by DOGE, saying they should be carefully targeted.

A US judge on Monday ordered billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to release its internal documents, saying the agency’s work to slash the size of government has been marked by “unusual secrecy.”

Since his return to the White House in January, US President Donald Trump has launched a vast offensive aimed at cutting public spending and reducing the role of the federal government.

In this exclusive interview, “Lektor” reveals the intense preparation, extreme battlefield conditions, and mental precision required for such a feat in the unforgiving Ukrainian warzone.

Latest from the British Defence Intelligence.

• Russian forces are applying increased pressure on Ukrainian forces in the Kursk salient, Russia, from the west, north and east. Ukrainian forces likely maintain control of approximately 300 sq km of territory in Kursk. Russian forces continue to conduct fewer offensive operations elsewhere on the frontline compared to late 2024 and early 2025
• In the vicinity of Pokrovsk, Russia’s primary operational focus, Ukrainian forces have launched a number of counterattacks near Pischane, Udachne, Sehvchenko, and south of Kutyre, which lies on the logistical highway, the T-05-06.
• Opportunities for Ukrainian counteroffensives have been improved by the reduced number of ground offensives being carried out by Russia. Russian logistics supply lines on the Pokrovsk axis have also been degraded by Ukrainian First Person View Uncrewed Aerial System attacks.

Higher rate and stronger hryvnia, reserve bonds domination on auctions, anxiety about slow pace of ceasefire progress. Weekly Insight for March 10.

Bonds: Reserve bonds dominate in new placements

The MoF has borrowed funds mostly via UAH reserve bonds over the past two weeks. This week, we expect this pattern to continue.Last week’s primary auction amassed almost UAH28bn worth of demand, but generated less than UAH6.7bn for the budget with the bulk raised via new reserve bonds.

Two UAH military bills provided the budget with just UAH1.6bn without changes in interest rates. At the same time, reserve bonds (the NBU added this paper to the list of designated reserve bonds last Wednesday) saw 5x oversubscription of UAH26bn vs a supply cap of UAH5bn. The placement resulted in UAH5.1bn of proceeds. Yields of reserve bond declined marginally.

Addressing lawmakers in Strasbourg, von der Leyen said Europe’s security order was “being shaken,” suggesting the continent could no longer rely on “America’s full protection”.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday called for a “surge” in European defence spending, as the 27-nation bloc faces an aggressive Russia and faltering US support.

Addressing lawmakers in Strasbourg, von der Leyen said Europe’s security order was “being shaken,” suggesting the continent could no longer rely on “America’s full protection”.

An unprecedented drone attack hit Moscow ahead of Saudi talks, with Russia’s Defense Ministry claiming it shot down 337 UAVs across the country.

Ukraine said Tuesday the drone attack launched on the Moscow region overnight should encourage Russian President Vladimir Putin to accept an aerial ceasefire proposed by Kyiv.

“The largest drone attack in history was carried out on Moscow and the Moscow region,” said Andriy Kovalenko, a national security council official responsible for countering disinformation.

The meeting marked the first in-person discussion between high-ranking US and Ukrainian officials after the White House fallout between the two nations’ heads of state on Feb. 28.

The high-stakes meeting between Ukraine and US officials in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, has started at 11:00 a.m. Kyiv time on Tuesday.

Soon after the meeting commenced, Ukraine’s Presidential Office Head Andriy Yermak hailed a smooth and constructive start between the two parties.

The new regulation, seen by Euractiv, is expected to introduce tougher migration rules and facilitate the creation of return hubs.

The Commission is “aiming to make it possible” for member states to explore innovative ideas, including “return hubs,” in new legislation set to be unveiled today.

The EU’s new return rules – the so-called “missing piece” of the asylum and migration system – are set to be unveiled during Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg today. The new legislation will replace the existing directive, which has been in place since 2008.

According to Witkoff, Zelensky sent a letter to Trump, apologizing for their heated public exchange during an Oval Office meeting.

US President Donald Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, is set to visit Moscow for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Bloomberg reports, citing sources familiar with the matter, that Witkoff’s trip is part of the administration’s efforts to negotiate a ceasefire in the Ukraine war. This will be his second visit to Russia in this role.

The world in focus, as seen by Canadian leading global affairs analyst Michael Bociurkiw in a quick review of the biggest news in international media today.

A Ukrainian delegation is to meet with America’s top diplomat in Saudi Arabia today about ending the three-year war with Russia. The US side is led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz. Ukraine is expected to propose a ceasefire covering the Black Sea and long-range missile strikes, as well as the release of prisoners, according to two senior Ukrainian officials. The officials also said Kyiv is ready to sign an agreement with the United States on access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals — a deal that U.S. President Donald Trump is keen to secure. On his plane to Jeddah, Rubio said the U.S. delegation would not be proposing any specific measures to secure an end to the three-year conflict but rather wanted to hear from Ukraine about what they would be willing to consider. “I’m not going to set any conditions on what they have to or need to do,” Rubio told reporters accompanying him. “I think we want to listen to see how far they’re willing to go and then compare that to what the Russians want and see how far apart we truly are.” Rubio said the rare earths and critical minerals deal could be signed during the meeting but stressed it was not a precondition for the United States to move ahead with discussions with either Ukraine or the Russians. He said it may, in fact, make more sense to take some time to negotiate the precise details of the agreement, which is now a broad memorandum of understanding that leaves out many specifics - AP

Rodrigo Duterte, the former president of the Philippines, was arrested on Tuesday in Manila, after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant accusing him of crimes against humanity in his war on drugs in which, human rights groups say, tens of thousands of Filipinos were summarily executed. He was taken into custody at Manila’s main airport after returning from a trip to Hong Kong, according to the Philippine government. Mr. Duterte’s lawyer, Salvador Panelo, said the arrest was unlawful, partly because the Philippines withdrew from the court while Mr. Duterte was in office. In the I.C.C. warrant, a three-judge panel wrote that, based on evidence presented by the court’s prosecutor, it believed that killings ordered by Mr. Duterte as mayor of the city of Davao and later as president were “both widespread and systematic.” The panel also said it believed that “Mr. Duterte is individually responsible for the crime against humanity of murder.” The New York Times obtained a copy of the warrant, which was sealed and labeled “secret.” - New York Times

With each action and utterance, President Donald Trump is demonstrating his complicity in Russia’s genocidal war against Ukraine. His actions must be condemned. His betrayal will not be forgotten.

Keep in mind the Ukrainians who are dying as you read this.

US President Donald Trump’s purblind decision to cut off military aid to Ukraine, to sever access to US intelligence, and even suspend commercial satellite imagery for Ukraine’s defenders makes it more difficult for them to protect their homeland.

Trump’s shift in foreign policy has placed Europe in a vulnerable position, confronted by Russian aggression and diminishing US leadership in global security.

The year 2025 represents a critical turning point in Europe’s security landscape as the region confronts the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and the shifting dynamics of international relations, particularly influenced by US President Donald Trump’s second administration.

Trump’s “America First” foreign policy has significantly altered the US relationship with Europe and NATO, leaving European nations increasingly isolated as they navigate the security vacuum created by the US withdrawal from traditional global leadership roles.

The record-breaking drone strike on Moscow, hundreds of kilometers from the Ukrainian border, comes just before US and Ukrainian officials meet in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.

Ukraine targeted Moscow in a “massive” overnight drone attack in the early hours of Tuesday, March 11, with Russia’s Defense Ministry claiming it shot down 337 UAVs across the country, marking the largest drone attack on Russia to date.

“The largest attack of enemy UAVs on Moscow has been repelled. For the moment, 74 UAVs have been shot down as they approached Moscow, and hundreds of combat drones were intercepted at various borders,” mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram early Tuesday. 

The UK government wants to give money a sanctioned Russian billionaire oligarch made from Chelsea FC Sale only to Ukraine war victims, Abramovich wants to share with Russian soldiers.

The UK government is considering legal proceedings to secure £2 billion from the 2022 sale of Chelsea Football Club, previously owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, to aid Ukraine. 

The funds remained frozen due to disputes over their intended use.

Ukraine was the world’s largest importer of major weapons over the past five years, new research has found.

Deliveries to the war-torn Eastern European state amounted to 8.8% of global arms trade from 2020 to 2024, an increase of over 9,600% compared to the previous half decade.

The main supplier of weapons to Ukraine, by some distance, was the United States, which also reinforced its position as the world’s largest exporter of arms, the report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) showed.

The moves come as US President Donald Trump upends the transatlantic alliance and seeks rapprochement with Moscow.

Military chiefs from 30 European and NATO countries willing to contribute to security guarantees for Ukraine after any negotiated truce with Russia are to meet in Paris on Tuesday.

More than three years since Russia invaded neighbouring Ukraine, Europe is scrambling to boost its defences and break free from dependence on the United States.

Zelensky and Saudi Crown Prince discuss steps to end the war, with prisoner releases and child returns as trust-building measures.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud to discuss steps and conditions that could help end Russia’s war against Ukraine and secure a lasting peace.

“We discussed in great detail with Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud steps and conditions that could end the war and make peace reliable and lasting,” Zelensky wrote on his official Telegram channel.

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• Russia continues to publicly claim that it wants peace while offering no concessions of its own in sharp contrast with the concessions Ukraine has already offered.
• Russian officials continue to capitalize on the Trump administration’s statements and actions in an attempt to divide the United States and Europe.
• Russian forces are consolidating their gains in Kursk Oblast and likely preparing to attack Sudzha in the coming days.
• Ukraine continues to expand its domestic production of drones and air defense systems to support its war effort.
• Ukrainian forces recently advanced near Toretsk and Pokrovsk, and Russian forces recently advanced in Kursk Oblast and near Toretsk and Pokrovsk.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a list on March 10 of instructions for the Russian government and the Defenders of the Fatherland Foundation aimed at increasing social benefits to Russian veterans, which will likely put further strain on the Russian budget and economy.

After Ukrainian delegation offers ceasefire proposal, US Secretary of State says it’s a good start, but adds, “You’re not going to get a ceasefire… unless both sides make concessions.”

President Volodymyr Zelensky touched down in Saudi Arabia on Monday for a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived the same day for talks with Zelensky’s delegation in Jeddah.

Kyiv had proposed a land-and-sea ceasefire with Russia ahead of the negotiations, and Rubio said he welcomed the idea as long as other concessions were made.

X was unresponsive for at least tens of thousands of users in the US on Monday. The owner and Trump’s government axeman says an IP address in Ukraine is behind it. Musk lost some $18B on the day.

The principal owner of the X social media platform, Elon Musk, has blamed actors in Ukraine for a devastating cyberattack that left thousands of users tweet-less on Monday.

Tens of thousands of users, including this North America-based correspondent, were left with no access to the popular political app, with the California-based company reporting at least three major outages.

The “Amadea”, once belonging to Putin ally and Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, and now seized in San Diego, is estimated at about $300 million.

A luxurious superyacht that belonged to Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov may be headed to the auction block after a US judge on Monday dismissed a competing claim to ownership of the $300 million vessel.

The 348-foot (106-meter) Amadea has been docked in the California port of San Diego after it was seized by US authorities from the sanctioned Russian oligarch.