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Stay on top of Russia-Ukraine war 03-12-2025 developments on the ground with KyivPost fact-based news, exclusive video footage, photos and updated war maps.
Industry representatives said the confiscations have led to China looking at alternative routes that bypass Russia altogether.
Russia has been confiscating dual-use goods from China that are transiting through the country, leading to companies seeking alternative routes bypassing Russia altogether.
The confiscation applied to goods such as mechanical and electronic products that could potentially be used by Western forces in Ukraine en route to Europe.
In this video, Kyiv Post analyzes Russian propaganda and military blogger reactions to the recent US-Ukraine talks in Saudi Arabia.
US President Donald Trump and Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin discussed the war in Ukraine in passing and made brief comments on the US-proposed 30-day ceasefire plan.
US President Donald Trump said he could do “very bad” things to pressure Russia financially but prefers not to upon meeting Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin in the White House on Wednesday.
During the meeting, the two touched on the war in Ukraine, with Trump declining to get into specifics when questioned if he intends to pressure Russia into accepting the US-backed 30-day ceasefire proposal to which Kyiv has agreed.
The captain of the Solong cargo ship that crashed into the Stena Immaculate carrying US jet fuel on Monday is a Russian national, has been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
The Solong cargo ship that crashed into the Stena Immaculate carrying US jet fuel on Monday off the British coast was captained by a 59-year-old Russian national.
The collision, which happened before 10 a.m. local time on Monday when the Stena Immaculate was anchored in the North Sea off Hull, led to flames engulfing both vessels and the jet fuel spilling into the water, though preliminary assessments suggested the environmental impact was limited as the fuel was mostly burned off and evaporated.
Commentators from around the world speculate on how Moscow will react to the US-Ukraine ceasefire proposal.
At the talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah, negotiators from Washington and Kyiv have agreed on a joint proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire in the Ukraine war. They also agreed that the suspended US military aid will be resumed. Commentators focus on how Russia will react.
It remains unclear how Ukraine’s security is to be guaranteed, notes Lidové noviny from the Czech Republic:
After receiving large demand, the MoF agreed to accept less aggressive bids and increase bond yields by 50bp, only half of the NBU’s key rate increase last week. Bond Market Insight for March 12.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Finance continues to follow the NBU in interest rate increases. After receiving large demand, the MoF agreed to accept less aggressive bids and increase bond yields by 50bp, only half of the NBU’s key rate increase last week.
16-month bills received over UAH2bn of bids, including only UAH81m in non-competitive demand. Out of 30 bids, the MoF accepted 24, with interest rates up to 16.35%, 50bp above last week’s cut-off rate, borrowing just UAH360m. The MoF rejected another six bids, as they had interest rates up to 16.85%.
The big questions are how many troops and how fast. The receiving units are among the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ most battle-tested.
A Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) initiative targeting volunteers in the critical 18 to 24 age bracket with big salaries, house loans, and education benefits has delivered its first recruits to the ranks, a General Staff statement said Tuesday.
The official announcement said the military’s campaign to reduce the average age of troops in the AFU was delivering real results, but the numbers of recruits reaching the ranks were not made public.
The SBU warned that Russian intelligence services have adopted a new tactic: exploiting recruits “in the dark” and then eliminating them as unwanted witnesses.
Two explosions rocked the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk on Tuesday, March 11, in what Ukrainian intelligence reports were unwitting suicide bomb attacks carried out by teenagers.
Teenagers, 15 and 17, had been recruited by Russian special services.
Uncertainty over Trump’s trade plans and worries that they could tip the world’s biggest economy into a recession have roiled financial markets
Major US trading partners announced countermeasures Wednesday after Donald Trump’s blanket steel and aluminum tariffs took effect, prompting the president to vow further action.
The steep 25% levies came into place after midnight with no exemptions despite countries’ efforts to avert them, in a step up from fresh duties Trump already imposed on Canada, Mexico and China since returning to the White House.
Erdogan again proposed that Turkey host any peace talks between Ukraine and Russia
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday that he hoped Moscow would “respond constructively” to a US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, which Kyiv has accepted.
“We consider Ukraine’s acceptance of a ceasefire as positive and important. We now hope Russia will respond constructively,” Erdogan said at a joint news conference with visiting Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
If a non-binding resolution is adopted in a vote, that would pile pressure on French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Francois Bayrou to change their position on the issue.
French lawmakers on Wednesday were debating a resolution urging France and allies to provide more support for Ukraine, including by seizing tens of billions of euros in frozen Russian assets.
France has until now voiced opposition to seizing frozen Russian assets, arguing that such a move would be against international agreements in a stance that puts Paris at odds with its ally Britain.
Trump’s position on NATO risks rendering the Alliance ineffective against the threat posed by Russia. Ukraine will need to be a crucial element in any restructuring.
The world is at a point of changing epochs. Old systems are still inert and new systems are still emerging. Drones of all kinds are replacing the usual heavy weapons, and satellite communications and surveillance systems are becoming the basis for successful military operations. Defense alliances are also no exception and will soon begin to undergo metamorphosis.
First of all, this concerns NATO. Let’s be frank, the Alliance has been virtually incapacitated for the last 10 years. This has become evident only now, when it is facing real challenges to European security.
Jeddah talks impacted positively on Ukraine’s stocks as they gained 4-10% on average, Eurobonds and GDP warrants gained 1-2%.
After the US and Ukraine reached an agreement of 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, stocks of Ukrainian companies listed on London and Warsaw Stock Exchanges climbed by 1-10%.
Ukraine’s Eurobonds and GDP warrants gained no more than 2%, according to Wednesday morning data cited by Interfax-Ukraine.
Defense firms have been expanding their presence in Germany in a way not seen for decades.
German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall said Wednesday that moves by European capitals to ramp up military expenditure and reduce their reliance on the United States were a massive growth opportunity for the defense sector.
“An era of rearmament has begun in Europe that will demand a lot from all of us,” Rheinmetall’s chief Armin Papperger said in a statement as the group published its annual results.
Zelensky says achieving real peace requires pressure on Russia, and Ukrainian elections will be held, per Ukraine’s constitution, after war ends.
Ukraine has agreed to a US-proposed 30-day ceasefire across its entire territory to demonstrate its commitment to peace, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced at a press briefing Wednesday.
He disclosed that before the Ukrainian and US delegations met in Saudi Arabia, there were discussions about a temporary halt in aerial and naval operations. However, the American side proposed a broader ceasefire encompassing all of Ukraine.
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.
US aid deliveries to Ukraine through Poland have resumed, Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski says, a day after Ukraine says it’s ready to enter into an initial 30-day ceasefire. Donald Trump says he hopes to speak to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the next few days, as Washington officials prepare to travel to Moscow to discuss the offer. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said “the ball is in their [Russia’s] court.” The Kremlin says it is “studying statements” from yesterday’s US-Ukraine talks and waiting to be briefed by senior American officials before commenting on the ceasefire proposal. Meanwhile, a former Putin adviser tells the BBC the ceasefire proposals give Putin a “dilemma” and that “Biden was just an enemy, Trump is a rival.” Strikes on Ukraine continued overnight, with four people killed in the port city of Odesa and one killed in Kryvyy Rih, authorities say - BBC
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced a response to new US tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, unveiling a package of countermeasures aimed at US exports. Early Wednesday morning, the EU executive launched a set of proportionate countermeasures on US imports into the EU, targeting a variety of American products, ranging from boats to bourbon to Harley-Davidson motorbikes. The move comes in response to what the EU deems as unjustified and disruptive tariffs imposed by Washington, which took effect at midnight. “We deeply regret this measure. Tariffs are taxes. They are bad for business, and even worse for consumers. These tariffs are disrupting supply chains. They bring uncertainty for the economy,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. “Jobs are at stake. Prices will go up. In Europe and in the United States,” she continued - Euronews
A Kremlin spokesman did not rule out the possibility of a phone call between presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Moscow is waiting for Washington to “brief them through various channels” on the outcome of US-Ukrainian talks in Saudi Arabia before commenting on whether a proposed 30-day ceasefire is acceptable to Russia.
“As stated yesterday, we expect Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz to brief us through various channels in the coming days on the details of the talks and the agreements reached,” Peskov said, speaking with reporters at a press briefing.
Ukrainian and American officials agreed on Tuesday to sign as soon as possible a minerals deal giving the United States access to Ukraine’s natural wealth.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that an expected minerals deal would give the United States a “vested interest” in Ukraine’s security, although he stopped short again of promising formal guarantees.
“I wouldn’t couch it as a security guarantee, but certainly, if the United States has a vested economic interest that’s generating revenue for our people as well as for the people of Ukraine, we’d have a vested interest in protecting it,” Rubio told reporters.
Russia claims its forces have entered Sudzha in the Kursk region, but Ukraine’s General Staff has so far not confirmed this, stating that it currently has no information on the situation.
Ukrainian forces are likely withdrawing from Kursk Region.
Urkaine’s Suspilne media reports that Russian forces have entered Sudzha in Russia’s Kursk region, where fighting is ongoing. This comes as Russian troops have established fire control over the Yunakivka–Sudzha road, a key supply route from Sumy.
The captain of the Solong cargo ship that crashed into the Stena Immaculate carrying US jet fuel on Monday is a Russian national, has been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
The Solong cargo ship that crashed into the Stena Immaculate carrying US jet fuel on Monday off the British coast was captained by a 59-year-old Russian national.
The collision, which happened before 10 a.m. local time on Monday when the Stena Immaculate was anchored in the North Sea off Hull, led to flames engulfing both vessels and the jet fuel spilling into the water, though preliminary assessments suggested the environmental impact was limited as the fuel was mostly burned off and evaporated.
The Russian side says a huge victory has been won. There’s not a lot of information from the Ukrainian side.
Observers outside Ukraine on Wednesday said Kyiv’s forces holding a salient in Russia’s Kursk region had been defeated and were retreating out of the country.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian open-source intelligence organization DeepState reported that the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are now out of Sudzha – the center of Ukrainian resistance in the sector since Kyiv’s forces captured it back in August – but were still in the Kursk Oblast.
Since the United States under Trump has effectively become a Putin ally, Ukraine from now on must rely only on Europe. To hang on to overly optimistic illusions would be suicidal.
Far too much has happened since Jan. 20, when Donald Trump was inaugurated as US president. Many of us regretted that President Joe Biden did not do more to support Ukraine, but we always knew that he was on the right side.
Trump, on the contrary, is usually on the wrong side. He stands for the billionaires in America, against liberal democracies, such as Ukraine, and against poor Americans. People skeptical of the US used to talk about the “ugly Americans,” but now as Anne Applebaum so pointedly stated, Trump and Vance represent the “brutal Americans.”
Is the US Ukraine-Russia envoy Keith Kellogg being sidelined? Some unnamed official said yes, while others argued that Kellogg remained a key advisor in Washington’s Ukraine policies.
Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Keith Kellogg, US President Donald Trump’s handpicked Ukraine-Russia envoy, was notably absent during Tuesday’s Saudi talks between Ukrainian and US officials – a meeting that resulted in a historic ceasefire proposal.
Which begs the question – is Kellogg being sidelined?
Saakashvili was sentenced in absentia in 2018 to six years behind bars for abuse of office. He was jailed and began serving the term in 2021, when he returned to the country.
A Georgia court on Wednesday sentenced pro-Western reformer ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili to nine years in prison for misspending public funds, adding three years to the jail term he is currently serving.
Saakashvili, 57, was sentenced in absentia in 2018 to six years behind bars for abuse of office, a charge he and rights groups have denounced as politically motivated.
US National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard confirms the US has resumed intelligence sharing with Ukraine, calling it a “significant step closer to ending the bloody war.”
US National Intelligence has confirmed the resumption of intelligence sharing with Ukraine, as announced by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
“Because of the US president’s leadership, we are one significant step closer to ending the bloody war in Ukraine,” Gabbard wrote on X.
The restoration of military aid and the resumption of intelligence sharing were secured after hours of negotiations between the US and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia.
The White House has resumed the supply of US military aid to Ukraine through a logistics hub in Jasień (Poland), Polish Deputy Minister of National Defense Pawelsz Zalewski said.
He wrote on X, “Deliveries of American weapons from POLLOG HAB in Jasień to Ukraine have resumed.”
Let’s imagine a hypothetical, very fictional conversation between Yermak and Witkoff in Riyadh, the author offers.
Let’s imagine a hypothetical, very fictional conversation between Yermak and Witkoff in Riyadh.
Yermak - ok Stevie, what exactly do you want from Ukraine to bring an end to the Russian war of aggression on Ukraine?
Donald Trump’s overt ambitions to take over Greenland loom large over political life in the capital Nuuk.
Greenland’s population of around 57,000 is electing its parliament, the Inatsisartut, today. All but one of the parties represented there have so far agreed on the goal of independence for the Arctic island, which belongs to Denmark but has autonomous status. Donald Trump’s overt ambitions to take over Greenland loom large over political life in the capital Nuuk.
Trump has taken them by surprise
Russian propagandists and pro-war bloggers have reacted negatively and with irritation to the results of the talks in Jeddah. Kyiv Post investigates why.
The outcome of the Ukrainian-American negotiations in Saudi Arabia pleased skeptics and those in Ukraine who had already been disappointed with the Trump administration after perceiving it as pro-Russian.
After prolonged discussions, an agreement was reached to resume intelligence sharing and restore security assistance to Ukraine. Although this merely reinstates what was in place two weeks ago, many in the Ukrainian media and expert community welcomed it with relief.
Right after Ukraine agreed to a 30-day ceasefire in talks with the US, Moscow launched massive strikes, hitting Odesa’s port, Kryvyi Rih, and Dnipro.
The Russian army launched massive strikes across Ukraine immediately after Ukraine agreed to a 30-day сeasefire following negotiations with a US delegation in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, March 11.
On Wednesday evening, Russia carried out a ballistic strike on the Odesa Sea Trade Port. As a result of the attack, four crew members of a foreign vessel were killed.
In the first such contact in several years, CIA chief John Ratcliffe and SVR chief Sergei Naryshkin spoke by phone and “agreed on regular contact” between their organisations.
The heads of US and Russian spy agencies have have spoken by phone and agreed to keep up regular contacts to lower the temperature in US-Russia relations, news reports said on Wednesday.
In the first such contact in several years, CIA chief John Ratcliffe and the head of Russia’s external intelligence agency SVR Sergei Naryshkin spoke by phone on Tuesday, the state TASS agency said.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he has informed his cabinet ministers, women as well as men, that they will undergo “voluntary” military training.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he has informed his cabinet ministers, women as well as men, that they will undergo “voluntary” military training as Warsaw increases its readiness amid fears of a Russian threat.
The move follows an announcement on Friday that Poland will make army training available to all adult men who want it by the end of 2025.
Moscow’s newest experimental tactic involves two dirt bikes driving off the ramp of a speed boat first before other infantrymen follow to secure coastal positions.
The Russian Marines are experimenting with amphibious landing using motorcycles, as seen in a recent propaganda video.
In the video shared by Russian war propagandist Aleksandr Sladkov on Saturday, two dirt bikes could be seen stowed on a speed boat during a training session, where the Russian Marines, concealed by smoke on the beach, first departed on the bikes to secure their positions before more infantrymen followed via subsequent speedboats.
Following talks in Jeddah on Tuesday, Ukraine has agreed to a US proposal for a temporary 30-day ceasefire with Russia, while the US will lift restrictions on military aid and intelligence sharing.
Discussions on a temporary 30-day ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war will start next week, between March 17 and March 23, according to Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian President’s Office.
With Trump stunning allies by applying intense pressure on Kyiv and reaching out to Moscow, Ukrainian officials came to talks in Saudi Arabia eager to make up and had proposed a partial truce on air and sea attacks.
Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.
Key Takeaways from the ISW:
The proposal puts Putin in a quandary: While the Western alliance is fracturing, the Kremlin strongman may not risk souring Trump’s resuscitated US-Russian relations.
As Europe positively beamed at the prospect of a month-long ceasefire in Ukraine, Russian ultranationalist voices and a Russian State Duma deputy in particular, rejected the idea out-of-hand on Tuesday.
Russian military bloggers reacted negatively to the ceasefire proposal, The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) wrote, because the United States and Ukraine will allegedly “abandon” peace “at the first opportunity” and, in their ironic opinion, the war in Ukraine is “existential” for Russia.
“We have a big meeting with Russia tomorrow,” US President says, adding that Zelensky is welcome to come back to the White House.
US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he would likely speak to President Vladimir Putin this week, after Ukraine endorsed an American proposal for a ceasefire and talks with Russia to end its invasion.
Trump also indicated that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would be invited back to Washington despite the two leaders’ public falling-out on February 28.
France and Italy applaud the US-led effort in Saudi Arabia to negotiate a ceasefire with Russia. US Secretary of State says it’s up to the Kremlin now, as Europe readies security backup if needed.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and European leaders hailed the initial peace talks with Ukraine in Saudi Arabia as a success on Tuesday. Each of them said that it was now Russia’s move on the chess board, or more accurately, in tennis terms, the Kremlin’s turn to return serve.
Rubio, who led the US contingent in Jeddah, relayed that Ukraine had agreed to ceasefire terms and “immediate negotiations” with Russia and that “the ball is now in Russia’s court.”
![[WATCH] Russia Experiments With Motorcycle Amphibious Landing](https://static.kyivpost.com/storage/2025/03/10/dad22f0a439d809b5ed387196f3d2255.png?w=2560&f=webp)
