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Zelenskiy says Ukraine ready to advance peace plan, will discuss disputed points with Trump

A Ukrainian official said Ukraine “supports the framework’s essence, and some of the most sensitive issues remain as points for the discussion between presidents.”

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he was ready to advance a U.S.-backed framework for ending the war with Russia and discuss disputed points with U.S. President Donald Trump in talks he said should include European allies, Reuters reported.

U.S. and Ukrainian officials have been trying to narrow their gaps over Trump’s plan to end Europe’s deadliest and most devastating conflict since World War Two, with Ukraine wary of being strong-armed into accepting a deal largely on Russian terms, including territorial concessions.

In a speech to what is known as the coalition of the willing allies, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, Zelenskiy urged European leaders to hash out a framework for deploying a “reassurance force” to Ukraine and to keep backing it for as long as Russia showed no inclination to end its nearly four-year-old war.

“We firmly believe security decisions about Ukraine must include Ukraine, security decisions about Europe must include Europe,” Zelenskiy said, according to his speech text. “Because when something is decided behind the back of a country or its people, there is always a high risk it simply won’t work.”

“That framework is on the table, and we’re ready to move forward together with the USA, with the personal engagement of President Trump,” he said.

Trump has at times tried to accelerate negotiations by announcing deadlines, as he did last week when he said that he hoped for agreement by Thursday. But he softened that on Tuesday evening.

“The deadline for me is when it’s over,” he told reporters. “And I think everybody’s tired of fighting.”

He also encouraged reporters not to take the 28-point peace plan he unveiled last week as a firm blueprint.

“That was just a map,” he said. “It was a concept.” Negotiators were working through each of the points, whittling them down, he said.

Earlier on Tuesday, Trump said on social media that negotiations had left “only a few remaining points of disagreement.” He directed his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and his Army secretary, Dan Driscoll, to meet at the same time with Ukrainian officials. Ukrainian officials said Driscoll was expected in Kyiv this week, read the report.

“I look forward to hopefully meeting with President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages,” Trump wrote.

A Ukrainian diplomat cautioned that territorial concessions remained a major sticking point, meaning a final deal was far from certain despite accords on various specific points. “These are really tough questions for us,” the diplomat said.

Underlining the high stakes for Ukraine, Kyiv was hit by a barrage of missiles and hundreds of drones overnight in a Russian attack that killed seven people and again disrupted power and heating systems. Residents were sheltering underground wearing winter jackets, some in tents.

Zelenskiy could visit the U.S. in the next few days to finalise a deal with Trump, Ukraine’s national security chief Rustem Umerov said earlier on Tuesday, though there was no immediate confirmation of such a trip from the U.S. side, Reuters reported.

U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators held talks on the latest U.S.-backed peace plan in Geneva on Sunday. Driscoll then met on Monday and Tuesday with Russian officials in Abu Dhabi, a spokesperson for Driscoll said.

A Ukrainian official said Ukraine “supports the framework’s essence, and some of the most sensitive issues remain as points for the discussion between presidents.”

Oil prices extended their declines after reports of Ukraine potentially agreeing to a war-ending deal.

U.S. policy towards the war has zigzagged in recent months.

A hastily arranged summit between Trump and Putin in Alaska in August raised worries in Kyiv and European capitals that the Trump administration might accept many Russian demands, though the meeting ultimately resulted in more U.S. pressure on Russia.

The 28-point plan that emerged last week caught many in the U.S. government, Kyiv and Europe alike off guard and prompted fresh concerns that the Trump administration might be willing to push Ukraine to sign a peace deal heavily tilted toward Russia.

The plan would require Ukraine to yield territory beyond the almost 20% that Russia has captured since its February 2022 full-scale invasion, as well as accept curbs on its military and bar it from ever joining NATO, conditions Ukraine has long rejected as tantamount to surrender.

The sudden push has cranked up the pressure on Ukraine and Zelenskiy, who is now at his most vulnerable since the start of the war after a corruption scandal saw two of his ministers dismissed, and as Russia makes battlefield gains.

Zelenskiy could struggle to get Ukrainians to swallow a deal viewed as selling out their interests. Russia’s unrelenting attacks on Ukraine have left many sceptical about how peace can be achieved soon.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said an amended peace plan must reflect the “spirit and letter” of an understanding reached between Putin and Trump at their Alaska summit.

“If the spirit and letter of Anchorage is erased in terms of the key understandings we have established then, of course, it will be a fundamentally different situation (for Russia),” Lavrov warned.

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Saudi Aramco helicopter crash kills 14 nationals, state news agency says

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A helicopter belonging to Saudi ​oil giant Aramco crashed on Sunday ‌in Ras Tanura on Saudi Arabia’s eastern coast on the Gulf, west of the Strait of ​Hormuz, killing 14 nationals, the state ​news agency reported, adding that the ⁠cause was unknown.

Aramco had resumed crude oil loadings ​on Friday at its Ras Tanura terminal ​in the Gulf after they were halted for nearly four months, Reuters reported.

“The relevant authorities have launched a ​full investigation to determine the cause ​of the crash,” the state news agency added.

Aramco did ‌not ⁠respond immediately to an emailed request for comment.

The incident took place at 6 a.m. local time (0300 GMT), the state agency ​said, without providing ​further ⁠details.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, has joined a rush ​to move cargoes after Middle ​East ⁠producers ramped up oil and gas output and exports ahead of an interim deal ⁠to ​halt the war between the ​United States and Iran.

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Israel, Lebanon sign initial agreement after US-mediated talks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the agreement allows Israeli forces to continue to occupy southern Lebanon if Hezbollah does not disarm.

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Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement in Washington on Friday following several days of talks to secure an end to fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollahmilitants, though ‌both sides framed the deal as an initial step, Reuters reported.

Lebanese Ambassador Nada Moawad and her Israeli counterpart Yechiel Leiter signed the trilateral document with the U.S. at the State Department in Washington, providing few details.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the agreement allows Israeli forces to continue to occupy southern Lebanon if Hezbollah does not disarm.

“Today we’ve taken the first step in what will be a difficult journey, without a doubt, but an important and an essential ​and a necessary one,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said before the agreement was inked.

In a later statement he said that the U.S. would facilitate the implementation of ​the deal through a trilateral “Military Coordination Group for Lebanon” and that Washington would commit significant resources, including an immediate $100 million in humanitarian assistance in ⁠coordination with the U.N.

Rubio added that the U.S. reaffirmed its intent to improve the capabilities of the Lebanese Armed Forces “to more effectively establish sovereignty throughout Lebanese territory” with more than $30 million in funds ​under existing U.S. authorities and appropriations.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah broke out when the armed group fired at Israel on March 2, days after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran. The Hezbollah ​attacks triggered Israeli air and ground attacks that have killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon and displaced more than a million.

Lebanon’s Moawad also called it a “first step” on the road to restoring Lebanese sovereignty.

“Iran is out, Hezbollah is out, and the road to peace between Israel and Lebanon is in,” Leiter said.

Netanyahu said in a statement that the deal would also allow the Lebanese army “to begin organizing to take control of territory,” starting with ​what he described as two “pilot zones” from which Israeli troops would withdraw from land they occupied during the war.

Israel describes that territory as a “security zone” or “buffer zone” where its troops can thwart ​Hezbollah attacks on northern Israel.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said the agreement should allow Lebanese to return to “fully liberated” land and rebuilt homes with “no partner” in its sovereignty.

Israel’s death toll from this round of hostilities with Hezbollah ‌includes at least ⁠32 soldiers and four Israeli civilians. Hezbollah does not release figures on its war dead. Reuters reported on May 4 that several thousand Hezbollah fighters had been killed in the war.

A State Department official told Reuters on Thursday that Israel had agreed to pull back from some of the territory it has occupied, something Israeli and Lebanese officials denied.

Before the talks resumed this week, Israel and Hezbollah agreed to halt fire even as Israel kept troops in southern Lebanon.

Violence has persisted since the ceasefire, with Israel saying on Friday its troops had struck and killed what the military described as seven ​Hezbollah members who were operating near the territory ​it is occupying. Reuters could not confirm ⁠this.

“To the degree that the Lebanese army performs in dismantling and disarming Hezbollah, we will proceed with additional pilot zones and the ultimate determination of an internationally recognized, secure, and agreed upon border,” Leiter told reporters after the signing.

Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah said Lebanese authorities would not be ​able to enforce the agreement unless, with U.S. support, “they go to civil war,” pro-Iranian broadcaster Al Mayadeen reported, read the report.

Hezbollah would confront any measure taken ​by Lebanese authorities and ⁠would hold on to its weapons even more, adding that the group’s opposition was “serious” and would not allow authorities to implement their commitments on the ground, Fadlallah said.

Israeli forces dropped leaflets over the southern Lebanese town of Mansouri on Friday ordering residents to leave, Lebanese state media reported, the first such order issued since the latest ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took effect.

A senior Lebanese military ⁠official said Israel ​had recently added Mansouri to its occupation zone. The official said Lebanese farmers had continued to enter and leave ​the town, but had not been living there.

An Israeli military spokesperson said the military issued what it described as a “reminder” to the civilian population that “the area is within the security zone in which (Israeli) soldiers operate. It’s a reminder not to be ​in the area so they won’t be harmed.”

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Venezuela earthquake death toll rises to 188 as rescue efforts continue

According to officials, 138 aftershocks have been recorded since the twin 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes struck late Wednesday, causing widespread destruction.

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The death toll from the powerful earthquakes that struck Venezuela’s northern Caribbean coast has risen to 188, authorities confirmed on Thursday, as emergency crews continue search and rescue operations.

Jorge Rodriguez, President of Venezuela’s National Assembly, said 1,520 people have been hospitalized with injuries, while 157 people remain missing. Rescue teams are still searching for more than 200 people believed to be trapped beneath collapsed buildings.

According to officials, 138 aftershocks have been recorded since the twin 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes struck late Wednesday, causing widespread destruction.

Rodriguez said 346 infrastructure sites sustained damage, including 250 buildings, 20 shopping centers, and eight hospitals, forcing authorities to transfer patients to other medical facilities.

The Venezuelan government has announced the establishment of a $200 million emergency reconstruction fund to support the rebuilding of damaged homes, hospitals, and other critical infrastructure.

Following the disaster, Acting President Delcy Rodriguez declared a national state of emergency, while tsunami warnings were issued across parts of the Caribbean region after the powerful earthquakes.

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