Moscow has responded to US threats to will abandon peace talks between Russia and Ukraine within days unless there are clear signs that a deal can be reached.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted progress on a peace settlement had already been made, claiming Russia was striving to resolve the conflict. He said Moscow remained open to dialogue with Washington but that contacts were difficult.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Donald Trump had many other priorities worldwide and may move on unless there were signs of progress.
Talks in Paris among US, Ukrainian and European officials produced outlines for steps toward peace. One source said US proposals involved Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia remaining under Moscow’s control and the US dropping sanctions on Russia.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials announced they had signed an outline of a US minerals deal and that a final accord could be reached by the end of next week.
A Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s northeastern city of Kharkiv killed one person and wounded 82 others, including six children, on Friday morning, officials said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused China of supplying weapons, including gunpowder and artillery, to Russia. China has dismissed the accusation.
Recap: One killed and 98 injured in Kharkiv strikes
Recap: One person has died and 98 others, including six children, were hurt as Russia hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, early on Friday, its mayor Ihor Terekhov said.
Cluster munitions struck a “densely populated” neighbourhood four times, he reported.
Russian drones also targeted a bakery in Sumy, less than a week after a deadly Palm Sunday strike there, killing a customer.
Last Sunday’s strike on Sumy, also resulting in mass casualties, was the second large-scale missile attack to claim civilian lives in just over a week. Some 20 people, including nine children, died on April 4 as missiles struck President Zelensky’s home town of Kryvyi Rih.
New prisoner swap due to take place
Russia and Ukraine will conduct a new prisoner swap tomorrow, mediated by the United Arab Emirates, a source close to the negotiations has told Reuters.
Nearly 500 Russian and Ukrainian prisoners and 46 injured soldiers will be exchanged in the latest swap to be mediated by Abu Dhabi.
The exchange will involve 246 prisoners from each side, the source said, making it one of the largest prisoner swaps to date.
In March, the two sides each exchanged 175 prisoners:
Full text of US-Ukraine memorandum of intent for minerals deal
Following is the complete text of a memorandum of intent signed on Thursday by Ukraine and the United States, confirming their intent to conclude a deal on jointly developing Ukrainian natural resources. It was posted on Friday on the website of the Ukrainian government.
MEMORANDUM OF INTENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF UKRAINE TO FINALIZE FORMAL AGREEMENT ON ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AND RECONSTRUCTION INVESTMENT FUND
WHEREAS the United States of America has provided significant financial and material support Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022;
WHEREAS the American people desire to invest alongside the Ukrainian people in a free, sovereign and secure Ukraine;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine desire a lasting peace in Ukraine and a durable partnership between their two peoples and governments;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine recognize the contribution that Ukraine has made to strengthen international peace and security by voluntarily relinquishing the world’s third largest arsenal of nuclear weapons;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine intend to establish a reconstruction investment fund as part of an economic partnership between the two peoples and governments;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine have held highly productive technical discussions in Washington, D.C. as recently as April 11-12, 2025, in order to finalize negotiation of an agreement to establish a reconstruction investment fund;
WHEREAS the United States respects Ukraine s intention to avoid conflicts in the drafting of the agreement with Ukraine’s obligations under European Union accession or agreements with international financial institutions and other official creditors;
WHEREAS, without prejudice to any remaining political or legal procedures required to complete the arrangement, Ukrainian Prime Minister Shmyhal will visit Washington, D.C. the week of April 21, 2025, to meet with U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent and lend high-level support to the conclusion of technical discussions on the terms of an agreement establishing a reconstruction investment fund. Negotiating teams are expected to report on the progress by the April 26, 2025, with the aim of completing discussions by that date and signing as soon as possible; and
NOW, THEREFORE, as evidenced by the signatures set forth below, the Government of the United States and the Government of Ukraine enter into this Memorandum of Intent to work expeditiously towards the completion of the necessary documents in order to finalize the agreement forging an economic partnership between the American and Ukrainian peoples and establishing a reconstruction investment fund.
This Memorandum of Intent may be signed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, and all of which shall be deemed one instrument.
Deal recognises Ukraine could join EU
The investment fund memorandum, signed by US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent and Ukrainian deputy prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko, recognises Ukraine’s “commitments related to its accession to the EU”.
Minerals deal involves US-Ukrainian investment fund
A deal due to be signed next week by Ukraine and the US includes setting up a joint reconstruction investment fund between the two countries.
The draft recognises the “significant financial and material support” Washington has given Kyiv since Russia’s invasion, a screenshot shows.
The document does not clarify whether profits from future investments will be used to “pay back” the US for military aid previously made.
Next steps in peace talks
Ukrainian, US and European officials and diplomats are due to hold a new meeting next week in London to discuss the next steps towards a peace deal.
Landmark talks in Paris on Thursday produced outlines for some steps.
Watch: Rubio hints US may drop Russia-Ukraine peace talks
Russia ‘would be allowed to keep occupied territory’ under US plan
US proposals for a peace deal would effectively freeze the war, with Ukrainian territories now occupied by Russia remaining under Moscow’s control, European sources told Bloomberg.
Kyiv’s aspirations of joining Nato would also be off the table.
The outline of the US plan was shared during meetings in Paris on Thursday.
Ukraine hits Chinese firms with sanctions
China’s foreign ministry has dismissed the accusation as groundless.
US ‘offers to ease sanctions on Russia for peace’
Breaking news: The US has offered to ease sanctions on Russia in a peace proposal for Ukraine, it’s been reported.
Bloomberg News says the US presented allies with proposals to enable a peace deal, including an outline of terms to end the fighting and ease sanctions on Moscow in the event of a lasting ceasefire.
Source: independent.co.uk
