Ukraine war latest: Putin says he’s ‘ready’ for Trump talks as oil refinery hit

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine was ready to offer coal to Moldova, which is in the midst of an energy crisis after flows of Russian gas through Ukraine stopped at the beginning of this year.

Most of Moldova is controlled by authorities in Chisinau, but a sizeable minority of the population live in Transdniestria, a region which broke away in a violent conflict in the 1990s, after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

That region, which has Moldova’s only power station, is now facing the brunt of an energy crisis after losing gas supply, warning that its supplies will soon be exhausted.

“Russia’s latest move has been to orchestrate an energy crisis,” Sandu told reporters in Kyiv, adding that electricity prices had shot up in territories controlled by her government, but that things were even worse in the breakaway area.

“Those living in the Transdniestrian region of Moldova, held hostage by an unconstitutional regime backed by Russia for the past three decades, are now left in cold and darkness.”

Sandu said this was part of a calculated Russian strategy to sow chaos in Moldova and to facilitate the coming to power of a pro-Russian government, an apparent nod to parliamentary elections coming up this year.

Zelensky said Ukraine could supply enough coal to Moldova or to Transdniestria to solve their energy problems and to drive electricity prices down by 30 per cent.

“The absence of a crisis in Moldova is also (in the interests of) our Ukrainian security,” Zelensky said, adding that Ukraine could send a team of specialists to facilitate the use of Ukrainian coal at Transdniestria’s power plant.

Sandu said it was up to Transdniestrian authorities in the region’s capital of Tiraspol to accept the aid.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico rejected protesters’ calls for his resignation on Saturday after tens of thousands demonstrated against his government’s policy shift closer to Russia.

Around 60,000 protested in the capital Bratislava on Friday, organisers estimated, and media said in total around 100,000 had turned out for rallies in cities across the country, the biggest demonstrations since Fico returned to power in 2023.

Protests were nearing levels seen in 2018 when the murder of an investigative journalist caused mass demonstrations and forced Fico’s resignation during an earlier stint in office.

The latest protests come after Fico privately travelled to Moscow in December to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, a rare encounter for a European Union leader since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

“The government can only be changed if there are elections,” Fico said in interview with the public broadcaster on Saturday when asked about the protests.

Fico’s leftist-nationalist administration has accused progressive opponents this week of planning to escalate protests to try to overthrow the government illegally. Opposition parties and civic groups organising protests rejected the accusations.

Critics say the four-time prime minister’s ruling coalition is weakening democratic values, while shifting foreign policy away from EU and NATO allies and closer to Russia.

The civic group Mier Ukrajine (Peace to Ukraine), which organised Friday’s protests under the slogan “We are Europe”, will hold more demonstrations on Feb. 7.

Fico has defended his government’s foreign policy saying it seeks good ties with all sides, and while critical of some EU policies he has said policy was still determined by EU and NATO membership.

The North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Vladimir Putin’s military have shown ferocious commitment, brutality – and a determination to kill themselves rather than face capture, The Independent has been told.

A Ukrainian military source with direct knowledge of these troops has disclosed in brutal detail the extraordinary lengths they will go not to be caught.

The Independent’s World Affairs Editor Sam Kiley reports from Sumy:

Donald Trump said he was going to do it. His foreign policy and his defence team gave due warning that they’d do it. And yet as Marco Rubio appeared to smash a fist into the solar plexus of an already battered Ukraine, there’s still stunned surprise.

Ukraine is a democracy that’s been identified by the highest court on the planet as being the victim of war crimes and has been battling to defend itself against an invading neighbour – and which relies on foreign aid to continue that fight.

The Independent’s world affairs editor Sam Kiley writes:

Three civilians were killed after Ukrainian forces had shelled the Russian-controlled town of Oleshky in Ukraine’s Kherson region, Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-installed governor, has said.

“The danger to civilians remains – the city is strewn with landmines and unexploded clusters,” Saldo wrote on Telegram messaging app on Saturday.

Separately, Russia’s Defence Ministry said air-defence systems on Saturday downed 11 Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea near Crimea and three drones over Russia’s Belgorod region. One drone was also destroyed over Russia’s Bryansk region overnight.

The battlefield reports of the sides of the conflict could not be independently verified.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hopes Europe and the United States will be involved in any talks about ending his country’s war with Russia, he told reporters on Saturday.

At a joint news conference with Moldovan President Maia Sandu, Zelenskiy said Ukraine also needed to be involved in any talks about ending the war for such negotiations to have any meaningful impact.

Ukraine is in the final stages of drafting recruitment reforms to attract 18- to 25-year-olds who are currently exempt from mobilisation as it looks for ways to bolster its fighting force, the battlefield commander recently appointed to the President’s Office said.

In his first interview with foreign media since taking up his new position last fall, Deputy Head of the Office of the President Colonel Pavlo Palisa said Ukraine is exploring new recruitment options because the current drafting system inherited from Soviet times is hindering progress.

While Ukraine passed a mobilisation law last spring and lowered the age of conscription from 27 to 25 years old, the measures have not had the impact needed to replenish its ranks or replace battlefield losses in its war with Russia.

One initiative is what Palisa described as an “honest contract”, a plan that includes financial incentives, clear guarantees for training, and measures to ensure dialogue between soldiers and their commanders. The plan is aimed at attracting mainly 18- to 25-year-olds who are currently exempt from mobilisation, and will also target Ukrainians who have the right to deferment or were discharged after the mobilization law was passed.

“To secure the unit commander and the contract soldier, establish open and professional relations between them, and set clear boundaries that are understandable to both,” he said Wednesday. “In my opinion, this is essential for effective dialogue.”

The effort, which Palisa said is in its final stages, could help respond to calls aired by both the Biden and Trump administrations that Ukraine could expand its manpower by lowering the conscription age.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been adamantly opposed to implementing obligatory mobilization starting from 18 years old, saying doing so would radically affect the future prospects of the war-weary country.

“As of now, my view is that we need to start an open dialogue with society,” Palisa said. “Because the defence of the state is not only the responsibility of the Armed Forces. It is the duty of every Ukrainian citizen, and it is their obligation.”

Volodymyr Zelensky has warned Vladimir Putin was trying to manipulate efforts by Donald Trump to secure a peaceful solution to the nearly three-year-old war pitting Kyiv against Moscow.

The Ukrainian President said on Friday that the head of the foreign intelligence service reported to a meeting of Ukraine’s military command about “Russia’s military potential and Putin’s readiness to continue the war and manipulate world leaders”.

“Specifically, he is trying to manipulate the US president’s desire to achieve peace,” he said in his nightly video address. “I am confident that no Russian manipulations will succeed any longer.”

Vladimir Putin has said he is “ready for negotiations” with new US President Donald Trump over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The Guardian reported Russian President told a Russian state TV journalist: “We believe the current president’s statements about his readiness to work together. We are always open to this and ready for negotiations.”

A woman accused of spying for Russia told a court her partner lied about having a brain tumour in order to lead a “double life”.

Katrin Ivanova, 33, allegedly carried out surveillance on individuals and places of interest to Russia between August 30 2020 and February 8 2023.

Giving evidence in the witness box on Friday, Ivanova told jurors she believes her partner Biser Dzhambazov, 43, who has pleaded guilty to espionage charges, lied about having a brain tumour in October 2021.

Ellie Crabbe reports: