Heads of five European intelligence agencies told Reuters on February 19 they were pessimistic that US-brokered talks would produce a Ukraine peace deal in 2026, with four saying Moscow was using them to seek sanctions relief and one calling them mere theatre.
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Ukrainian forces recaptured 201 square kilometres between February 11 and 15, their fastest advance in more than two and a half years, according to an AFP analysis of ISW data published on February 17, which linked the gains to Russian troops losing access to Starlink.
Read MoreGerman Defense Minister Boris Pistorius says Russia launched some of the war’s most intense attacks during US-led peace talks in Abu Dhabi, calling strikes on Ukraine’s energy grid in minus 20 degrees terror on civilians. He doubts the pause on Kyiv is serious.
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The EU is creating a €6 billion Drone Alliance with Ukraine to jointly produce millions of drones, funded partly by frozen Russian assets. Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius called Europe a sleeping giant that must build its own defense as the US turns to Asia.
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy says a US document on security guarantees for Ukraine is 100% ready and Kyiv is waiting for a signing date, after the first three-way talks with Russia in Abu Dhabi made some progress. Territory and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant remain sticking points.
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Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met with US mediators in Abu Dhabi for their first trilateral talks of the war, with Donbas territory at the center. Russia wants Kyiv to hand over the rest of Donetsk, while Ukraine has proposed a demilitarized zone along the front line.
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Britain is spending £200 million to prepare its troops for a possible deployment to Ukraine as part of a multinational force after a ceasefire. Defence Secretary John Healey announced the funding in Kyiv, days after the UK and France signed a declaration of intent in Paris.
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