Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 04-23-2025 (2025)

As London Talks Fail, Kremlin Claims ‘Only US Still Engaged’

The Kremlin responded triumphantly after the news that Ukraine peace talks in London had collapsed, saying that talks with the US continue - but not with Kyiv or Europe.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitriy Peskov commented on the collapse of scheduled peace talks between the US, Europe, and Ukraine in London, following the withdrawal of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and several European representatives.

“In London, it was really about a meeting of envoys from the US and Ukraine so that the US could continue its mediation efforts. As far as we understand, [they] have not yet managed to bring positions closer on some issues, so this meeting did not take place,” according to TASS.

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‘There’s Going to Have to Be Some Territorial Swaps’ - Vance Hints at Ceasefire on Contact Line in Ukraine Peace Proposal

The comment from the US vice president followed a similar, purported comment from Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

US Vice President JD Vance hinted at the cessation of hostilities along the contact lines in Ukraine as part of Washington’s peace proposal to Ukraine and Russia.

Vance, speaking to reporters in India on Wednesday, said Washington has delivered a “very explicit proposal” to Kyiv and Moscow, while reiterating earlier comments by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Washington would withdraw from the talks if no progress is made.

‘Let Putin Off the Hook’ – Trump Dismantles Russian War Crimes Tracker

Team Trump has quietly rolled back efforts to hold Russia accountable for war crimes in Ukraine, scrapping a key coordinator role and freezing support for international investigations.

The Trump administration has taken sweeping steps to dismantle US initiatives aimed at holding Russia accountable for war crimes committed in Ukraine, according to current and former officials familiar with the matter.

According to the Washington Post (WP), among the most significant changes is the administration’s decision to leave an international accountability group led by the EU, disband an interagency working group, and quietly vacate a congressionally mandated position meant to coordinate US intelligence on Russian atrocities.

Law Enforcement Raids Ex-Deputy Minister of Economy’s Home, Charges Unknown

Some lawyers are saying the State Bureau of Investigation’s search of Svitlana Panaiotidi’s home was illegal.

The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) raided the home of ex-Deputy Minister of Economy Svitlana Panaiotidi, Panaiotidis’ lawyer Taras Poshivanyuk told Kyiv Post via text message.

Poshivanyuk said the SBI search, still ongoing just before noon on Wednesday, was happening without a court decision.

Today’s London Talks on Ukraine ‘Downgraded’

First US top diplomat Rubio pulled out, and now other high-level participants have decided to postpone the meeting.

The top diplomats from the UK, US, France, Germany and Ukraine have postponed meeting in London on Wednesday for high-level talks on how to end Russia’s war, Sky News and other media have reported.

This decision follows from a statement made by President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday that while Ukraine is prepared to engage in US-brokered peace negotiations, it is not willing to agree to Washington’s insistence that it cede Crimea and other Ukrainian regions to Russia.

FT: Putin Proposes War Freeze for Crimea Recognition, Kremlin Denies Deal

FT reports Putin offered to freeze the war if Trump recognizes Crimea and blocks Ukraine’s NATO bid, but the Kremlin denies the report. However, European officials warn it may be a trap.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin has proposed ending the war along the current front lines as part of negotiations with the Trump administration over a possible peace deal, according to one report, but European officials warn it may be a trap.

During an April 11 meeting in St. Petersburg, Putin told Trump’s envoy Witkoff, a former Florida real estate investor and Trump’s golf partner with no prior diplomatic experience, that Russia would be willing to drop its claims to Ukrainian-controlled areas in four partially occupied regions, according to three sources cited in the report.

Rubio Abruptly Cancels London Trip, As Ukraine, Europeans, Lay Out ‘Red Lines’

It’s unclear whether Rubio’s absence at the UK-led talks today means any change in the White House’s expectation, but speaking to Kyiv Post, a former US official warned against “peace talk fatigue.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday abruptly cancelled plans to attend the UK-hosted high-level talks, which will kick off this morning in London, aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine, Kyiv Post’s Washington correspondent reports.

In a social media post, Rubio announced that he had “a productive conversation” with his British counterpart, David Lammy, ahead of what he described would be “substantive and good technical meetings with Ukrainian and UK counterparts.”

British Defence Intelligence Update Ukraine 22 April 2025

Latest from the British Defence Intelligence.

• On Saturday 19 April 2025, Russian President Putin publicly announced a unilateral 30-hour ceasefire based on claimed ‘humanitarian’ considerations, to start at 1800 Moscow/Kyiv time and end at midnight Easter Sunday. Putin’s announcement was almost certainly intended to demonstrate a constructive approach in ongoing talks, without incurring significant costs to Russia’s battlefield position.
• Russian forces almost certainly continued to carry out some offensive military operations against Ukrainian forces during the reported ceasefire period, in breach of Putin’s own ceasefire terms. It is likely that the overall tempo of military activity across the frontline decreased. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy reported no air raid alerts on Easter Day, 20 April, and on 21 April, Putin reportedly acknowledged a decrease in military activity during the ceasefire period.

• Russia has not taken up Ukraine’s proposal to extend the Easter ceasefire for a 30-day period. There has been no indication that Putin has deviated from his maximalist aims in Ukraine.

Tatars Vow to Oppose Any Recognition of Crimea as Part of Russia

Crimea has been under Russian occupation since 2014. Moscow illegally annexed the territory following a sham referendum held under military occupation.

An executive body representing Crimea’s Tatar minority has vowed to oppose any international recognition of the Moscow-occupied Ukrainian peninsula as part of Russia.

The development comesamid reportsthat the U.S. has pitched Ukraine a peace formula that includes, among other elements, ruling out NATO membership for the country while giving formal American recognition of Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

UK Hosts New Round of Ukraine Talks

The London meeting comes as US media reports that US President Donald Trump is ready to accept recognition of annexed land in Crimea as Russian territory.

Britain hosts a new round of talks on Wednesday involving the United States, Ukraine, and European nations amid a new US effort to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff is to visit Moscow this week, the White House has confirmed, in what would be his fourth trip to Russia since Trump took office.

9 Dead, Dozens Injured as Russia Launches Deadly Drone Barrage Across Ukraine

The new attacks cast doubt on US President Donald Trump’s hopes for a broader ceasefire between the two sides, days after he said a “deal” could be struck this week.

Nine people were killed and six others injured early in the morning on Wednesday in a Russian drone strike on the town of Marhanets in the Dnipropetrovsk region, according to Serhiy Lysak, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional State Administration.

He said a bus carrying employees of a local enterprise was hit in the attack.

ISW Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, April 22, 2025

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• TheFinancial Times(FT) reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin is willing to end the war in Ukraine on the current frontlines. Kremlin officials, including Putin, have repeatedly and explicitly emphasized that Russia maintains its territorial demands over all of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson oblasts, however, while also publicly signaling that Russia has greater territorial ambitions in Ukraine beyond these four oblasts.
• TheMoscow Timesreported that the Kremlin is attempting to use economic incentives to sway US-Russian talks about the war in Ukraine as the Kremlin is not sincerely interested in US President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the war. ISW cannot independently verify Kremlin sources’ statements, but recent Kremlin behavior is consistent with theMoscow Times‘ insider reporting.
• Any potential future Russian agreement to freeze the front short of Russia’s full control of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson oblasts does not preclude future Russian aggression to achieve Russia’s more extensive territorial demands, especially if the agreement stipulates a moratorium on Ukraine receiving Western military aid.
• Kremlin officials continued efforts on April 22 to blame Ukraine for the lack of progress towards Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s proposed temporary ceasefire on strikes against civilian infrastructure.
• The Kremlin continues to reject Trump’s stated goal of achieving a ceasefire in Ukraine before a full peace settlement to end the war – in contrast to Ukraine’s continued support for a general ceasefire.
• Russian forces continue to innovate their long-range drone strike tactics in order to offset the effectiveness of Ukrainian mobile defense units.
• Russia is reportedly recruiting North Korean citizens to compensate for labor shortages in Russia, indicating that Russian-North Korean cooperation continues to deepen.
• Russian forces recently advanced in Kursk Oblast and near Toretsk.

‘We Need to Take Odesa’ – Russian Woman Cites Fake ‘Biolabs’ to Justify Mykolaiv Attacks

A Russian woman claims Mykolaiv was bombed over “biolabs” and insists Odesa must be seized so Ukraine “has no access to the sea.”

Residents of Russia’s border regions continue to believe Kremlin-manufactured myths and justify attacks on Ukrainian cities with fabricated claims of “biolabs” and geopolitical fantasies, according to a new intercepted call released by Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR).

In the conversation between two women from Russia’s Belgorod region, which borders northern Ukraine, one of them insists that “everything was fine” in Mykolaiv and that “only the outskirts were bombed” — allegedly because “some laboratories had been built there.” She concludes: “Once those labs were smashed, it all ended.”

Zelensky Says Ukraine Ready for Direct Talks With Russia Only AfterCeasefire

“After the ceasefire, we are ready to sit down in any format,” Zelensky told journalists a day before the talks in London and as US envoy Witkoff heads to Moscow.

Ukraine is ready to hold direct peace talks with Russia but only after a ceasefire is in place, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday amid new US pressure to end the three-year-old conflict.

US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff is to go to Moscow this week, the White House said, and a US envoy was to take part in new talks with European officials in London on Wednesday.

‘Serious Concern’ – Foreign Ministry Summons Chinese Ambassador for Supplying Weapons, Soldiers

Zelensky says at least 155 Chinese are fighting in Ukraine, while intel shows that others are working in drone factories in Russia, as Kyiv accuses Beijing of supplying arms to Moscow.

The Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned China’s ambassador to Ukraine, Ma Shengkun, to raise “serious concern” about Chinese soldiers fighting alongside the Russian army and information that Beijing was supplying weapons to Moscow.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) said that it also had intelligence that Chinese citizens are working at a drone factory in Russia. Kyiv believes that Moscow may have stolen that drone technology by collaborating with those engineers.

‘Bloated and Bureaucratic’ – Rubio Announces Details of State Department Cuts

Among the services and programs slated for elimination include those intended to advance democracy overseas, counter extremism and prevent war crimes. Slashes to Africa are not as drastic as feared.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced details of cuts to his department on Tuesday, including the elimination of a division that promotes “civilian security, democracy and human rights.”

Overall, undersecretaries have been directed to reduce staff by at least 15 percent, although State Department officials earlier this week said as much as 22 percent of personnel could be dismissed. They are expected to present their proposals for firings within 30 days.