The White House has said president Donald Trump “believes” Vladimir Putin is winning the war with Ukraine.The statement follows a Wall Street Journal that Mr Trump told European leaders after a phone call with Mr Putin that the Russian president is not ready to end the war.

The Russian dictator is reportedly in a state of panic and is scrambling for defence after Ukraine carried out major strikes on a key military base 220 miles from the Kremlin

Why the world can’t afford to blink The report recalls that during his presidential campaign, Trump made stopping the war a central rallying cry, invoking his relationships with both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin — ties he claimed were established during his first

Ukrainian forces made a surprise incursion into Kursk in August 2024, before being pushed out by Russian troops nine months later.

Statements by Russian President Vladimir Putin about creating a buffer zone are evidence of the Russian Federation's aggression, said Heorhii Tykhyi, spokesperson for Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Vladimir Putin has visited Kursk for the first time since claiming to have completely retaken the Russian region from Ukrainian forces, state media reported on Wednesday, as the Russian president attempts to repel international pressure to agree to a 30-day ceasefire on the other side of the border.

The Russian leader traveled to the region in the west of the country where a surprise incursion last year embarrassed Moscow.

Ukrainian intelligence warns Russia is preparing a major build-up or troops in readiness for a major pre-Summer attack in a bid to gain major new ground ahead of any ceasefire talks

The announcement was made ahead of an expected prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia on Friday – an outcome of last week’s face-to-face talks in Turkey, the first time the two countries have held direct talks at any level in three years.