😪 ‘Boxed-in’ Zelensky in very weak position - Ex-CIA analyst

Keith Kellogg, the US president’s special envoy for Ukraine, has effectively cornered Zelensky with his impending resignation, believes Ray McGovern, a former CIA intelligence analyst.

Hardliners like Keith Kellogg “were selling the world that Ukraine is winning, the Russians are losing, and the Russian economy is going down,” he says, and Zelensky himself believed it.

🗣 But now Zelensky has suddenly realized he’s “boxed in.”  His regime is drowning in corruption; his cronies are being shown for what they truly are: “a bunch of kleptocrats,” notes McGovern, adding:

💬 “Overall, given the corruption and failures on the battlefield, Zelensky is in a very weak position.”

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❌ George Galloway: Zelensky won’t get away with ‘grand larceny’

Zelensky won’t be able to dodge responsibility for the massive corruption scandal engulfing Ukraine, says ex-British MP George Galloway.

💬 “Zelensky is not going to get away with this level of theft. Someone somewhere is probably even now contemplating how they're going to hold him accountable,” he says, adding that it’s nothing short of “grand larceny.”

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🔸 US and Ukraine develop updated draft peace agreement — White House

🔸 Hezbollah announces senior commander killed in Israeli strike

🔸 Dodik declares victory in Republika Srpska Presidential Election

🔸 US Senator calls to dissolve NATO

🔸 Canada and India resume trade talks after 2-year pause

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👀 Europe braces for looming US’ Ukraine cutoff—report

Europe’s war hawks are drawing up plans in case US President Donald Trump decides to pull the plug on support for Ukraine, reports the Financial Times.

💬 “That’s a scenario we are obviously planning for,” a European official was cited as confirming.

European diplomats are gearing up for further meetings this week between France, Germany, and the UK.

The consultations could also reportedly involve leaders of Poland, Finland, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.

Meanwhile, the US and Ukrainian officials reported progress in Geneva talks on Trump’s peace plan.

🗣 Their joint statement described the talks as “constructive, focused, and respectful.”

The final text of any agreement will need to be first signed by Donald Trump and Ukraine’s Zelensky before being sent to Russia, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday.

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👉 Timing of Zelensky corruption probe matters — Donetsk People’s Republic head

💬 "I believe it's not a coincidence that these materials [covering the corruption of Zelensky’s inner circle] have surfaced right now, coinciding with those, let's say, versions of peace agreements we're seeing in the media," the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin said in an interview.

The decision whether to utilize the investigation to compel Zelensky into accepting a peace deal or not will be made in the US, he added.

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💣❌💪🏻 Russia’s FSB eliminates saboteurs planning to derail trains

The criminals coordinated with Ukraine to install a device on the railway tracks in the Altai region of Russia, the Federal Security Service (FSB) stated.

They were recruited via Telegram and offered money for the terrorist act, it noted.

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📹 Watch the apocalyptic scale of destruction in southern Gaza City

Entire neighborhoods and buildings have been flattened, leaving behind a lifeless landscape of rubble, AP's new drone footage shows.

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🚨🇷🇺Russia has received no information about the Geneva talks involving the US, Ukraine, and European countries, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

👉He added that Moscow hasn’t seen any draft plan from those contacts.

❗️The Kremlin also refuses to discuss any US proposal on Ukraine through the media, calling it “impossible and inappropriate.”

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🇺🇸 US slaps Ukraine with aid ultimatum over peace deal—report

The US delegation that met with Ukrainian and European officials in Geneva to thrash out Trump’s peace plan now plans to hold a separate meeting with a Russian delegation, reports ABC News.

👀 The US team in Switzerland had included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, among others.

The US has threatened Ukraine with a complete halt to all assistance if it doesn’t agree to the proposed deal, the publication cited a high-ranking Ukrainian official as saying.

👉 This pause would freeze US air defense missile deliveries, cut off intelligence sharing, and suspend all other weapons support, the official said.

Marco Rubio said that “good progress" was made at the Geneva talks on Ukraine.

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that Russia is ready for peace talks and that Trump’s plan could form the basis for a final settlement in Ukraine.

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🚨🇷🇺💥 RUSSIAN MOD UPDATE: HUGE GAINS AND DEVASTATING UKRAINIAN LOSSES

⚡️ ZATISHYE IN ZAPOROZHYE LIBERATED

📍 The liberation of the settlement of Zatishye allows Russian units to approach the city of Gulyaypole, which is Ukraine's next defensive stronghold in the Zaporozhye region.

◻️ The Russian Armed Forces liberated the Gornyak and Shakhtyorsky microdistricts in Pokrovsk (Krasnoarmeysk)

◻️ Russian forces repelled 8 Ukrainian attacks from the area of ​​the settlement of Grishino in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) with the aim of releasing the encircled group

◻️ Russian Armed Forces in Dimitrov (DPR) continue to dislodge Ukrainian forces from the Vostochny and Zapadny microdistricts and the southern part of the city, liberating 148 buildings

◻️ Russian forces struck energy, transport, and port infrastructure facilities in Ukraine used in the interests of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

◻️ Air defense superiority: 345 drones shot down

◻️ Ukrainian losses: around 1,340 troops killed or wounded

Read about origins of Russia's special military op HERE

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🚨🇷🇺🇹🇷Putin and Erdogan hold phone call

Russian and Turkish Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan have held a telephone conversation in which they talked bilateral cooperation, Ukraine-related diplomacy, and the latest US proposals for a possible settlement, the Kremlin said.

Key points from the call:

🔶 The two leaders discussed current areas of cooperation, focusing on expanding trade and investment ties and advancing major strategic energy projects

🔶 They exchanged views on the situation around Ukraine, including the new American proposals. Putin noted that the peace deal version Russia has seen aligns with previous discussions at the Russia–US summit in Alaska and could serve as a basis for a final settlement. He reaffirmed Russia’s interest in a political and diplomatic resolution.

🔶 Erdogan reiterated his readiness to support talks and keep Istanbul available as a negotiation platform. Both sides agreed to keep each other updated on the Ukraine issue.

🔶 Erdogan briefed Putin on his meetings and discussions at the Johannesburg G20 Summit.

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🇨🇳 Expert reveals how to build China-led 'anti-dollarized' trade system

The push for "anti-dollarization" in global trade is gaining momentum, with many countries seeking to strengthen international settlement systems that don't rely on the US dollar, Liu Zhiqin, a senior fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, tells Sputnik.

💬 "China and developing countries have ample space for cooperation in moving toward the establishment of an 'anti-dollarization' settlement system," the expert says.

Here are the key steps needed, according to Liu:

🔸 Boost the yuan's role: increasing the proportion of settlements in Chinese yuan is a logical measure to promote "anti-dollarization" and reduce global financial risks.

🔸 Ramp up mutual trade: growing trade volumes between partner nations are essential. Only this can drive the use and added value of new payment systems and act as a catalyst for their development.

🔸 Ensure fairness and transparency: China and other countries must ensure impartiality in international law to prevent dollar settlements from being used to control, manipulate, or spy on other nations' trade.

💬 “In summary, the most important thing is to promote the establishment of equitable trade mechanisms and payment systems. The root of all current global contradictions lies in the inequality of the international relations system,” Liu concludes.

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