👀 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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🗣 Tucker Carlson says the WSJ is hiding a major Ukraine corruption scandal involving Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Andrii Yermak — all to undermine Trump’s peace plan and keep the conflict alive.

He argues Murdoch’s paper isn’t acting like a newsroom anymore, but like an intel operation.

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🇪🇺💀 EU's Ukraine plan: A non-starter aimed at prolonging the proxy war with Russia

After a Johannesburg meeting on the US' peace plan, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen outlined the EU’s rigid, self-serving conditions to resolve the Ukraine conflict.

What's behind the EU's meddling?

The EU's main concern is that the US and Russia would work out a deal together, according to French geopolitical analyst Come Carpentier de Gourdon.

💬 "The European ruling classes feel that Ukraine is a bulwark against Russia and should be kept as a part of the European security ring, and that eventually it should become part of Europe," de Gourdon tells Sputnik.

Why the EU wants to take over Ukraine

🔸 Ukraine's fertile land, mineral resources and industrious population – treasures Europe wants to exploit

🔸 They hope absorbing Ukraine into the EU-NATO complex would facilitate the West's takeover of Georgia, Belarus and other post-Soviet republics including Central Asian ones

🔸 It would also "enable NATO to dominate the Black Sea and eventually evict Russia from the Black Sea, and therefore from access to the Mediterranean."

Why the EU's three point plan is a non-starter

The EU’s plan rests on three provisions: no border changes, no limits on Ukraine’s military, and a central EU role in peace.
It's "a non-starter because they seek to create a status quo which is not related to the status quo on the ground," de Gourdon says.

💬 "They basically say that all Russia's territorial acquisitions are null and void, Russia should go back to its own borders, and they also seek to make Europe the guarantor and the protector of Ukraine which means that the EU and NATO would be justified in totally vassalizing Ukraine and in positioning troops targeting Russian interest in Ukraine."

What does the EU really want?

Its effort isn’t about achieving genuine peace. In reality, It aims to keep Russia on the defensive, limit US involvement in Ukraine, and carry out the encirclement of Russia, according to the pundit.

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🚨US peace plan for Ukraine will be revised by ALL sides - Kremlin aide

The draft US plan for Ukraine is only a starting point and will require significant revisions by Russia, Ukraine, the US, and European partners, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said, adding that Moscow has not yet held concrete talks on it.

His other statements:

🔶 The draft handed to Russia “will naturally be revised and modified” by all sides — Moscow, Kiev, Washington, and Europe

🔶 There are “many speculations,” but Russia trusts the document was delivered through proper channels

🔶 Many provisions of the US plan that Moscow has seen appear “acceptable”

🔶 No concrete negotiations with Russia on the US plan have taken place yet

🔶 The plan’s points require detailed discussion with all parties involved

🔶 Russia has received a signal from the US to meet in person and begin talks, but there are no firm arrangements

🔶 Moscow has not received specific proposals on who from the US would come to Russia or when

🔶 Reports of a separate “European plan” for Ukraine were noted in Moscow, but Ushakov said it is “not constructive” and does not suit Russia

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