Ukraine-Russia battle newest: Starmer says ‘focus must remain’ on European battle after assembly Zelensky
Keir Starmer has said the focus must remain on the Ukraine war as he welcomed Volodymyr Zelensky to 10 Downing Street.
“I think it’s really important that we are clear that the focus must remain on Ukraine,” Sir Keir said. “There’s obviously a conflict in Iran going on, in the Middle East, but we can’t lose focus on what’s going on in Ukraine and the need for our support.”
He also called on European allies to leverage Ukraine’s hard-won expertise as Zelensky confirmed he had sent teams to the Middle East to counter Iranian Shahed drones.
“Right now, there are 201 Ukrainians in the Middle East and Gulf region, and another 34 are ready to deploy,” Zelensky said during an address to the British parliament yesterday.
“These are military experts, experts who know how to help, how to defend against such drones.” Zelensky said Ukrainian teams have already arrived in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, while additional personnel are en route to Kuwait.
Turkey offers mediation venue for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine
Turkey has offered to host the next round of peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, its foreign ministry has announced.
Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan has proposed a venue to Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavov during a phone call yesterday.
Fidan underlined the risks posed by the prolonged war for both regional countries and the international order, while the ministers also addressed issues related to energy security, the ministry said.
Russia’s foreign ministry said the conversation between Fidan and Lavrov covered Russian-Turkish energy cooperation, with particular emphasis on securing the Blue Stream and TurkStream gas pipelines amid what Moscow described as Ukraine’s attempts to damage their infrastructure.
Last week Russia said that it had foiled Ukrainian attacks on its gas pumping stations, operated by Gazprom, that form part of the network delivering gas to Europe through TurkStream and Blue Stream.
As Trump sneers at Nato, Zelensky builds alliances and offers modern warfare
Now many of his Ukrainian drone experts – 201 to be precise – are already operating in Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, with another 34 en route to Kuwait.
These Gulf nations are already benefiting from Kyiv’s wartime technology, specifically developed to deal with the missiles and drones fired at them from Iran.
His message was explicit: you need us just like we need you.
Ukraine says it is accepting EU offer to help restore Druzhba pipeline
Ukraine has accepted the European Union’s offer of technical support and funding to restore oil flows through the damaged Druzhba pipeline on Tuesday but also signalled any resumption of Russian crude deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia was still weeks away.
In a letter to the EU released yesterday, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said repair work on the pipeline was nearing completion and that the pumping station was expected to be restored in 30-45 days, “in the absence of any further attacks by Russia”.
Ukraine’s acceptance of support to renew Druzhba drew a tepid response, with Hungary’s foreign minister calling it a “political game”.
Hungary and Slovakia have been cut off from Russian oil deliveries via the Druzhba since late January after Kyiv said a Russian strike hit pipeline equipment in western Ukraine and would require time for repairs.
Finnish president says Europe could help Trump in Iran – if he backs Ukraine
Europe could leverage helping US president Donald Trump in the Middle East by asking for his support on Ukraine in exchange, Finnish president Alexander Stubb has said.
Stubb was speaking at Chatham House yesterday and during a question and answer round with reporters, he suggested that such a deal would be a good idea.
On being asked: “ Why doesn’t Europe go to Trump and say, if you want assistance in the Gulf, here’s what we want you to do on Ukraine?” Stubb replied: “I think it’s a really good idea,” adding after a pause: “No, I think it’s actually a really good idea.”
The Finnish leader said he would consider it further and discuss options with his team.
Sweden says Russia, China and Iran are main threats to their nation
Russia, China and Iran are the biggest threats to Sweden, the Swedish Security Service (SAPO) said on Wednesday in its annual report on threats facing the country.
The security police has warned in recent years of rising threats, above all from a Russian state increasingly prone to risky ventures in support of its war in Ukraine, including through destabilising hybrid attacks around Europe.
Iran has also long been labelled a serious threat and authorities have noted how criminal networks in Sweden, which has spent the past decade dealing with a wave of gang-related crime, have been used by state actors to carry out violent acts.
“The US-Israeli military operation against Iran, and the countermeasures carried out by Iran, have increased the threat against American, Israeli and Jewish targets in Sweden,” Security Service Chief Charlotte von Essen said in the report.
One killed in drone attack on Russia’s Krasnodar
At least one person was killed in an overnight drone attack on Krasnodar after an apartment in a multi-story residential building was hit, mayor Evgeny Filipov said.
The drone debris damaged the roof of a medical centre as well as a power line, leaving parts of the city without electricity as emergency crews responded to fires and outages, the mayor said.
In a separate incident, a fire at the oil depot in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region has been extinguished, local authorities said this morning.
The oil depot in the town of Labinsk caught fire on 16 March after a drone attack.
Ukraine producing 2,000 interceptors drones per day, Zelensky says
Ukraine is capable of producing around 2,000 interceptor drones per day and can supply half that amount to its allies to help bolster their defences, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Addressing parliament in London, he added that Kyiv has already sent more than 200 Ukrainian air-defence experts to the Middle East and is already working on underwater drones and those capable of operating on oceans.
Watch: Hundreds of Ukrainian military experts helping response in Middle East, says Zelensky
Starmer tells Zelensky ‘we can’t lose focus’ on Ukraine despite Iran crisis
Vladimir Putin cannot be allowed to benefit from the Iran war, the prime minister told Volodymyr Zelensky during his visit to the UK.
Sir Keir Starmer said Russia should not reap the rewards of higher global oil prices and benefit from the easing of sanctions as a result of Middle East instability.
Zelensky, who also met the King during his trip, thanked the UK for support during a “difficult winter” for his country, during which (Russian president) Putin’s forces targeted critical energy infrastructure during freezing conditions.
How Ukraine rose from war ashes to become the go-to anti-drone expert
Four years ago, at the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine’s domestic arms industry was severely underdeveloped.
Forced to innovate for survival against incoming Russian missiles and drones, it has since cultivated a rapidly expanding defence sector focused on inexpensive drones.
Some of these are specifically engineered to combat Iranian-style Shahed drones, which Russia now deploys in vast numbers.
To counter the Shaheds, Kyiv developed low-cost interceptor drones priced at roughly $1,000 to $2,000, moving the systems from prototype to mass production within months in 2025.
Now a leading global producer of these interceptors, Ukraine is offering its expertise to the United States and its Gulf allies for use in the Middle East. In return, Kyiv hopes to secure the high-end weaponry it cannot manufacture domestically.
The US and Gulf countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, have made repeated requests for Ukraine’s domestically produced interceptor drones, according to three Ukrainian weapons producers.
The US recently requested “specific support” against Iranian-designed Shaheds in the Middle East, prompting president Volodymyr Zelensky to order the deployment of Ukrainian equipment and experts, though precise details remain classified.
Source: independent.co.uk
