By Hannah Parry, Shane Croucher, and John Feng
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NATO's Secretary-General Mark Rutte has warned that United States security depends on a strong NATO and a safe Europe.
"You cannot defend the U.S. without an Arctic which is defended, and for the Arctic, you need NATO," Rutte said at a Munich Security Council session on Thursday. "You cannot defend the U.S. without a safe Atlantic, and you need NATO to keep the Atlantic safe. Look at the nuclear submarines the Russians have who might want to sail towards the US coast. You cannot keep the U.S. safe without a safe Europe and the Americans know this.
"All the senior policymakers from the White House down to the State Department, to the Pentagon—they all know this. And they all agree with this."
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is due to hold urgent talks via video call with leaders and officials from around 30 countries who form part of the "Coalition of the Willing," seeking to drum up support for Kyiv's position on a peace settlement as a defense against the increasing pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to make a quick deal.
What To Know
- Russian President Vladimir Putin told the two Trump envoys he met with in Moscow that "we understand that security guarantees must include Ukraine" in a peace settlement, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a meeting with ambassadors in Moscow on Thursday.
- But Lavrov said there must be "security guarantees for all the involved parties," including Russia, and that the Kremlin is willing to "sign a legally binding treaty" on this, citing proposals Moscow made to NATO in 2021.
- Lavrov: "We have sent additional proposals to the United States regarding collective security guarantees. We understand that, speaking of security guarantees, we cannot limit ourselves to Ukraine alone."
- But Lavrov rejected a proposal in the works among some NATO allies, called the "Coalition of the Willing", to deploy peacekeeping troops to Ukraine under a security guarantee, saying they "would immediately become legitimate targets for the Russian armed forces. The Europeans must understand that."
- Trump said the Europeans would like him to visit soon to discuss peace. But Trump said he didn't want to "waste time" and that the U.S. wanted to "know some things" before any meeting in Europe. Trump had earlier said Zelensky needs to start accepting compromises because Ukraine is losing the war and Russia is in a stronger position.
- Ukraine is presenting a new revised 20-point list of proposals for a settlement following Zelensky's consultations with European allies, who are trying to mount a coordinated response to the U.S. and Russia. They fear Trump will try to coerce Ukraine into capitulative terms that ultimately reward Russia for its illegal invasion.
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Dec 11, 2025 at 03:24 PM EST
US proposes ‘special economic zone’ for eastern Donetsk: Zelensky
The United States has urged Ukraine to pull back from parts of the eastern Donetsk region and establish a “special economic zone” in the territory still under Kyiv’s control, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday, outlining the most contentious elements of ongoing peace talks.
Speaking to reporters in a stark assessment of the state of negotiations, Zelensky said that control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and the question of territorial concessions remain the two major obstacles in the U.S.-backed peace proposal.
Ukraine has delivered to Washington an updated 20-point peace framework, alongside separate documents detailing proposed security guarantees and plans for the country’s reconstruction, Zelensky confirmed.
His remarks come after weeks of frenetic diplomatic maneuvering, during which multiple peace plans have been drafted, revised and reworked by the U.S., Ukraine, Russia and European partners.
“The final mile is the hardest. Everything could fall apart for many reasons,” Zelensky said.
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Dec 11, 2025 at 02:12 PM EST
Trump ‘extremely frustrated’ with lack of progress on Ukraine peace talks, says White House
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump is “extremely frustrated with both sides of this war” amid the slow progress on Ukraine peace talks.
Leavitt said that the U.S. may send a representative to the Europe-Ukraine peace talks this weekend “if there is a real chance of signing a peace agreement" but the administration felt it’s “still up in the air whether real peace can be achieved.”
During his election campaign, Trump repeatedly claimed he would end the Russia-Ukraine war on his first day in the office. But almost a year after he returned to the White House for his second term, the war and peace negotiations continue, to the frustration of the president.
“And he’s sick of meetings just for the sake of meeting,” Leavitt said. “He doesn’t want any more talk. He wants action.”
Dec 11, 2025 at 12:12 PM EST
Zelensky floats referendum or election on ceding territory
Volodymyr Zelensky has suggested that he could hold a referendum or election to allow the people of Ukraine to decide upon whether they would accept ceding territory to Russia, as suggested in Trump's peace plan.
“The Russians want the whole of Donbas — we don’t accept that,” Zelenskiy told reporters in Kyiv on Thursday.
“I believe that the Ukrainian people will answer this question. Whether in the form of elections or a referendum, the Ukrainian people must have a say.”
Dec 11, 2025 at 11:28 AM EST
Putin reassures Maduro of support after US seizes Venezuelan oil tanker
Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by phone on Thursday to reassure him of Moscow's support for his government, shortly after the United States seized a large oil tanker off Venezuela's coast.
Maduro has been under increasing pressure from President Donald Trump's administration to leave office, with the U.S. conducting increasingly large military build-up in the Caribbean. Tensions escalated on Wednesday when the U.S. seized the tanker, sparking furious outcry from Venezuela.
The Kremlin said that Putin and Maduro had discussed a strategic partnership agreement and working together on several joint projects related to the economy and energy sector.
Dec 11, 2025 at 10:55 AM EST
When did the Russia-Ukraine war start?
The full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine erupted on February 24, 2022, when Russian forces launched a sweeping invasion across multiple fronts. Troops advanced toward key cities including Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Mariupol, signaling a major escalation that plunged the region into widespread violence and displacement. The assault drew global attention, prompting unprecedented sanctions against Russia and an outpouring of international support for Ukraine.
The roots of the conflict, however, stretch back much further. In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea, a move condemned by much of the international community and widely seen as a violation of Ukrainian sovereignty. Around the same time, armed clashes erupted in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions, where Russian-backed separatists declared independence. This simmering conflict, often referred to as the war in the Donbas, persisted at a lower intensity for years, creating a tense and unstable situation along the eastern border.
While hostilities have existed since 2014, analysts point to February 2022 as the start of the current phase of the war, characterized by large-scale military operations and a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented proportions. The events leading up to this moment set the stage for a conflict with far-reaching consequences, reshaping the security landscape of Europe and prompting a global response.
Dec 11, 2025 at 10:30 AM EST
US officials to join delegates from Europe in Paris this weekend: Report
Senior U.S. officials are expected to meet with delegates from Ukraine, France, Germany and the U.K. this weekend to discuss President Trump's peace plan, a White House official told Axios.
The negotiators will meet in Paris on Saturday to discuss the peace plans, and Ukraine's revised suggestions.
Dec 11, 2025 at 10:05 AM EST
Modi says he had ‘warm’ phone call with Trump, even as US pressures India to stop supporting Russian oil
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi touted his "warm and engaging" call with President Donald Trump on Thursday, even as the United States puts pressure on India to stop supporting Russian oil amid the international embargo and sanctions.
In a post on X, Modi wrote, "Had a very warm and engaging conversation with President Trump. We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments.
"India and the U.S. will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," he added.
India has continued to deepen defense ties with Russia, even amid U.S. pressure, straining relations between Modi and Trump in recent months.
Trump hit India with tariffs of up to 50 percent on August 27, after imposing an additional 25 percent tariff on the country related to its purchases of Russian oil, which helps Moscow pay for its war in Ukraine. Russia is India’s top oil supplier.
Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India to attend the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit.
Dec 11, 2025 at 09:41 AM EST
Russia reacts to Trump admin seizing Venezuelan oil tanker
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov demanded that the administration of President Donald Trump provide justification for its seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker this week, as tensions have soared between the U.S. and the South American nation in recent months.
"I really hope that the United States, although they consider themselves entitled to conduct such operations, will somehow explain, out of respect for other members of the world community, what facts led them to take such actions," Lavrov said, Russia's Tass news agency reported on Thursday.
"There is too little information here because I do not know how the United States views the Venezuelan situation, except that President [Donald] Trump has spoken publicly demanding a regime change or voluntary resignation of [Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro], but Chevron is operating in Venezuela, buying Venezuelan oil. What illegal volumes of this type of fuel were on this tanker—we need to get to the bottom of that somehow," the Russian foreign minister said.
Dec 11, 2025 at 08:46 AM EST
US bomber drills counter Russia and China’s Air Force patrol
The United States dispatched two bombers to Japan for exercises on Wednesday, a day after Russian and Chinese military aircraft "patrolled" near the U.S. ally's territory.
Newsweek has reached out to China's Foreign Ministry for comment by email. Russia's Defense and Foreign Ministries did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The U.S. Air Force deployed two B-52H bombers for tactical exercises over the Sea of Japan—also called the East Sea—on Wednesday, along with three F-35 and three F-15 fighter jets from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, the Joint Staff Office under Japan's Defense Ministry said.
Read in full: US Bomber Drills Counter Russia and China’s Air Force Patrol
Dec 11, 2025 at 08:01 AM EST
Mark Rutte says US knows it needs NATO, safe Europe
NATO's Secretary-General Mark Rutte acknowledged the U.S. criticism contained within the new White House national security strategy, but said the Trump administration also made clear that it is committed to NATO and sees Europe as vital to its security interests.
"You cannot defend the U.S. without an Arctic which is defended, and for the Arctic, you need NATO," Rutte said at a Munich Security Council session on Thursday.
"You cannot defend the U.S. without a safe Atlantic, and you need NATO to keep the Atlantic safe. Look at the nuclear submarines the Russians have who might want to sail towards the US coast.
"You cannot keep the U.S. safe without a safe Europe and the Americans know this. All the senior policymakers from the White House down to the State Department, to the Pentagon—they all know this. And they all agree with this."
Dec 11, 2025 at 07:38 AM EST
NATO leader issues stark warning about Russia’s immediate threat
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NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte issued a stark warning to Western allies about the reality of the threat posed by Russia, as negotiations are making slow progress to end the war in Ukraine and the U.S. pressures Kyiv to make painful compromises with the Kremlin, including on territorial concessions.
"We are Russia's next target and we are already in harm's way," Rutte told a special session of the Munich Security Conference on Thursday, reminding NATO allies that they must "shift to a wartime mindset" and praising the recent stepping up in efforts to rearm the continent and face down the threat of an increasingly belligerent Russia.
But Rutte added: "I fear that too many are quietly complacent. Too many don't feel the urgency. And too many believe that time is on our side. It is not. The time for action is now."
Rutte listed a number of what he said were Russian provocations in recent months, including a sabotage bomb attack on a Polish rail line used to deliver aid to Ukraine, one that put civilian lives in danger. Moscow denies responsibility.
NATO's response has been "calm, decisive, and proportionate," Rutte said.
"But we need to be prepared for further escalation and confrontation. Our enduring commitment to NATO's Article 5, that an attack on one is an attack on all, sends a powerful message. Any aggressor must know that we can and will hit back hard."
He also said Russian President Vladimir Putin "has only played the peacemaker when it suits him, to buy time to continue his war," and urged U.S. President Donald Trump to "test" the Kremlin.
"President Trump wants to end the bloodshed now and he is the only one who can get Putin to the negotiating table," Rutte said. "So let's put Putin to the test. Let's see if he really wants peace—or if her prefers the slaughter to continue. It is essential that all of us keep up the pressure on Russia and support the genuine efforts to bring this war to an end."
Dec 11, 2025 at 07:32 AM EST
Kremlin welcomes report of US plan to bring Russia in from the economic cold
The Kremlin responded positively to a report in the Wall Street Journal that the U.S. had sent a blueprint to European allies for the reintegration of Russia into the global economy as part of a potential settlement in Ukraine.
It included U.S. companies investing in strategic sectors in Russia and restoring Russian energy flows to Western Europe, the report said. But Kyiv and European allies are strongly opposed to what it sees as rewarding Russia for its aggression.
“Russia has been and remains open to foreign investment," Dmitry Peskov, Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, said on Thursday, originally in Russian, state media reported. "Russia is an attractive and very profitable market for foreign investors."
Dec 11, 2025 at 07:01 AM EST
Watch: NATO’s Mark Rutte addresses security conference in Berlin
NATO's Secretary-General Mark Rutte is due at 7:15 a.m. ET to deliver a keynote address to a special session of the Munich Security Conference. Watch live below:
Dec 11, 2025 at 06:04 AM EST
Trump ally in EU calls new strategy “most important” document for years
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Trump ally Viktor Orban, the Russia-friendly Hungarian prime minister who has long been a right-wing outsider within European Union politics, welcomed the new White House national security strategy, which warned Europe faces "civilizational erasure" due to mass migration—one of Orban's core beliefs. He also welcomed a strategic reset with Russia.
The strategy sharply criticized European economic policy, particularly what it says is overregulation, and democratic backsliding on "basic" values such as freedom of speech. The U.S. now has a policy of actively cultivating opposition to the EU among Trump's political allies within countries such as Hungary, Poland, and Austria.
EU leaders rejected much of the strategy's characterizations of European problems and said its leaders would handle their own internal affairs, including the state of their democracies.
In a post on X, Orban, who is facing a tough re-election battle in 2026, called it the "most important and most interesting document of recent years".
"The Americans also see that Europe has hit the wall of a long economic dead end. A weak ally cannot defend itself and cannot be relied upon in international affairs either," Orban said.
"They see Europe’s civilisational crisis as well. They see that Europe’s civilisational values, democracy, and the free market are all in danger. They also see that European liberals have burned the network of relations that once existed with Russia, which was a mistake.
"According to American decision makers, Europe’s relationship with Russia needs to be rebuilt at a strategic level.
"In summary: America has a precise understanding of Europe’s decline. They see the civilisational-scale decline that we in Hungary have been fighting against for fifteen years. At last, we are not fighting against it alone."
Dec 11, 2025 at 05:44 AM EST
Merz reacts to Trump remarks about tense call, potential meeting in Berlin
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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he and the leaders of France and the U.K. had a "very extensive" conversation with Donald Trump about Ukraine during their call on Wednesday, after the U.S. President said the discussion had been held in "pretty strong terms" and there were "some little disputes" between the NATO allies.
Trump had also said that the Europeans would like him to visit Europe soon for talks, but that he did not want to "waste time" because the U.S. needed some clarifications before a successful meeting could take place.
"We made the proposal to him that over the weekend we should go through the documents together with the American government and finalize them," Merz said, originally in German, of the peace proposals under discussion.
"There is a proposal that, at the time we spoke on the phone, he was not yet aware of because it had not yet been sent to the Americans. We did that yesterday in the late afternoon," Merz continued at a press conference in Berlin on Thursday morning alongside NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
"The key issue here is what territorial concessions Ukraine is prepared to make. But that is a question that must above all be answered by the American and Ukrainian presidents and by the Ukrainian people. We made that clear to President Trump as well.
"And if we now proceed in this process as we envision it, then there will be discussions with the American government over the weekend. And then, possibly at the beginning of next week, there will be a meeting here in Berlin—whether the American government takes part in it or not. That also depends very much on the joint drafting of the documents that are currently being worked on.
I am reasonably confident that we will succeed. And from this telephone conversation with President Trump yesterday, I took away a firm impression that he is willing to go down this path with us, because he knows that the Europeans must also have their own interests heard.
"We made that clear to him in the call yesterday, and in that respect it was a truly very constructive phone call in which both sides’ positions became clear and mutual respect was also expressed."
Dec 11, 2025 at 05:35 AM EST
Zelensky holding urgent call with “Coalition of the Willing” amid Trump pressure
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was due to hold urgent talks Thursday with leaders and officials from about 30 partner countries to drum up support for Kyiv's position in the ongoing peace negotiations, as the U.S. increases pressure on him to agree to terms that and European allies see as far too favorable to Russia.
The leaders of Germany, Britain and France were among those expected to take part in the meeting of Ukraine's allies, dubbed the Coalition of the Willing, via video link. Those leaders held a difficult call with Trump on Wednesday about Ukraine.
Zelensky indicated the talks were hastily arranged as Kyiv officials scramble to avoid getting boxed in by U.S. President Donald Trump's demands for a swift settlement. European governments are trying to help steer the peace negotiations because they say their own security is at stake.
Trump has said Zelensky must start accepting some of the difficult proposals for a settlement with Russia because Ukraine is losing the war and Russia is in a stronger position. The toughest compromise of all is on the division of territory. Russia is demanding the whole of the Donbas, around a fifth of which is still under Ukrainian control.
But Zelensky said he has no legal or moral right to make such concessions to Russia. Ukraine's constitution forbids ceding territory without a referendum, which Kyiv says cannot be held during a war.
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