Russian invasion

Negotiations
Senator: Will Present New Sanctions Next Week

The US Senate will move forward next week with a bill to impose additional sanctions on Russia. This was announced by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham when he visited President Volodymyr Zelenskyj in Kyiv on Friday together with Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, Reuters reports.

The bill would, among other things, involve import tariffs of 500 percent from countries that buy Russian oil, gas and uranium.

New sanctions must be approved by the Senate and House of Representatives and signed by President Donald Trump. Trump has threatened to expand sanctions against Russia, but said earlier this week that he wants to wait so as not to “scuttle” peace talks.

Uncertainty ahead of peace talks: “Both are stubborn”

The negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will lay the foundation for peace, says Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Reuters reports.

At the same time, in a conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, he points out the importance of both parties sending strong delegations to the meeting.

The comment comes after concerns that Ukraine will refuse to participate, writes the Washington Post.

Zelensky has cast doubt on the negotiations, as he believes that Russia has not delivered clear conditions for peace. Something he sees as a necessity for fruitful peace talks.

US President Donald Trump responded on Friday to a question about the negotiations that he thinks both Putin and Zelensky "are stubborn".

Security around the Baltic Sea
Sweden increases controls of the Russian shadow fleet

Control of foreign ships in the Baltic Sea will be tightened, reports Ekot. As of July 1, the Coast Guard and the Maritime Administration may collect insurance information from ships that pass through Swedish territorial waters or economic zones.

Today, the rules only apply to ships that call at port.

According to Minister of Justice Gunnar Strömmer (M), it is a way to act against the Russian shadow fleet, which often lacks insurance.

– We think that it should both have a preventive, deterrent effect against ships that are part of the Russian shadow fleet, and also provide a basis for taking other measures, such as placing more ships on the sanctions list, says Strömmer.