Russian invasion

The fighting
Report: Iran war could delay arms to Ukraine

The Trump administration has begun notifying allies that arms deliveries to Ukraine could be delayed due to the Iran war, three European sources with knowledge of the matter told Politico.

The main concern is Patriot missiles, and according to two of the sources, Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised the situation during the G7 meeting in Paris on Friday.

“Nothing has been redirected. But it could happen,” Rubio told reporters after the meeting.

European and Asian countries have worried that arms purchases could be redirected because of the Iran war, which has eaten its way through the US arms stockpile.

According to one of the sources, however, some allies have received assurances that deliveries to the PURL initiative, where European countries buy US weapons for Ukraine, have not been redirected.

“But that says nothing about the future,” the source says.

Negotiations
Rubio denies that the US asked Ukraine to make concessions

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio denies that the US has asked Ukraine to make concessions on the territorial issue in the peace negotiations with Russia, reports the Washington Post.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj has said that the Trump administration has pushed for Ukraine to abandon the Donbas region to Russia in order to receive US security guarantees.

– That is a lie, says Rubio.

He also says that it is “unfortunate” that Zelenskyj said that. Rubio believes that the US has only presented the Russian demands to Ukraine, but that security guarantees can only be given when the fighting has stopped.

Reactions
Stubbs warning: The war could have worse effects than the pandemic

The war in the Middle East could lead to worse effects for the world economy than the corona pandemic. That's what Finnish President Alexander Stubb told Politico – an unusually bleak forecast from “one of Europe's great optimists”.

Stubb, who may be the EU leader with the best relationship with Donald Trump, says the president can handle a little “tough love”. And then comes the criticism:

– This could be a self-inflicted global recession. It shows what happens when you act outside the framework of international rules and norms, says Stubb.

Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine continues. However, the Finnish president does not want to talk about a third world war:

– Not yet, he says.

The fighting
Ukraine's money for the war risks running out in June

Within two months, Ukraine's war treasury could be empty. This is the estimate made by officials in both Ukraine and allied countries, sources tell Bloomberg.

Western support has been crucial to Ukraine’s defense, and at present the money only looks set to cover expenses until June.

The situation has arisen for several reasons, according to the news agency. The main one is that the EU has not been able to release its 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine because Hungary has stood in the way.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has promised that the support will be delivered “one way or another,” but there is still no concrete solution.