Russian invasion

Negotiations
Zelenskyj: Disrespectful of US not coming to Kyiv

It is disrespectful of US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to visit Moscow several times, but not Kyiv. This is what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj says in an interview with Ukrainian ICTV.

– It is simply disrespectful. I understand that we have complex logistics... If they do not want, we can meet in other countries, he says.

He says that the US envoys have met with Ukrainian representatives during the attempted peace talks, but without coming to the capital. The delegation was expected to visit Kyiv this April, but Zelenskyj expresses doubts about the structure of the talks.

The world's response
The oil pipeline in Ukraine repaired – now the EU's billion-euro loan can be paid out

The Druzhba oil pipeline has been repaired, writes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on X. This means that Russian oil can start flowing through Ukraine to Hungary and Slovakia again.

Russia announces that they are ready to turn on the tap, writes Reuters. Hungary has promised to release its veto against the EU loan of 90 billion euros to Ukraine as soon as it happens.

"We are linking this to the European support package for Ukraine being passed. It has already been approved by the EU Council," writes Zelensky.

The EU is to vote on the loan tomorrow. The Union's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says she expects a positive decision within 24 hours.

Druzhba was damaged in a Russian attack, and Zelensky writes that there are no guarantees that it will not happen again.

Ukrainian proposal: Appease Trump with a "Donnyland" on the front in Donbas

Ukrainian government representatives are considering renaming a severely war-torn area in Donbas "Donnyland", sources tell the New York Times.

The hope is to flatter Donald Trump and persuade him to contribute to the defense of the area, which borders Donetsk and is controlled by Ukraine. The name alludes to both "Donbas" and "Donald", according to the sources.

The area in question is eighty kilometers long, around 6.5 kilometers wide and full of bombed-out industries. The largest city in it is Izium. 190,000 inhabitants live in the area, according to statistics, but according to some estimates, the population has been halved during the war.

This is not the first time other countries have tried to flatter Trump by naming things after him. When Poland wanted a US military base, they suggested “Fort Trump,” and when Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a peace treaty last year, they named the new road link between the countries after Trump.