The Daily Populous Monday February 17th, 2025 day edition
Authored by bbc.com and submitted by netsheriff

Ukraine not invited to US-Russia peace talks, source tells BBC

15 hours ago James Waterhouse Ukraine correspondent Reporting from Kyiv Maia Davies BBC News Bernd Debusmann BBC News Reporting from Palm Beach

Getty Images Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly ruled out accepting a peace deal negotiated without Kyiv's involvement

Kyiv has not been invited to talks between the US and Russia aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, a senior Ukrainian government source has told the BBC. The US special envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg had said Kyiv would be involved in this week's talks in Saudi Arabia, but the source said no delegation would be present. European leaders have also not been asked to join the discussions, and are due to meet instead on Monday in Paris at a summit hastily arranged by the French president, as fears grow the continent is being locked out of negotiations. The separate meetings follow a turbulent week where Washington has signalled a drastic change in its approach to the war in Ukraine.

The White House's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed he was travelling to Saudi Arabia on Sunday evening for the first face-to-face talks between the US and Russia towards ending the conflict. US President Donald Trump revealed on Sunday that Witkoff had met with Putin already "for a very extended period, like about three hours". Witkoff, a billionaire real estate developer and friend of Trump, was in Moscow this week to secure the release of a US teacher imprisoned on charges of marijuana possession. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz are also set to meet Russian negotiators in Saudi Arabia, less than a week after Trump held a phone call with Russia's leader Vladimir Putin. The call on Wednesday brought to an end a three-year freeze on direct contact between Moscow and Washington. Zelensky has repeatedly ruled out accepting a peace deal negotiated without Ukraine, telling US television network NBC on Sunday that he would "never accept any decisions between the United States and Russia about Ukraine, never". Ukraine end game: What each side wants from a peace deal

US mixed messaging on foreign policy leaves world guessing Witkoff said US officials were speaking separately with Ukrainian officials and that Ukraine was "part of the talks" - but he did not indicate whether he expected Kyiv to be present in Saudi Arabia. Trump told reporters in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday that he expected Zelensky to be involved in the talks, though he did not say how. He also said he would allow European nations to buy US weapons for Ukraine. Asked by the BBC when he believed any peace negotiations could bear fruit and end the fighting, Trump said only that "we're working to get it done" and laid the blame for the war on the previous administration's Ukraine policies.

Reuters The US President said his envoy Witkoff had already met with Putin earlier in the week

Meanwhile, Rubio downplayed the Saudi Arabia talks, saying one meeting would not solve the war and that a formal negotiating process - that would mediate between Ukraine, Russia and third parties - had not yet been set up. He told CBS News, however, that the next few days would determine if Putin was serious about achieving peace. It is against this backdrop that a group of European leaders - including the UK's Keir Starmer, Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte, Germany's chancellor Olaf Scholz and the European Commission's Ursula von der Leyen - will meet in Paris. French President Emmanuel Macron will hold an informal meeting in the afternoon on Ukraine and European security. Ahead of the summit, Sir Keir said the UK was prepared to contribute to security guarantees to Ukraine by "putting our own troops on the ground if necessary". Writing in the UK's Daily Telegraph newspaper, the prime minister said securing a lasting peace in Ukraine "is essential if we are to deter Putin from further aggression in the future". US Ukraine envoy Kellog had earlier dismissed concerns over Europe not being invited to Saudi Arabia, arguing previous negotiations had failed due to the involvement of too many parties. "It may be like chalk on the blackboard, it may grate a little bit, but I am telling you something that is really quite honest," he said on Saturday.

Watch: Trump's motorcade drives lap of Daytona 500 racetrack

HarbingerofKaos on February 17th, 2025 at 03:59 UTC »

Trump is mostly looking for justification to abandon Europe and Ukraine. He thinks defending Europe to be a burden and supplying weapons to Ukraine a waste of time. If Ukrainians refuse to go along with his plan he will just withdraw support.

boon23834 on February 17th, 2025 at 00:23 UTC »

This is speed running the loss of Superpower status for the U.S.

Regardless of the Armistice that will be agreed to, without harnessing the agreement of both the Ukrainians and the Russians fighting the conflict, the agreement will fail.

A Ukrainian who thinks the Russian peace will bring Bucha to his town will continue to fight. Regardless of the decisions made in the desert.

Too many western politicians seem to forget that war has a life of its own once started, has a life of its own. This here three day special military operation is now in its 1088th day.

Hegseth can demand it. So can Lavrov. So can Rubio.

If the Ukrainians don't agree, the war will continue.

And Russia hasn't even gotten to the hard part yet.

Edited- per speed running superpower status loss - as the Americans commit to, and do silly things, like Vance's speech, and Hegseth's tour, they're losing a substantial amount of credibility, and will continue to do so as these agreements fail.

Trump saying they won, when there's an active conflict still raging will be his mission accomplished moment.

HollyShitBrah on February 16th, 2025 at 22:32 UTC »

Trump will 100% throw Ukraine under the bus if he can get to say "I ended the war"