The White House laid out the next steps for Russia-Ukraine peace talks. Pete Hegseth’s personal security requirements are straining an Army protective unit. Jeanine Pirro, D.C.’s top prosecutor, confirmed a major change to gun policy.

Moscow continues to say that the presence of any western troops in Ukraine is unacceptable, however, and accuses Kyiv and European capitals of trying to undermine the attempts of Mr Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin to end the war and rebuild US-Russia relations.

As NATO defence ministers met during a virtual get-together, Russia said it had to be part of any discussion on security guarantees for Ukraine and downplayed the likelihood of an imminent summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky,

Russia has launched hundreds of drones and missiles on western Ukraine overnight in one of the heaviest bombardments in recent weeks, Ukrainian officials have said. Strikes were reported in Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Lviv, where one person was killed and others injured.

Oil prices climbed about 2% on Wednesday on a bigger-than-expected weekly drop in U.S. crude inventories as investors awaited the next steps in talks to end the Ukraine war, with sanctions on Russian crude remaining in place for now.

Russian state media footage shows the M113 armored personnel carrier driving into combat in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Donald Trump has signalled his support for a package of security guarantees for Ukraine, including foreign boots on Ukrainian soil from around 10 European countries, in a new push to pressure Russian president Vladimir Putin into ending the conflict.