Ukraine war latest: Trump Jr. defends father’s peace envoy as Russia expresses anger over leak

A US-based think tank said that Russia’s battlefield claims appear to be exaggerated and that data on Russian military advance rates indicate that a Russian military victory in Ukraine is not inevitable.

The Institute for the Study of War stated that a rapid Russian occupation of the rest of Donetsk Oblast is not imminent.

Citing a senior US military official, ISW said the war would only get worse for Ukraine because Russia could fight indefinitely and it is better for Ukraine to negotiate a peace deal now rather than negotiating from a weaker position later, but the reality on the battlefield indicates that a Russian victory in Ukraine is not certain.

“The rate of Russian advances across the theater has accelerated since the Alaska summit on August 15, with Russian forces advancing an average of 9.3 square kilometers per day across the theater between August 15 and November 20, but these advances are still limited,” the ISW said in its latest war update.

It also clarified that Russia’s recent advances elsewhere on the frontline have been “largely opportunistic and exploiting seasonal weather conditions”.

Donald Trump’s aggressive negotiating style has led many in Europe to suspect that he wants a quick deal that forces Europeans to work for it and pay for it. While America is making profits.

Analysts say the proposal was essentially a US attempt to snatch away these assets, which comes after Brussels and Washington restarted trade talks on tariffs.

Agathe Demaris, a senior fellow at the Berlin-based European Council on Foreign Relations, said the offer was tantamount to a “signing bonus” for a peace deal tilted heavily toward Russia.

The first draft of Trump’s 28-point peace plan called for an investment plan to rebuild U.S.-controlled Ukraine, but was financed by $100 billion in frozen Russian assets matched by $100 billion from the European Union – with 50 percent of profits sent back to Washington.

Fabian Zuleg, chief executive of the Brussels-based European Policy Centre, called the US takeover of assets “outrageous”, but suggested it might also be acceptable to Europeans “if it is ultimately the price to pay for a good deal”.

After intensive discussions between representatives of the US, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the European Commission, the investment plan was removed from the new draft peace plan.

Russia has already indicated its complete rejection of the new draft.

Volodymyr Zelensky has cautioned against believing Russian disinformation campaigns that seek to undermine Ukraine’s defense capabilities.

“The Russians are spreading the word around the world that Ukraine allegedly cannot defend itself. They are saying that Ukrainian warriors cannot defend themselves,” he said in an overnight address.

“The daily combat results and deep strikes of the Ukrainian army, our special forces – these are all proof that Ukraine can defend its interests,” Zelensky said.

He said there is plenty of evidence to show that it pays to support Ukraine, including the deaths of Russian “occupiers”, every attack that has been thwarted and “every deep attack that we have conducted”.

The International Monetary Fund said it has reached staff-level agreement on a new four-year, $8.2 billion program for Ukraine as the country faces growing wartime financial pressures.

According to the IMF, the new plan can be taken to the Fund’s Executive Board for approval once previous commitments have been met and is subject to “adequate financing assurances from donors”.

The IMF said the agreement, which replaces an existing $15.6bn Extended Fund Facility approved in March 2023, is aimed at helping Kiev maintain macroeconomic stability and strengthen public finances as the war against Russia puts pressure on its budget.

“The program is expected to catalyze large-scale external support to close Ukraine’s financing gap,” Gavin Gray, the IMF official who led the fund team’s visit, said in a statement. He said the total financing gap for the period 2026-2029 is estimated at about $136.5 billion.

Ukrainian officials have said that the IMF program is key to obtaining financing from other partners, including reparation loans. In the fourth year of the war Ukraine spent most of its revenue in fending off Russian forces.

Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko said the agreement showed her country’s economy was resilient despite the war. He promised to pursue reforms and asked for support in passing next year’s budget.

Mr Witkoff said Vladimir Putin’s Senior aide Yuri Ushakov ensured the Russian leader congratulated the US president after the Gaza deal announcement, insisting the praise would ensure their discussion would be “a really good call”.

Transcript of recorded phone call from October was released by Bloomberg News On Tuesday. It comes as Mr Witkoff prepares to meet Putin next week to discuss a revised peace plan for Ukraine.

Several congressional Republicans are strongly criticizing the Trump administration over its handling of the proposed Ukraine peace plan, which they say favors Russia after leaked calls showed their envoy cooperating with the Russians.

A leaked transcript revealed that Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff advised a senior Russian official to praise Trump for facilitating the Ukraine peace deal.

Republican Representative Don Bacon said on

Donald Trump Jr. has defended US envoy Steve Witkoff over recently leaked details of his conversations with Russian officials.

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that Witkoff said in an Oct. 14 telephone conversation with Yuri Ushakov, a policy aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, that they should work together on a ceasefire plan and that Putin should raise it with Trump.

Trump Jr. has said that what Witkoff was doing was a “classic negotiating technique of irritating your counterpart.”

“It’s almost as if these media and deep government idiots have never successfully negotiated a deal in the real world. It’s quite clear that almost all of Witkoff’s critics want any kind of Ukraine peace deal to fail so they can continue this war endlessly. Enough is enough!” He said in a post.

The leaders of a pro-Russian group in France behind a poster campaign declaring “Russia is not my enemy” have been detained and are being held on suspicion of gathering intelligence for a foreign power.

The SOS Donbass group confirmed the arrest of its founder Anna Novikova in a Telegram post. The group’s president, Vincent Perfetti, also faces charges, his lawyer said.

The Paris prosecutor’s office identified them only as Anna N. and Vincent P. and said both were in custody.

The alleged intelligence-gathering operation broke down as French President Emmanuel Macron warned about Russian destabilization efforts targeting France, Ukraine’s key supporter in its nearly four-year war.

Macron said this week that Russia was waging a “hybrid war” against Europe, including employing proxies.

“It pays people, mercenaries. It has inspired people to carry out destabilizing activities in our countries,” he said.