Travel, property, and local info for Ukraine

5+ min ago (409+ words) Belgium's prime minister said he had "only one responsibility: that is the interests of the Belgian taxpayers" " as the future of the "140 billion ($162 billion) loan to Ukraine hangs in the balance. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is to meet Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever in Brussels on Friday to discuss Belgium's opposition to an EU reparations loan backed by Russian assets immobilized in Europe to fund Ukraine's war effort. The reparations loan, so-named because Ukraine would not have to repay it unless Russia pays it reparations after the war ends, could be worth more than "140 billion ($162 billion) to Ukraine." However, the future of the plan, first proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in September, has been uncertain for weeks. Belgium, which holds the majority of Russia's immobilized European assets in its Euroclear bank, has opposed the reparations…...

1+ hour, 52+ min ago (812+ words) U.S. President Donald Trump has set in motion the most intense diplomatic push to stop the fighting since Russia launched the full-scale invasion of its neighbor nearly four years ago. But the effort has once again run into demands that are hard to reconcile, especially over whether Ukraine must give up land to Russia and how it can be kept safe from any future aggression by Moscow. Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to meet later Thursday with the Ukrainian delegation led by Rustem Umerov following the Americans' discussions with Putin at the Kremlin. RELATED STORY | U.S. envoy meets Putin in Moscow to discuss Ukraine peace plan The meeting at the Shell Bay Club, a golf property developed by Witkoff in Hallandale Beach, was tentatively set to begin at 5 p.m. EST, according to an official familiar with the…...

2+ hour, 21+ min ago (164+ words) Kyiv Post Delivers Exclusive and In-Depth News and Opinions on Politics, Economics " Get Your Daily News Brief Direct from Ukraine Today! Ukraine's Covert Operations Against Russian Commanders In this episode of Point of Impact, former Navy SEAL Chuck Pfarrer takes you inside Ukraine's covert operations. Ukraine's intelligence services " HUR and the SBU " have spent four years tracking, exposing, and eliminating Russian officers responsible for atrocities against civilians. From the Vinnytsia missile massacre to the Olenivka POW murders, Bucha, chemical attacks, and the siege of Mariupol, Kyiv has pursued those who ordered and carried out war crimes " even deep inside Russia. In this episode of Point of Impact, former Navy SEAL Chuck Pfarrer takes you inside Ukraine's covert operations: JOIN US ON TELEGRAM Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. - Targeted assassinations of submarine commanders, bomber pilots, and camp officials…...

3+ hour, 17+ min ago (654+ words) The idea behind the reparations loans was to send a strong signal to Putin about Western unity and to assure Kyiv's financing needs for the next two to three years, so Russia had better sue for peace. To recap, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the EC determined that with the US stepping back from financing Ukraine, and given the assumption of an extended war, Ukraine would need an extra "140 billion ($163 billion) to cover its military and budget financing needs for 2026-27, and according to the IMF, $140 billion in just budget support to 2029. The EC initially proposed a reparation loan to Ukraine, funded by the "190 billion ($221 billion) in immobilized Russian Central Bank (CBR) assets in EU jurisdictions. This was pushed back by Belgium, where most of these assets are located. The EC agreed to come up with different options and detailed…...

4+ hour, 9+ min ago (391+ words) Behind closed doors, concerns are centered on Trump's envoys to Russia, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner " with some leaders urging others to protect Zelensky. During a confidential call on Monday, European heads of government allegedly warned that the US might be trying to push Ukraine into territorial concessions without firm security guarantees. German magazine Der Spiegel, which obtained a transcript of the discussion, reports that several EU leaders shared their concerns with President Volodymyr Zelensky, exposing deep mistrust toward Washington, despite public displays of unity. A transcript of a crisis call, obtained by Der Spiegel, shows that mistrust might run deep among European leaders " including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron. So far, the German magazine hasn't revealed the source from which it received the transcript. According to the document, Macron told participants that "there is the…...

4+ hour, 32+ min ago (317+ words) German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has postponed a Norway trip Friday for talks in Brussels on using frozen Russian assets to fund'Ukraine'in its fight against Russia, Berlin said Thursday. "The Chancellor's trip tomorrow to Oslo, Norway has been postponed," a government spokesman said.' Merz will instead attend a private dinner with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, he added in a statement. Separately, a German government source told AFP the talks would focus on European plans " championed by Merz " to fund a loan to Ukraine'by leveraging frozen Russian assets. European Union leaders have pledged to keep Kyiv afloat next year as Russia's punishing full-scale invasion drags towards a fourth year. They are looking for ways to fund a loan to Kyiv which, under the proposal, would be paid back by any eventual Russian…...

5+ hour, 5+ min ago (645+ words) New information has emerged shedding light on Epstein's Russian connections, with potential implications for US President Donald Trump's ties to Russia. From the editors: Kyiv Post continues to follow developments in the unfolding Epstein case that pertain to his links with Russia and compiled a list of reports that claimed to have revealed US President Donald Trump's connections with Moscow. Kyiv Post is unable to independently confirm the circumstances of the reports or their authenticity. Mikhail Khodorkovsky, an exiled Russian businessman and opposition activist now residing in London, has just posted the following on his X account on Tuesday, Dec. 2: "With the release of Epstein files pending, let me remind you what @dossier_center uncovered: Convicted sex-trafficker worked directly with an FSB officer who ran Putin's elite St. Petersburg Economic Forum. We have their emails" The timing is crucial here: in 2014-2015, right…...

5+ hour, 11+ min ago (387+ words) The EU has added Russia to a list of high-risk nations for money laundering and terrorist financing as Kyiv pushes for its Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list inclusion. The European Commission has added Russia to its list of high-risk countries for money laundering and terrorist financing, following a technical assessment under EU anti-money-laundering rules. On July 8, 2025, the commission adopted Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1393, launching a review of countries with suspended membership in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), including Russia. The move follows growing pressure on Moscow after the FATF suspended its membership in 2022 over the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. After Russia was added to the high-risk list, EU entities covered by anti-money-laundering rules must apply heightened scrutiny to transactions involving Russia, the commission said in a press release. The regulation becomes effective after a one'month review by the…...

5+ hour, 57+ min ago (638+ words) U.S. President Donald Trump has set in motion the most intense diplomatic push to stop the fighting since Russia launched the full-scale invasion of its neighbor nearly four years ago. But the effort has once again run into demands that are hard to reconcile, especially over whether Ukraine must give up land to Russia and how it can be kept safe from any future aggression by Moscow. Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law Jared Kushner, are set to meet with Ukraine's lead negotiator, Rustem Umerov, later Thursday in Miami for further talks, according to a senior Trump administration official who wasn't authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Putin said his five-hour talks Tuesday in the Kremlin with Witkoff and Kushner were "necessary" and "useful," but also "difficult work," and some proposals were unacceptable. Putin spoke to…...

6+ hour, 31+ min ago (338+ words) US First Lady Melania Trump on Thursday praised new progress in an international effort to return Ukrainian children taken to Russia, as seven more minors were reunited with their families. In a statement, Trump said her "dedication to guaranteeing the safe return of children to their families in this region is unwavering," and thanked officials in both Russia and Ukraine for their ongoing diplomatic work. "I commend the leadership and persistent diplomacy of Russia and Ukraine in the pursuit of the reunification of children and families," she said. "Their bridge-building has created a tangible collaborative environment " an anchor for optimism." She added that she and her representative have provided humanitarian support from the United States to help advance the reunification effort, saying she hopes the work will contribute to "broader regional stability." In August, Melania Trump penned what she called…...