Zelenskyy says Russia ‘did not heed’ Trump’s call for ceasefire and Ukraine had ‘no early warning’ before strikes on Kyiv – Europe live

As promised, there is also an update from Sweden, where the Social Democrats leader Magdalena Andersson has said that despite some progress, there are still no “condition” in place to confirm a new left-leaning government.

She reported back to the parliament’s speaker on the talks, and it’s up to him to decide what’s next and whether she should continue the exploratory talks, she said, as reported by SVT.

She says further progress requires parties to be “constructive” and focus on “solving issues” and what the new government can do.

“It’s a complicated parliamentary situation … after the election … and I expect it will be some time before we have a new government,” she said in English.

Parliamentary speaker Andreas Norlén will say what he wants to do next at his press conference in about 15 minutes.

Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy also responded to the Russian attacks on Ukraine overnight, saying Moscow has used “more than a hundred different weapons,” from “jet-powered drones, loitering munitions and ballistic missiles.”

And, interestingly, he pointedly says Ukraine had “no early warning” on one of the strikes in Kyiv.

“An ordinary residential building was destroyed in Kharkiv; the rescue operation continued virtually all night as first responders searched for people under the rubble. Four people were killed in this strike on the building in Kharkiv. My condolences to all their families and loved ones. In Kharkiv alone, 41 people were injured in just one evening.

There was also a particularly vile ballistic missile strike on Kyiv – five missiles that hit civilian infrastructure. Unfortunately, we received no early warning from our partners about this strike. Intelligence on Russian ballistic missile launches helps save lives, and this is one of the most critical issues. This is precisely what helps prevent people from being killed – when there is an early warning about ballistic missiles.”

Zelenskyy also says Ukraine has halted strikes on Russian oil refineries for two days after Trump’s ceasefire announcement, but “Russia did not heed the American president.”

“During this time, the Russians have attacked both our energy facilities and our critical infrastructure, sending absolutely clear signals that they have no intention of refraining from strikes on Ukraine. Nineteen regions of our country have come under attack in these two days alone.

Our position remains unchanged: Ukraine is ready for reciprocal steps toward de-escalation, and effective pressure on Russia is needed to make de-escalation happen. Wars end when the aggressor realizes that it cannot prolong the war.

Global pressure on Russia contributes to exactly that – bringing peace closer. But direct or indirect support for Russia, slowing down assistance to Ukraine, and making it harder to protect lives against ballistic missiles will certainly not help bring peace. Everyone needs peace. A strong America, a strong Europe, and strong partners are needed.”

Separately, Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha has confirmed that the US continues to supply Ukraine with intelligence data after concerns prompted by the lack of air alerts during last night’s Russian strike on the country.

Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum, he replied:

“Probably you are asking me if we are getting intelligence data from American side. Yes, we continue this cooperation.

And also it is true that yesterday attack or night attack, red alert was launched with a delay, but it is because of, special type of the weaponry which was used by Russian side.”

Sybiha also spoke about expected escalation “in the air, ground and on sea” from Russia.

He also delivers a strong line on how Ukraine has changed its position in the war, saying:

“I would like to tell one more thing: that in less of two years we went from the stage of ‘[you have] no cards’ to the stage of ‘don’t play your cards.’ It’s a true recognition of Ukraine. And that’s the true achievement. And our lesson learned.”

That’s obviously a reference to Trump’s comments during that infamous meeting with Zelenskyy in the Oval Office.

Oh, they are enjoying taunting Miliband about Brex-turn.

Germany’s Wadephul declares with a massive grin on his face that “the doors [to] the European Union are open for you,” although he caveats that by adding “the key is in your hands.”

And that concludes this panel.

We should hear from more ministers during the day, including Spain’s José Manuel Albares and Ukraine’s Andrii Sybiha soon.

Poland’s Sikorski says “what is at stake is Europe’s status in the global division of power.”

“Whether the triumvirate that is trying to divide the world into spheres of influence is composed of the US, China and Russia … and we are just suppliers of data and tourist attractions, or whether we are that third leg.”

Ministers gets asked a slightly unusual question about what Europe could look like in 20 years.

Miliband gives a pretty personal answer:

“I don’t have a crystal ball, but I know what we need to do, and that is to fight for our values, and that is the most important thing.

I talked at the beginning about my parents, both of whom were Jewish refugees. They saw a world torn apart, and then they saw people who fought for values of freedom, democracy, multilateralism, the rule of law. And, more than at any other time since my parents were refugees, we see those values under threat.

And the truth is, I can’t describe the exact world that we’re going to live in, but I know that fighting for these values across all fronts, whether it is standing with Ukraine, whether it is against Russian aggression, in Europe and elsewhere, whether it is on issues like climate and others, that is absolutely what we all need to do.

And also, I know Britain isn’t in the European Union, but I know that Europe’s role in this- and I’m a proud European – Europe’s role in this is absolutely fundamental to keeping a world order that we would recognise and that would actually be doing the right thing for our children.”

He once again refuses to be drawn in on whether the UK should be back in the EU.

Poland’s Sikorski responds to a direct challenge from the audience on why the EU is not doing enough on the issue of frozen Russian assets.

He says “we have been frustrated about this for years.”

He adds:

“Belgium says a thing that is reasonable, namely, that when the Russians sue them, they cannot be left with the liability on their own. We are working the European Commission is working on finding a legal instrument that will spread some of the risk, and I hope we arrive at it as soon as possible.”

Norway’s Espen Barth Eide again gets the closest to criticising Trump as he mounts a powerful defence of the international criminal court, now once again sanctioned by the US, saying it’s a key part of the global accountability setup.

“It’s good to have rules, but there must also be consequences of breaking the rules, because otherwise, why do you really have these rules?”

On hybrid attacks, he says there needs to be a discussion on how to answer to “sub-Article 5” incidents (that’s a reference to Nato’s Article 5).

“We realise that just saying that if you do that again, we’ll issue a strongly worded statement doesn’t really, you know, suffice.”

Miliband comes back to the issue of frozen assets in the Q&A.

He says “we stand ready to work with the EU” on this question as he ducks an extra question on whether the UK could come back to the EU.

But he also says Europe should take “the so-called hybrid warfare” – which he defines as “disinformation, misinformation, espionage, cyber-attacks” – “much, much more seriously and look at all the tools at our disposal to counter.”

Sikorski goes domain by domain, saying why he thinks Russia is not winning the war, as he points out that “a country without a navy has blockaded a country with a powerful navy,” and that Russia is “completely stuck” on land and in the air.

“The Russians are trying to terrorise cities. … Does it lead to the moral collapse? It doesn’t. You can kill a lot of people. You can commit a lot of war crimes. But it doesn’t end the war.”

Norway’s Espen Barth Eide says Russia appeared to be convinced by their own propaganda, whereas in reality the Russian forces are recording “massive losses” with “very little military gains.”

He warns that “every sign like the diesel deal will be exaggerated and used as a sign that they’re beginning to sow division among Ukraine’s best friends.”

UK’s Miliband says the UK and allies have to “make sure that we do everything we can to supply [Ukraine] with the defensive equipment they need,” moving “on a number of fronts.”

“We need to move forward on the fiscal front. And we’ve talked about the frozen assets but making sure that we meet the fiscal needs of Ukraine to sustain them through the winter and beyond.”

He also says there is need to help Ukraine with energy for this winter, and with increasing sanctions on Russia.

On his recent visit to Ukraine, he says:

“My overall impression from my visit, and I’m sure others will testify to this, is both the barbarity of what Putin is doing, but also the resolve of the Ukrainian people. I think the resolve is a truly incredible resolve.”

He also says, repeatedly, that Putin is “not winning this war,” despite his ministers not telling him the truth about the situation on the frontline.