Zelensky says he is not afraid of Trump
Volodymyr Zelensky has said he has good relations with US president Donald Trump and that unlike other western leaders, he was not afraid of him.
“Everyone in the world” was afraid of Trump, Zelensky told The Guardian in an interview at the presidential palace in Kyiv. “That’s the truth”.
But denied the position for Kyiv. “No… we are not enemies with America. We are friends. So why should we be afraid,” he said.
President Donald Trump welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as he arrives for a meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, on October 17, 2025 (TOM BRENNER/AFP via Getty Images)
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 06:35
Zelensky says Ukraine looking to order 27 Patriot air defence systems
Ukraine was looking to order 27 Patriot air defence systems from US companies, Volodymyr Zelensky said.
In the meantime, he added, the war-hit nation was looking to borrow essential anti-missile defence systems from its European allies.
Additional help was always needed until Russia continued to wage war, the Ukrainian president said.
“It’s never enough. It’s enough when the war ends. And enough when Putin understands that he has to stop,” he said.
Mr Zelensky discussed Ukrainian arms exports (AP)
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 06:18
Watch: Zelensky calls for more sanctions against Russia after Dnipro apartment block strikeZelensky calls for more sanctions against Russia after Dnipro apartment block strike
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 06:06
Trump nominates special envoy to Belarus, wants more prisoners freed
Donald Trump said John Coale, who helped negotiate the release of prisoners from Belarus, was his choice for special envoy to Minsk and would press for the release of more detainees.
“He (Coale) has already successfully negotiated the release of 100 hostages, and is going for an additional 50,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network.
“I would like to thank, in advance, the Highly Respected President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, for his consideration on the release of these additional people,” he said.
The US, under Joe Biden administration, closed its embassy in Minsk in February 2022 after Vladimir Putin used Belarus as a launch pad to send tens of thousands of troops into neighboring Ukraine.
Trump has increased US engagement with the authoritarian state, sending multiple delegations to Minsk this year. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 05:49
Watch: Inside Ukraine’s start-up weapons industry rising from the ashesInside Ukraine’s start-up weapons industry rising from the ashes
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 05:30
Germany to buy 20 more Airbus helicopters for 1 billion euros, paper shows
Germany will spend almost €1bn ($1.2 billion) on a further 20 military helicopters from Airbus, due to be delivered over two years from 2027, a government document showed.
The funding commitment, first reported by Bloomberg, is contained in a finance ministry paper to be presented to parliament, seen by Reuters yesterday.
The defence ministry declined to comment on the order, saying it could not discuss procurement plans before they had been debated in parliament.
It completes a 2023 framework agreement that allowed the armed forces to purchase up to 82 Airbus H145M helicopters, 62 of which have already been ordered.
The total 931 million euro cost of the 20 additional aircraft – 15 for fighting roles and five for training special forces – will come from a special fund created at the start of this year to fund an urgent modernisation of Germany’s armed forces.
Governments across Europe are ramping up defence spending in the face of the increased Russian threat since its February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The German order will yield benefits for numerous other companies involved in kitting out the helicopters, such as defence electronics company Hensoldt which will provide electronic warfare and night-vision equipment.
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 05:19
Viktor Orban is back in the White House again – doing Putin’s dirty work for him
Given that the two leaders are on opposite sides of a strategic argument that is killing people and shaping the world – an issue that could undermine European cohesion in the face of Russian aggression – a meeting between Donald Trump and Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban should be an incendiary moment.
But the cold water of their mutual admiration for Vladimir Putin means that no fireworks can ignite in the Oval Office.
Orban has been in power for longer than the 47th president of the United States. But he has the same authoritarian instincts. Like Trump, he has sought to undermine the judiciary, while his cronies have captured much of Hungary’s media and enjoy preferential treatment in business.
His problem is that Hungary, along with Slovenia and the Czech Republic, relies heavily on fuel imports from Russia. Mostly through these countries, the European Union has spent €260bn (£230bn) on Russian fuel since Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 05:00
Inside Ukraine’s start-up weapons industry rising from the ashes
Naive, self-sabotaging and riddled with Moscow’s agents, Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons and an arms industry that produced a third of the Soviet Union’s supply, trusted the West and the Kremlin to protect it, and was left fighting for its life.
Now, 30 years on, the start-up nation redefining how war is fought has been forced into a bodge-and-make-do world of arms production, fusing old technology with IT know-how to break the bonds its allies tied to make Kyiv fight one-handed.
The latest innovation is a cruise missile with a range of 3,000km, a maximum speed of 900kmph and a payload of over a tonne, which has been used in strikes deep into Russian territory.
The FP-5 “Flamingo” missile is powered by a rocket and a Soviet-era turbofan jet engine bolted on top. Some of those engines have been dug out of landfill dumps.
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 04:53
Russian air defence systems destroy 71 Ukrainian drones overnight
Russian air defence systems destroyed or intercepted 71 Ukrainian drones overnight, the Russian defence ministry said on its Telegram channel.
Of these, seven were downed over the Kursk region and seven were downed over the Black Sea. Most of the drones were shot down in the bordering regions of Ukraine and Russia, the defence ministry said.
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 04:42
Russia’s Lavrov says he is ready to meet Rubio
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said he was ready to meet US secretary of state Marco Rubio but that Russia would not abandon its core conditions for ending the Ukraine war.
“Secretary of state Marco Rubio and I understand the need for regular communication,” Lavrov, Putin’s foreign minister since 2004, told state news agency RIA Novosti.
“It is important for discussing the Ukrainian issue and promoting the bilateral agenda. That is why we communicate by telephone and are ready to hold face-to-face meetings when necessary,” Lavrov said.
Arpan Rai10 November 2025 04:31