Trump Tells Zelensky to 'Settle With Putin' as Ten Die
The president urged the Ukrainian leader to reach an agreement, saying both men were “going along” and that “someday, hopefully in the not-too-distant future, maybe before the heavy winter, they’ll make a deal”. He was blunter on Ukraine’s side of it: “You know what I want him to do? Make a deal. I want him to settle with Putin, and I want Putin to settle with him.” Ten people were killed across both countries on Saturday.
Four of the dead were in Ukraine and six in Russia and Russian-occupied territory, which is the shape this war has settled into: two women died under the rubble of their home in Zaporizhzhia and two more were killed in Sumy, while a Ukrainian drone attack in Krasnodar killed three and wounded two, setting fires at two industrial sites. Three were killed in occupied Zaporizhzhia. Friday was worse still, with strikes on Kyiv killing seven, injuring fifty-eight and halting production at Ukraine’s largest steelmaker. Mr Zelensky’s answer was aimed past Moscow at his backers: “It is essential that our partners not forget: Russia is escalating every single day. If the Russians have chosen to make their strikes even more brutal, the world must choose stronger responses to keep the war from spreading further.” Washington is pushing technical-level three-way talks involving officials rather than leaders, with no date proposed and the Kremlin saying no specific plans exist. Watch for a date.