Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant not discussed with Trump, Zelenskyy says

The Associated Press

· Posted: Mar 20, 2025 2:21 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

European leaders were gathering successful Brussels and London connected Thursday arsenic the propulsion intensified for a ceasefire successful Russia's warfare connected Ukraine.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, addressing EU leaders successful Brussels by video, urged them to o.k. a bundle of astatine slightest 5 cardinal euros ($7.8 cardinal Cdn) for artillery purchases for Ukraine and called for continued unit connected Russia.

EU overseas argumentation main Kaja Kallas has scaled backmost a connection to pledge up to 40 cardinal euros ($62.2 cardinal Cdn) successful subject assistance to Ukraine this year, with each state contributing according to its economical size. This came aft absorption from immoderate countries, peculiarly successful confederate Europe. 

When helium addressed the EU acme by video, Zelenskyy said it was "simply anti-European erstwhile 1 idiosyncratic blocks decisions that are important for the full continent," referring to Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban's absorption to EU statements supporting Ukraine.

Zelenskyy was gathering with Norwegian leaders successful Oslo. Norway, which is not an EU member, announced earlier this period that it would much than treble its fiscal enactment to Ukraine this year.

Zelenskyy sheds much airy connected Trump call

Zelenskyy said connected Thursday that Ukrainian experts would beryllium contiguous astatine upcoming talks involving the United States and Russia, but would not beryllium successful the aforesaid country arsenic Russia.

Russian and U.S. experts are owed to sermon ways to guarantee the information of shipping successful the Black Sea during Monday talks successful Saudi Arabia astir a imaginable bid settlement, the Kremlin has said.

WATCH l Trump-Zelenskyy telephone intimately watched aft earlier disputes:

Zelenskyy said connected Thursday helium had not discussed with U.S. President Donald Trump the imaginable American ownership of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia atomic powerfulness plant, which has been occupied by Russia since soon aft it invaded successful February 2022.

According to a White House connection from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and nationalist information advisor Mike Waltz concerning a Trump-Zelenskyy telephone connected Wednesday, the brace of leaders "discussed Ukraine's electrical proviso and atomic powerfulness plants."

Zelenskyy besides told reporters successful Norway that Trump has not raised questions astir the presumption of Russian-occupied Crimea during talks with him. He was being asked astir reports that the U.S. president is considering recognizing the peninsula arsenic portion of Russia.

As the Brussels acme proceeded, elder subject officers from countries crossed Europe and beyond were meeting  Thursday extracurricular London to soma retired plans for an planetary peacekeeping unit for Ukraine.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the "coalition of the willing" plan, led by Britain and France, is moving into an "operational phase." But it's unclear however galore countries are consenting to nonstop troops, successful summation to whether determination volition beryllium immoderate ceasefire to statesman with.

Initial Kursk reports questioned

Meanwhile, Ukrainian soldiers successful Kursk person mislaid crushed successful caller days but are not encircled by Russian forces, 3 U.S. and European officials acquainted with their governments' quality assessments told Reuters. This is contrary to caller comments by Trump and Putin.

U.S. quality agencies, including the CIA, person shared that appraisal with the White House implicit the past week, a U.S. authoritative and different idiosyncratic acquainted with the substance said. However, Trump has continued to assertion that Ukrainian troops are surrounded successful occidental Russia's Kursk region.

LISTEN l Save Ukraine foundation laminitis connected hostages of war:

In a societal media station connected March 14, Trump said helium had asked the Russian president to spare the lives of thousands of Ukrainians who helium said were "completely surrounded" and vulnerable. Putin said that helium would bash truthful if they surrendered. Trump repeated the assertion successful a Fox News interrogation connected Tuesday.

The Institute for the Study of War, a U.S.-based struggle monitor, said connected March 14 that it had "observed nary geolocated grounds to bespeak that Russian forces person encircled a important fig of Ukrainian forces successful Kursk Oblast oregon elsewhere on the frontline successful Ukraine."

The U.S. National Security Council did not respond straight to questions astir the quality assessments but referred Reuters to the associated connection from Rubio and Waltz.

The White House, the CIA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence each declined to comment.

Zelenskyy's bureau and the Russian embassy successful Washington did not instantly respond to requests for comment. 

Zelenskyy has denied that Ukrainian forces are surrounded and said Putin was lying astir the world connected the ground. The Ukrainian person acknowledged his subject is successful a hard presumption successful Kursk and that helium expects continued attacks from Russia arsenic it attempts to propulsion Ukrainian forces retired of the region.

Since August, erstwhile Ukrainian soldiers smashed their mode crossed Russia's occidental borderline successful Kursk, Kyiv has mislaid astir each of the territory it gained. It erstwhile held adjacent to 1,300 quadrate kilometres of onshore but present lone holds astir 75 quadrate kilometres, according to unfastened root reports.

"This is apt portion of Putin's effort to marque the constituent that they are winning the warfare and that absorption is useless and that it is inevitable that Russia's greater spot volition bring victory. That resonates with Trump," said Mark Cancian, a retired Marine Corps colonel and elder advisor with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Russian basal struck

In warring Thursday, Ukraine struck a large Russian strategical bomber airfield with drones, triggering a immense blast and occurrence astir 700 kilometres from the beforehand lines of the war, Russian and Ukrainian officials said.

Videos verified by Reuters showed a immense blast spreading retired from the airfield, wrecking adjacent cottages. Russia's defence ministry said aerial defences had changeable down 132 Ukrainian drones implicit Russian regions.

Other verified videos showed a elephantine plume of fume rising into the dawn entity and an aggravated fire.

The basal successful Engels, which dates backmost to Soviet times, hosts Russia's Tupolev Tu-160 nuclear-capable dense strategical bombers, known unofficially arsenic White Swans.

Ukraine's defence ministry said its forces had struck the airfield and triggered secondary detonations of ammunition. Kyiv said Russia had utilized the Engels basal to transportation retired strikes connected Ukraine.

Ten radical were injured successful the attack, section officials said.