CloseUkraine, Russia, and America are set to hold the second round of trilateral talks this week to discuss a US-drafted plan to end the war on Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The talks were earlier scheduled to take place on Sunday but no reason has been provided from either side for the delay. Zelensky said Ukraine is “interested in ensuring that the outcome brings us closer to a real and dignified end to the war”.
"The dates for the next trilateral meetings have been set – February 4 and 5 in Abu Dhabi," Zelensky said. Officials from Russia and the US are yet to confirm the new dates.
Just hours later, a Russian drone strike killed at least 12 people after it hit a bus carrying mineworkers in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Sunday.
At least another seven mineworkers who were returning from their shift were injured in the attack, which also sparked a fire that was later put out.
Energy firm DTEK, which owned the bus, said that Russian forces had carried out "a large-scale terrorist attack on DTEK mines in the Dnipropetrovsk region".
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Arpan Rai2 February 2026 07:21
Putin's aide says Russia will not accept Nato-member forces in Ukraine
A proposal by European powers to deploy Nato-member troops in Ukraine as part of a proposed security guarantee and peace deal was unacceptable for Russia, said Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council.
"What kind of guarantee can we talk about if a foreign contingent of unfriendly Nato member states is stationed on the territory of such a state," Medvedev told said in an interview.
Medvedev said Russia's terms for ending the conflict were unchanged from 2024 when president Vladimir Putin set them out in a speech at the foreign ministry.
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 07:10
Two killed as Ukrainian drone attack sparks fire in Belgorod
A Ukrainian drone attack has sparked fire and explosions in Russia’s Belgorod region’s city of Stary Oskol.
At least two people were killed in the attack, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
He added that the Ukrainian drones attacked the city and fires were also reported at a residential home. Gladkov said an exploding drone shattered windows in more than three apartment buildings.
Witnesses said at least six loud blasts were reported in the city’s northern and northeastern areas, reported the Kyiv Independent, citing local residents.
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 06:45
'World seems very dangerous,' Medvedev says
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said the world was getting very dangerous but claimed Russia did not want to be dragged into a global conflict.
“The situation is very dangerous," Medvedev said in an interview at his residence outside Moscow. "The pain threshold is decreasing."
"We are not interested in a global conflict. We're not crazy. It's been said a hundred times. Who needs a global conflict?" he said. "Unfortunately, a global conflict cannot be ruled out," he said.
His comments came as Russia's invasion of Ukraine is about to enter its fifth year in February.
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 06:06
Medvedev claims Europe failed to defeat Russia in Ukraine
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, claimed European powers failed to defeat Russia in Ukraine but had inflicted severe economic harm on themselves by trying to do so.
"Europe surprised me a lot," Medvedev said in the interview with Reuters, TASS, and the WarGonzo Russian war blogger.
“Because Europe is undermining the foundations of its existence by its own actions. It's just amazing,” he said.
Medvedev said that European powers wanted to "inflict a strategic defeat on Russia" but that they had not "achieved anything". The former president is known for his sabre-rattling and aggressive rhetoric towards the West.
In December, the European Union planned to fund Ukraine with €90bn (£79bn) of frozen Russian assets.
EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the plan would cover two-thirds of the funding required to sustain Ukraine’s war effort, with “international partners” financing the rest.
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 05:42
Drones strike Ukrainian maternity hospital
Russian attack drones struck a maternity hospital in southern Ukraine on Sunday morning, the Ukrainian emergency service reported.
In a Telegram post, it said the strike wounded three women in the hospital in the city of Zaporizhzhia, and also sparked a fire in the gynecology reception area that was later extinguished.
Regional administration head Ivan Fedorov later said the number of wounded had risen to six.
Days earlier, US president Donald Trump said Putin had agreed to temporarily halt the targeting of the Ukrainian capital and other cities, as the region suffers under freezing temperatures that have brought widespread hardship to Ukrainians.
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 05:28
Ukraine peace deal must put people before land, warns key Zelensky ally
A key political ally of Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine has called for a peace deal which prioritises people over land ahead of a major conference in the war torn country on Thursday.
Vitaliy Kim, governor of the Mykolaiv Oblast region in Ukraine, is an emerging name in Ukrainian politics and spoke to The Independent as other governors and mayors get together to discuss where the peace line needs to be drawn in the war with Russia.
Mr Kim headed the Mykolaiv branch of Zelensky’s Servant of the People party during the 2019 elections and was appointed by the Ukrainian president to be regional governor in November 2020.
Ukraine peace deal must put people before land, warns key Zelensky ally
Exclusive: Vitaliy Kim, who was handpicked by Zelensky to be governor of the Mykolaiv Oblast region in Ukraine, has signalled a shift towards compromise in an interview with The IndependentArpan Rai2 February 2026 05:12
Russia's Shoigu assures China of Moscow's support on Taiwan
Russian security council secretary Sergei Shoigu has reassured senior Chinese official Wang Yi of Moscow’s continuing support to Beijing over Taiwan.
Russia has repeatedly said it opposes Taiwan's independence in any form and considers the self-governed island an inseparable part of China.
"We see that China's ill‑wishers continue to destabilise the situation in the Taiwan Strait. For our part, I want to reaffirm our consistent and unwavering support for Beijing on the Taiwan issue," Shoigu said, reported TASS news agency.
“We proceed from the fact that the government of the People's Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing all of China," he added.
China and Russia have forged close ties in recent years and declared a "no limits" strategic partnership days before Russian president Vladimir Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
Chinese president Xi Jinping has vowed to “reunite” the self-governed island with the mainland by force, if necessary, and the US is bound by treaty to help arm Taipei to defend itself from attack.
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 04:48
Watch: At least 12 miners killed in Russian strike on bus after peace talks delayed
Arpan Rai2 February 2026 04:32
Ukraine allows Starlink verification to counter Russian drones in new move
Ukraine’s defence minister has said only authorised Starlink terminals will be allowed to operate in the war-hit nation as the forces look to counter Moscow’s use of satellite internet on attack drones.
Mykhailo Fedorov said Ukraine is working together with the Elon Musk’s satellite internet technology and has already taken the initial steps in countering Russia’s drone opertions.
“The next step is to implement a system that will allow only authorised terminals to operate in Ukraine,” he said.
The newly appointed defence minister said the Ukrainian users will get to register their Starlink terminals for verification in the coming dyas and those that fail to get verification, will be disconnected.
“The registration process will be simple, fast, and convenient for users. Detailed instructions will be published shortly,” Fedorov said, thanking Starlink and SpaceX for their cooperation and support.
