Zelenskyy Heads to London for Talks    12/08 06:02

   President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was meeting the French, German and British 
leaders in London on Monday as Kyiv's European allies try to strengthen 
Ukraine's hand in thorny talks on a U.S.-backed plan to end the Russia-Ukraine 
war.

   LONDON (AP) -- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was meeting the French, German 
and British leaders in London on Monday as Kyiv's European allies try to 
strengthen Ukraine's hand in thorny talks on a U.S.-backed plan to end the 
Russia-Ukraine war.

   Prime Minister Keir Starmer was due to gather with Zelenskyy, President 
Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the British leader's 10 
Downing St. residence.

   Zelenskyy said late Sunday that his talks with European leaders this week in 
London and Brussels will focus on security, air defense and long-term funding 
for Ukraine's war effort. The leaders are working to ensure that any ceasefire 
is backed by solid security guarantees both from Europe and the U.S. to deter 
Russia from attacking again.

   U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday 
aimed at trying to narrow differences on the U.S. administration's peace 
proposal.

   Zelenskyy said in a post on Telegram that talks had been "substantive" and 
that National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov and Chief of 
the General Staff Andrii Hnatov were traveling back to Europe to brief him.

   A major sticking point in the proposal is the suggestion that Ukraine must 
cede control of its eastern Donbas region to Russia, which illegally occupies 
most but not all of the territory. Ukraine and its European allies have balked 
at the idea of handing over land.

   Starmer said he "won't be putting pressure" on Zelenskyy to accept a peace 
settlement.

   "The most important thing is to ensure that if there is a cessation of 
hostilities, and I hope there is, it has to be just and it has to be lasting, 
which is what we will be focused on this afternoon," he told broadcaster ITV.

   In an exchange with reporters on Sunday night, U.S. President Donald Trump 
appeared frustrated with Zelenskyy, claiming the Ukrainian leader "hasn't yet 
read the proposal."

   "Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I'm not sure that Zelenskyy's fine 
with it," Trump said before taking part in the Kennedy Center Honors in 
Washington. "His people love it, but he hasn't read it."

   Trump has had a hot-and-cold relationship with Zelenskyy since riding into a 
second White House term insisting that the war was a waste of U.S. taxpayers' 
money. Trump has also repeatedly urged the Ukrainians to cede land to Russia to 
bring an end to the nearly four-year conflict.

   The European talks follow the publication of a new U.S. national security 
strategy that alarmed European leaders and was welcomed by Russia.

   Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the document, which spells out the 
administration's core foreign policy interests, was largely in line with 
Moscow's vision.

   Speaking with journalists on Monday, Peskov said that the Kremlin welcomed 
the document's focus on developing constructive relations with Russia.

   "The nuances that we see in the new concept certainly look appealing to us," 
he told reporters. "It mentions the need for dialogue and building 
constructive, friendly relations. This cannot but appeal to us, and it 
absolutely corresponds to our vision. We understand that by eliminating the 
irritants that currently exist in bilateral relations, a prospect may open for 
us to truly restore our relations and bring them out of the rather deep crisis."

   The document released Friday by the White House said the U.S. wants to 
improve its relationship with Russia after years of Moscow being treated as a 
global pariah and that ending the war is a core U.S. interest to "reestablish 
strategic stability with Russia."

   The document also says NATO must not be "a perpetually expanding alliance," 
echoing another complaint of Russia's. It was scathing about the migration and 
free speech policies of longstanding U.S. allies in Europe, suggesting they 
face the "prospect of civilizational erasure" due to migration.

   Starmer's government has declined to comment on the American document, 
saying it is a matter for the U.S. government.

   Aerial attacks continue

   Russian forces continued to attack Ukraine Monday as diplomatic efforts 
continued.

   Russian drones struck a residential high-rise in the northeastern Ukrainian 
city of Okhtyrka overnight, injuring seven people, the head of the regional 
administration, Oleh Hryhorov, wrote on Telegram. He said that the building 
suffered extensive damage.

   Elsewhere, in the northern city of Chernihiv, a Russian drone injured three 
people when it exploded outside a residential building, regional head 
Viacheslav Chaus said. The attack also damaged a kindergarten, domestic gas 
pipes and cars.

   Ukraine's Air Force said Monday that Russia fired a total of 149 drones 
across the country overnight, of which 131 were neutralized and 16 more struck 
their targets.

   Meanwhile, Russian air defenses destroyed 67 Ukrainian drones overnight, 
Russia's Ministry of Defense said Monday. The drones were shot down over 11 
Russian regions, it said.