Moscow has responded to US threats to will abandon peace talks between Russia and Ukraine within days unless there are clear signs that a deal can be reached.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted progress on a peace settlement had already been made, claiming Russia was striving to resolve the conflict. He said Moscow remained open to dialogue with Washington but that contacts were difficult.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Donald Trump had many other priorities worldwide and may move on unless there were signs of progress.
Talks in Paris among US, Ukrainian and European officials produced outlines for steps toward peace.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials announced they had signed an outline of a US minerals deal and that a final accord could be reached by the end of next week.
A Russian missile attack on Ukraine's northeastern city of Kharkiv killed one person and wounded more than 100 others, including six children, on Friday morning, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
He has accused China of supplying weapons, including gunpowder and artillery, to Russia. China has dismissed the accusation.
Key Points
- US ready to abandon efforts to broker Russia-Ukraine peace deal
- Russia 'would be allowed to keep occupied territory' under US plan
- Ukraine-US minerals deal involves joint reconstruction investment fund
- Update: One killed and 98 injured in Kharkiv as Russia attacks two Ukrainian cities
- Ukraine hits Chinese firms with sanctions over weapons claims
- Ukraine says it shot down 3 missiles, 23 drones launched by Russia overnight
Ukraine hits Chinese firms with sanctions
21:25 , Jane DaltonUkraine is imposing sanctions on three Chinese companies after President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed China has been supplying weapons to Russia.
More than 100 people were reported to have been injured in Russian strikes on Kharkiv.
President Zelensky wrote on social media: “Today, we have expanded our Ukrainian sanctions against nearly a hundred more entities—natural and legal persons—most of whom are involved in the production of such missiles—Iskanders—like those that struck our Kharkiv. Many of these entities are Russian, but unfortunately, some are also from China.”
China's foreign ministry has dismissed the accusation as groundless.
Vance 'optimistic' about ending war
21:25 , Jane DaltonUS vice-president JD Vance said his country was optimistic it could end the war, as he met Italian PM Giorgia Meloni for a second time in 24 hours.
"I want to update the prime minister on some of the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine ... even in the past 24 hours, we think we have some interesting things to report on," Mr Vance said.
"Since there are the negotiations I won't prejudge them, but we do feel optimistic that we can hopefully bring this war, this very brutal war, to a close."
Russia jails teenage protester against war
20:31 , Jane DaltonA Russian court has handed down a prison sentence of nearly three years to a young activist who used 19th-century poetry and graffiti to protest against the war in Ukraine.
A witness in the court said Darya Kozyreva, 19, was found guilty of repeatedly "discrediting" the Russian army after she put up a poster with lines of Ukrainian verse on a public square and gave an interview to a Russian-language service of Radio Free Europe.
She pleaded not guilty, calling the case against her "one big fabrication" but was sentenced to two years and eight months in jail.
In December 2022, she sprayed "Murderers, you bombed it. Judases" in black paint on a sculpture outside St Petersburg's Hermitage Museum representing the city's links with Mariupol.
Last year, after being fined for posting about Ukraine online, Kozyreva was expelled from the medical faculty of St Petersburg State University.
Kozyreva told the court: "I have no guilt, my conscience is clear," she said, according to a transcript. "Because the truth is never guilty."
Watch: Trump reveals new date to sign Ukraine minerals deal
19:45 , Jane DaltonMoscow used Iskander cruise missiles, says Zelensky
19:06 , Jane DaltonRussia used Iskander cruise missiles in an attack on Kharkiv that wounded more than 100 people, according to Ukraine’s President Zelensky.
He said that Chinese companies on which Kyiv had imposed sanctions were involved in the production of Russian Iskander missiles.
Iskander missiles are designed for precision strikes on critical infrastructure.
Zelensky slates 'scumbag' for Kharkiv missile attacks
18:40 , Jane DaltonThe number of people known to have been injured in Russian attacks on Kharkiv has risen to more than 100, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says.
And he hit out at the “outright scumbag” who ordered attacks on civilians at Easter.
“These are completely different people—some elderly, some very young. All they were doing was living their lives in their own country, in their own city — and that alone makes them targets for Russia and its missiles,” he wrote on social media.
“One must be an outright scumbag and despise life to carry out such missile strikes on an ordinary city on Good Friday, the eve of Easter.
“And when we appeal to our partners—primarily the United States—for Patriot systems and missiles for them that can protect against this Russian evil—against cruise missiles and ballistic threats—we are asking for the kind of protection every nation deserves.”
Peace talks coming to head, Trump says
18:09 , Jane DaltonPresident Trump has said Ukraine-Russia peace talks are "coming to a head" and hinted the world would know soon whether he will continue to push for a peace deal.
Asked what he wanted in order to keep negotiations going, he replied: “I have to see my whole life has been one big negotiation, and I know when people are playing us, and I know when they're not.
“And I have to see an enthusiasm to want to end it. And I think I see that enthusiasm. I think I see it from both sides, but you're going to know soon.”
Asked whether he would continue to support Ukraine if he decided to move on, he said: “Well, I'm not going to say that, because I think we're going to get it done.”
And asked whether he believed Vladimir Putin was stalling, Mr Trump said: “I hope not.”
Trump says US will 'pass' on ending war if it's too difficult
18:04 , Jane DaltonUS president Donald Trump has said "we will take a pass" on trying to resolve the Ukraine war if either Russia or Ukraine makes it too difficult to end the conflict.
Trump said, however, that he did not want to say he was walking away from the talks. He said he still believed there is a good chance to end the conflict.
"It's coming to a head right now," he said.
Analysis: Why US diplomats are courting the Europeans
17:45 , Jane Dalton
Why US diplomats Witkoff and Rubio are now courting the Europeans
US threatens to walk away from talks ‘within days’ – full report
17:15 , Jane Dalton
US threatens to walk away from Russia-Ukraine peace talks ‘within days’
Recap: One killed and 98 injured in Kharkiv strikes
16:50 , Jane DaltonRecap: One person has died and 98 others, including six children, were hurt as Russia hit Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, early on Friday, its mayor Ihor Terekhov said.
Cluster munitions struck a "densely populated" neighbourhood four times, he reported.
Russian drones also targeted a bakery in Sumy, less than a week after a deadly Palm Sunday strike there, killing a customer.
Last Sunday's strike on Sumy, also resulting in mass casualties, was the second large-scale missile attack to claim civilian lives in just over a week. Some 20 people, including nine children, died on April 4 as missiles struck President Zelensky's home town of Kryvyi Rih.
New prisoner swap due to take place
16:25 , Jane DaltonRussia and Ukraine will conduct a new prisoner swap tomorrow, mediated by the United Arab Emirates, a source close to the negotiations has told Reuters.
Nearly 500 Russian and Ukrainian prisoners and 46 injured soldiers will be exchanged in the latest swap to be mediated by Abu Dhabi.
The exchange will involve 246 prisoners from each side, the source said, making it one of the largest prisoner swaps to date.
In March, the two sides each exchanged 175 prisoners:
Russia and Ukraine swap hundreds of prisoners in one of the war's largest exchanges
Full text of US-Ukraine memorandum of intent for minerals deal
16:00 , Tara CobhamFollowing is the complete text of a memorandum of intent signed on Thursday by Ukraine and the United States, confirming their intent to conclude a deal on jointly developing Ukrainian natural resources. It was posted on Friday on the website of the Ukrainian government.
MEMORANDUM OF INTENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF UKRAINE TO FINALIZE FORMAL AGREEMENT ON ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AND RECONSTRUCTION INVESTMENT FUND
WHEREAS the United States of America has provided significant financial and material support Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022;
WHEREAS the American people desire to invest alongside the Ukrainian people in a free, sovereign and secure Ukraine;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine desire a lasting peace in Ukraine and a durable partnership between their two peoples and governments;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine recognize the contribution that Ukraine has made to strengthen international peace and security by voluntarily relinquishing the world's third largest arsenal of nuclear weapons;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine intend to establish a reconstruction investment fund as part of an economic partnership between the two peoples and governments;
WHEREAS the United States of America and Ukraine have held highly productive technical discussions in Washington, D.C. as recently as April 11-12, 2025, in order to finalize negotiation of an agreement to establish a reconstruction investment fund;
WHEREAS the United States respects Ukraine s intention to avoid conflicts in the drafting of the agreement with Ukraine's obligations under European Union accession or agreements with international financial institutions and other official creditors;
WHEREAS, without prejudice to any remaining political or legal procedures required to complete the arrangement, Ukrainian Prime Minister Shmyhal will visit Washington, D.C. the week of April 21, 2025, to meet with U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent and lend high-level support to the conclusion of technical discussions on the terms of an agreement establishing a reconstruction investment fund. Negotiating teams are expected to report on the progress by the April 26, 2025, with the aim of completing discussions by that date and signing as soon as possible; and
NOW, THEREFORE, as evidenced by the signatures set forth below, the Government of the United States and the Government of Ukraine enter into this Memorandum of Intent to work expeditiously towards the completion of the necessary documents in order to finalize the agreement forging an economic partnership between the American and Ukrainian peoples and establishing a reconstruction investment fund.
This Memorandum of Intent may be signed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, and all of which shall be deemed one instrument.
Deal recognises Ukraine could join EU
15:45The investment fund memorandum, signed by US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent and Ukrainian deputy prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko, recognises Ukraine’s “commitments related to its accession to the EU”.
Minerals deal involves US-Ukrainian investment fund
15:26 , Jane DaltonA deal due to be signed next week by Ukraine and the US includes setting up a joint reconstruction investment fund between the two countries.
The draft recognises the “significant financial and material support” Washington has given Kyiv since Russia’s invasion, a screenshot shows.
The document does not clarify whether profits from future investments will be used to “pay back” the US for military aid previously made.
Next steps in peace talks
15:21Ukrainian, US and European officials and diplomats are due to hold a new meeting next week in London to discuss the next steps towards a peace deal.
Landmark talks in Paris on Thursday produced outlines for some steps.
Watch: Rubio hints US may drop Russia-Ukraine peace talks
15:00 , Tara CobhamRussia 'would be allowed to keep occupied territory' under US plan
14:37 , Jane DaltonUS proposals for a peace deal would effectively freeze the war, with Ukrainian territories now occupied by Russia remaining under Moscow’s control, European sources told Bloomberg.
Kyiv’s aspirations of joining Nato would also be off the table.
The outline of the US plan was shared during meetings in Paris on Thursday.
Ukraine hits Chinese firms with sanctions
14:35 , Jane DaltonUkraine is imposing sanctions on three Chinese companies after President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed China has been supplying weapons to Russia.
China's foreign ministry has dismissed the accusation as groundless.
US 'offers to ease sanctions on Russia for peace'
14:25 , Jane DaltonBreaking news: The US has offered to ease sanctions on Russia in a peace proposal for Ukraine, it’s been reported.
Bloomberg News says the US presented allies with proposals to enable a peace deal, including an outline of terms to end the fighting and ease sanctions on Moscow in the event of a lasting ceasefire.
Pictured: Russian activist charged with discrediting armed forces
14:15 , Jane DaltonActivist Darya Kozyreva, who is charged with repeatedly discrediting the Russian armed forces, delivers a speech during a court hearing in St Petersburg, Russia, before the verdict is announced.
Pictured: Deadly Russian missile attack in Ukraine's Kharkiv
14:00 , Tara Cobham
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Russia claims Ukraine attacks on energy plants
13:51 , Jane DaltonMoscow's defence ministry has accused Ukraine of attacking Russian energy facilities four times during the past 24 hours despite a moratorium on striking each other's energy infrastructure.
UPDATE: One killed and 98 injured in Kharkiv as Russia attacks two Ukrainian cities
13:18Russia has kept up a series of deadly strikes on Ukrainian cities, according to officials there, wounding scores of civilians days after missiles killed at least 34 during Palm Sunday celebrations in the northern city of Sumy.
One person died and 98 others, including six children, were hurt as Russia hit Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, early in the day, its mayor Ihor Terekhov reported on Friday. He said cluster munitions struck a "densely populated" neighborhood four times.
Russian drones also targeted a bakery in Sumy, less than a week after the deadly Palm Sunday strike there, killing a customer and wounding an employee, the regional prosecutor's office said. Photos released by the agency showed rows of Easter cakes stacked inside a devastated building, covered in thick dust, as a huge hole gaped in the wall behind them and rubble piled up on the floor.
Last Sunday's strike on Sumy, resulting in mass casualties, was the second large-scale missile attack to claim civilian lives in just over a week. Some 20 people, including nine children, died on 4 April as missiles struck Zelenskyy's hometown of Kryvyi Rih.
Dozen wounded in Russian attacks on Kyiv and Mykolaiv overnight
13:00 , Tara CobhamA dozen people were wounded in Russian attacks on Kyiv and the southern Black Sea region of Mykolaiv overnight.
Firefighters were seen working to extinguish a fire following the attack in Mykolaiv.
Russian strikes killed at least two people in Ukraine on Thursday and wounded over two dozen, Kyiv said.
Meanwhile, Moscow claimed to have captured another village in the northwestern Sumy region.
US vice president says he is 'optimistic' Russia-Ukraine war can be ended
12:30The US is optimistic it can put an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine, vice president JD Vance said on Friday as he met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for the second time in 24 hours.
Mr Vance saw Ms Meloni in Washington on Thursday and the two have since flown to the Italian capital ahead of the Easter holidays.
"I want to update the prime minister on some of the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine ... even in the past 24 hours, we think we have some interesting things to report on," Mr Vance told reporters sitting alongside Ms Meloni.
"Since there are the negotiations I won't prejudge them, but we do feel optimistic that we can hopefully bring this war, this very brutal war, to a close," he added.
Hours earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had said US President Donald Trump would walk away from trying to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal within days unless there were clear signs that a deal could be done.
Russian drone kills one in hit on bakery preparing Easter cakes, Kyiv says
12:00 , Tara CobhamA Russian drone strike hit a bakery in northern Ukraine where traditional Easter cakes were being prepared, killing one man early on Friday, Ukrainian officials said.
Images shared by Ukrainian emergency services, which said they were filmed at the scene of the strike in the city of Sumy, showed trays of Easter cakes - known as paska in Ukrainian - covered in grey dust, and a smashed window nearby.
The victim was a local businessman who was at the bakery to collect his order when the drone struck at 5am (2am GMT), according to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.
Ukraine's Christian community, including Orthodox believers, Catholics and Protestants, were marking the Good Friday religious holiday on Friday, and preparing to celebrate Easter on Sunday.
"So much for Russia's 'traditional Christian values.' It is against the Lord, any faith, and any human values to strike an ordinary pastry shop, murder an entrepreneur, and destroy Easter bread. This is the evil we are dealing with every day," Sybiha wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Last Sunday, two Russian ballistic missiles hit the centre of Sumy, killing 35 people in the deadliest strike on Ukraine this year, Ukrainian officials said.
Today is Good Friday in Ukraine. Holy Week is coming to an end. People get ready for Easter. They make paska, a special Easter bread.
— Andrii Sybiha 🇺🇦 (@andrii_sybiha) April 18, 2025
Sumy's local pastry shop prepared fresh paska this morning. However, at 5 a.m., Russia fired a deadly Shahed drone, damaging it and killing an… pic.twitter.com/9wDC0KQk0H
Ukraine imposes sanctions on several Chinese entities
11:49 , Tara CobhamUkraine has imposed sanctions on several Chinese entities, Volodymyr Zelensky’s decree has said.
Russia struck key drone making facilities in Ukraine, Russian defence ministry says
11:46Russian forces attacked key drone-making facilities in Ukraine on Friday morning and captured the settlement of Valentynivka in Eastern Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said.
The battlefield report could not be independently verified.
Kremlin says progress has been made on Ukraine peace but contacts complicated with the US
11:01 , Tara CobhamThe Kremlin has said some progress has already been made in talks about a possible peace settlement to end the war in Ukraine but that contacts were rather complicated with the United States.
"Contacts are quite complicated, because, naturally, the topic is not an easy one," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday.
"Russia is committed to resolving this conflict, ensuring its own interests, and is open to dialogue. We continue to do this."
Russian missile attack kills one and wounds 82 in Ukraine's Kharkiv, officials say
10:25 , Tara CobhamA Russian missile attack on Ukraine's northeastern city of Kharkiv killed one person and wounded 82 others, including six children, on Friday morning, officials said.
The strikes damaged apartment buildings, an educational institution and a business, according to the emergency services.
"This is how Russia began this Good Friday – with ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, Shaheds – maiming our people and cities," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on X.
Reuters video showed emergency workers giving first aid to people with bleeding wounds near one of the apartment buildings.
"Everything went flying in all rooms, the windows shattered," said Inna Khrystych, one of the residents. "My husband died."
Andriy Ponomarenko said he and his wife were woken by the strike and rushed to find their four-year-old daughter amid the smoke and shattered glass.
"We first thought the blood was mine but turned out she got a cut by her eye," he said.
Ukraine's foreign minister Andriy Sybiha said Russia launched four missiles at Kharkiv, three of them ballistic and carrying cluster warheads.
Ihor Terekhov, the mayor of Ukraine's second biggest city, said the attack damaged 15 apartment buildings based on preliminary information.
Ukraine and US 'to start new round of minerals deal negotiations next week'
10:11 , Tara CobhamUkraine and the US are set to start a new round of negotiations on the minerals deal on Thursday, Ukraine’s deputy minister of the economy has said.
Ukraine and US 'understand Ukrainian parliament would need to ratify minerals deal'
10:05 , Tara CobhamUkraine and the US have reached an understanding that the Ukrainian parliament would need to ratify a minerals deal agreement, Ukraine’s deputy minister of the economy has said.
China dismisses Zelensky's claim it is supplying weapons to Russia
09:09 , Arpan RaiChina's foreign ministry has rejected an accusation by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky that the country had been supplying weapons to Russia as “groundless”.
China has never made lethal weapons available to any party to the Ukraine crisis, ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a regular news conference.
"China's position on the Ukrainian issue has always been clear," Mr Lin said. "It has been actively committed to promoting a ceasefire and ending the conflict, as well as encouraging peace talks,” he said.
China opposes groundless accusations and political manipulation, he said, adding that Ukraine had said publicly that most of the components in weapons imported by Russia came from the United States and other Western nations.
Friday's disclaimer from Beijing followed Mr Zelensky's remarks at a press conference the previous day that China was supplying weapons and gunpowder to Russia, while also accusing it of producing weapons on Russian territory.
Ukraine and US aim to complete technical discussions on minerals deal by April 26
08:24 , Arpan RaiKyiv and Washington aim to complete technical discussions on the terms of a minerals deal agreement by 26 April after the Ukrainian prime minister visits the US next week, according to a memorandum of intent published by Ukraine today.
Yesterday, Ukrainian officials announced they have signed an outline of a minerals deal with the US and said a final accord could be reached by the end of next week.
Ukraine says it shot down 3 missiles, 23 drones launched by Russia overnight
08:09 , Arpan RaiThe Ukrainian air force said it shot down three Iskander-K cruise missiles and 23 drones in an overnight attack by Russia involving six missiles and 37 drones.
Meanwhile, at least five children were injured and one was killed among a total of 57 people affected by a Russian missile strike on the northeastern city of Kharkiv in the early hours of today, officials said.
Russia says full ceasefire in Ukraine war is 'unrealistic'
07:57 , Arpan RaiRussia’s UN ambassador Vasily Nebenzya has said a full ceasefire in Ukraine is "unrealistic”.
His comments came as Russia called for a UN Security Council session yesterday over the energy infrastructure truce with Ukraine.
"We had an attempt at a limited ceasefire on energy infrastructure facilities, which was not observed by the Ukrainian side," Mr Nebenzya said.
"Under the current circumstances, it is simply unrealistic to talk about a (full) ceasefire at this stage,” he said.
In photos: Residents in Ukraine's Kharkiv rush to safety amid Russian missile strikes
07:27 , Arpan Rai
