Ukraine and allies keeping open mind on Trump-Putin callpublished at 12:09 Greenwich Mean Time 19 March

12:09 GMT 19 March

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent

Image source, EPA

It’s clear from Alexander Stubb’s “glass half full” remark and Volodymyr Zelensky’s responses that Ukraine and its closest allies are trying to keep an open mind about yesterday’s phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

The call, Stubb said, was “a step in the right direction towards a full, unconditional ceasefire.”

He made sure to praise Trump for the “strong role” of the United States. This wasn’t the time or the place for expressions of frustrations at the lack of progress or the suspicion that Trump was in danger of being played by his wily Russian interlocutor.

Zelensky took a similar approach, thanking Trump “personally”, while hoping the US would continue to pressure Russia into agreeing an unconditional ceasefire – not the highly conditional version Putin agreed to last night.

The Ukrainian leader made repeated references to the “really good meeting in Jeddah” last week, when a US delegation met Ukrainian counterparts. The inference was clear: that, he was saying, was the deal we agreed to and intend to stick to.

Vitaliy Shevchenko
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring

Russia's defence ministry has accused Ukraine of attempting to disrupt Russian-US peace talks by targeting an oil storage facility in Krasnodar, a territory in southern Russia.

In a statement reported by the RIA Novosti news agency, the ministry said Ukraine used three drones against the facility involved in pumping oil via the Caspian pipeline.

“Such actions by the Kyiv regime are a deliberate provocation aimed at disrupting Trump’s peace initiatives,” the ministry said.

It added that Russian forces had shot down seven of its drones aimed at energy facilities in Ukraine’s Mykolayiv region after receiving Putin’s order to pause attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

Moments after Zelensky's joint news conference with the Finnish president, Moscow spoke about last night's attacks during its regular briefing to reporters.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Ukraine of not respecting a 30-day pause in striking each other's energy infrastructure. He said Kyiv had tried to hit Russia's energy infrastructure overnight.

Peskov says Putin and Trump "trust each other" and want to normalise US-Russia relations after more than three years since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"Presidents Putin and Trump understand each other well, trust each other and are intent to gradually move towards the normalisation of ties," the Kremlin spokesman adds.

We can bring you these images from the northern Sumy region in Ukraine now, where a hospital was last night hit by a drone:

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Zelensky is asked whether he is expecting to speak to Donald Trump in the coming days, and if so, what he would ask him.

Zelensky confirms that there will be a call between the pair today, but gives no further detail.

And with that, the news conference comes to a close, with the two leaders hugging and shaking hands.

We'll continue to unpick what was said, so stick with us.

Image source, Getty Images

Zelensky is now being asked what Ukraine's "red lines" are in negotiations with Russia - and whether he believes President Trump can pressure Putin for peace.

He says he needs a fair guarantee that war will not return, saying he will not discuss economic guarantees made with the EU with Russia, or details of Ukraine's army.

He also demands the release of "thousands" of prisoners held in Russia.

"These are unconditional things," he adds.

President Stubb says the EU is in a position to help Ukraine and the priority should be Kyiv having the right to choose its "own future and destiny".

Vitaliy Shevchenko
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring

Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Vladimir Putin of breaking a promise made during talks with Donald Trump to halt attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

“After Putin’s conversation with the US President Donald Trump, where Putin said he was supposedly giving an order stopping strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure, there were 150 drones overnight, targeting energy infrastructure among other things.

"There were strikes against transport. Two hospitals were unfortunately hit. In other words, Putin’s words are very much at odds with reality,” Zelensky said at a news conference in Finland with his Finnish counterpart Alexander Stubb.

Image source, AFP

Zelensky is asked who will represent Ukraine at the next ceasefire meeting in Saudi Arabia.

He says he is not ready to discuss all the details of this yet, but in relation to a partial ceasefire or halt on attacks on energy, he says Ukraine will be represented by a technical team that is "into details".

He says this will include military figures, but also representatives from the energy sector.

It will not be the diplomatic meeting that negotiating teams have had in the past, he explains, but adds that he does not exclude the possibility of this in the future.

Meanwhile, Finland's President Alexander Stubb says the "glass is half full" after yesterday's phone call and suggests the US continues to work around the clock to make peace happen.

Image source, AFP

Zelensky is asked what Europe should do now to help Ukraine.

"Russia will want our partners to stop helping us because that would mean weakening Ukrainian conditions," he says.

If Putin truly wants peace, Zelensky asks "why would you" weaken the Ukrainian military.

On intelligence sharing from the United States, which was briefly stopped earlier this month, he says Putin wants this to stop so Ukraine doesn't get information, "and our people would not go to shelters" during missile attacks.

Stubb says history "shows that if you portray any form of weakness in the face of Russia, they will use that".

Zelensky says Russia attacked Ukraine first, calling Moscow the "aggressor".

"We're fighting for our sovereignty and our independence - we'll win this war," he tells reporters.

He adds that he will be contacting President Trump to work on the next steps towards a "fair peace".

President Stubb adds: "It was the Ukrainians that accepted the unconditional ceasefire, it was Putin that rejected the unconditional ceasefire."

Image source, Bloomberg

The leaders are taking questions from reporters now. Zelensky is asked about giving up land to Russia.

He says the first step is an "unconditional ceasefire". These are the "right steps" to ending the war in fair and just peace.

After this, questions will be addressed over territory, he says. Ukraine will not agree to territories it occupies as being recognised as Russian, he adds.

Finnish President Alexander Stubb steps in and says in 1944, Finland lost its sovereignty and territory to the Soviet Union. Ukraine should "absolutely" not have this fate, he says firmly.

Image source, AFP

Zelensky again stresses his desire for European integration. He says Finland's accession to Nato was "absolutely right", and says that the organisation embodies a readiness to work together on security.

He says that Nato would be stronger with Ukraine, and touts the country's military strength as having "one of the strongest" armies in modern warfare;

Zelensky admits that it will not be easy to join Nato, though.

Last month, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth downplayed the possibility of Ukraine joining Nato, and Vladimir Putin has consistently ruled out any peace deal that allows for Ukraine's membership of the defence body.

Zelensky says both Ukraine and Finland are united by knowing what it is like to be a neighbour of Russia.

He reiterates that joint pressure on Russia is required as a pre-condition of peace, as well as unity on a joint defence across Europe.

"Putin's words are very different from reality," Zelensky adds.

Image source, Getty Images

Finnish President Alexander Stubb says Ukraine has an "undeniable right to defend itself" against Russian aggression.

This cannot ever be restricted in any way, he adds.

Ukraine, Europe and the United States want peace, he tells reporters, but Russia "still has to show" if they do too.

If Russia refuses to agree, more pressure needs to be put on them to come to the negotiating table, he adds.

Stubb says the call between Putin and Trump yesterday was a "step in the right direction".

"Trump wants to stop the killing, and he's right," he says.

Image source, AFP

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has just started a press conference with his Finnish counterpart, as part of a visit to the country.

We're listening across and will bring you the key lines - press watch live above to follow along yourself.

Image source, Reuters

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has been meeting leaders in Finland for talks on military assistance.

In a post on Telegram, he said the discussions are focused on "defences support, investment in weapons production in Ukraine and Ukraine's European integration".

"Europe should be at the negotiating table, and everything that concerns Europe's security should be decided together with Europe," he adds.

Image source, Reuters

Vitaliy Shevchenko
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring

The situation in parts of Russia’s Belgorod region bordering Ukraine “remains difficult” a day after a reported Ukrainian incursion attempt, the governor Vyacheslav Gladkov says.

In updates posted on social media this morning, he says the defence ministry and border services "are performing their tasks” in Krasnaya Yaruga district on the border.

He says one Russian soldier was killed in the town of Krasnaya Yaruga as a result of Ukrainian shelling. A number of residential houses have been damaged as a result of Ukrainian drone attacks, he adds.

Trump showing substantial patience towards Putinpublished at 08:59 Greenwich Mean Time 19 March

08:59 GMT 19 March

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent, in Kyiv

After yesterday’s Trump Putin telephone call, a few things are clearer.

Peace in Ukraine is unlikely to be resolved by one conversation, despite White House promises of being at the "ten-yard line of peace".

Vladimir Putin is refusing to agree an unconditional ceasefire and is instead insisting on his maximalist terms being met before he agrees to end the fighting.

There is a difference between promising to end attacks on energy infrastructure and actually meeting that promise, as the overnight Russian strikes on a rail power system in Ukraine showed.

Donald Trump is ready to cajole Ukraine into backing a 30-day ceasefire across the whole country, but he is as yet not willing to threaten Russia when it fails to do the same.

For a man whom diplomats say is remarkably impatient, Trump is showing substantial patience towards Putin.

Technical negotiations are scheduled to continue but this will still be led by the United States talking bilaterally and separately to Russia and Ukraine, with Europe as a bit part player preparing for the moment if a ceasefire were to be agreed.

Image source, Bloomberg

The European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, says Moscow is not looking to make concessions in talks for a halt in fighting during the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Reacting to Vladimir Putin's call with Donald Trump yesterday, and the two readouts released afterwards, Kallas says it is clear "Russia does not really want to make any kind of concessions".

She tells reporters Russia is instead hoping for Ukraine to let its guard down.