Ukrainian President Zelensky has prepared with Norwegian Prime Minister Store and Finnish Prime Minister Stubbe for an important conversation with US envoy Witkoff. That conversation is currently taking place in the Norwegian capital Oslo.
The goal is to save what can be saved, now that US support for Ukraine in the war against Russia is weakening further and President Trump is increasingly openly siding with Russia.
Zelensky and the two prime ministers will hold a press conference afterwards. According to the Norwegian government, Witkoff will not be present there.
Conversation with Rubio
Zelensky spoke today by phone with US Secretary of State Rubio. "It was a substantive conversation, focused on the things that matter," Zelensky said on X. He ended his message with: "Thank you, Marco, for the constructive conversation," but it is unclear whether anything concrete was agreed upon.
Since last week, Ukraine has complained that the US no longer always warns when Russia launches ballistic missiles at Ukraine. Also, Ukraine can no longer optimally use the military version of the Starlink satellite system, which makes it difficult to intercept Russian drones. In addition, there have been delays in the delivery of American air defense equipment paid for by other NATO countries.
Meanwhile, Russia is intensifying attacks on Ukraine: the country wants to bring Ukraine to its knees this winter with attacks on energy infrastructure.
Not intentional
Regarding the delay in weapons delivery, Minister Rubio said there is no question of intent. According to Reuters and other media, the cause of the delay lies with Rubio's Defense colleague Hegseth. He would still need to approve the delivery. Why he has not done so yet is unknown.
The accusation that Ukrainians are dying because the US no longer always warns about Russian missiles, Rubio calls "scandalous" and "insulting."
Siding with Russia
President Trump made statements again yesterday suggesting that he has chosen the side of President Putin and Russia. He wants Ukraine to quickly agree to a ceasefire with Russia and believes Ukraine must be willing to make extensive concessions to Russian demands.
Russia is "doing well," Trump said, and Ukraine, according to him, "not much." And: "Maybe it's time for Zelensky to let someone else negotiate." Earlier he already said that Zelensky must step down.
On Friday, Trump shelved a package of sanctions he had previously signed.
Earlier, he undermined his own sanctions policy against Russia by buying hundreds of thousands of tons of diesel from that country. Presumably, he hoped that the diesel price in the US would drop as a result. That is important to him because midterm elections will be held in America in November.