Overview
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told state media he is prepared for an in‑person meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, citing ongoing phone contacts.
- Lavrov reiterated Moscow’s non‑negotiable positions, referencing the August Anchorage understandings and insisting on recognition of Russia’s claimed territories including Crimea and parts of Donbas, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
- The Kremlin said the peace process is stalled and blamed Kyiv and European capitals for blocking progress, following the cancellation of last month’s planned Putin–Trump meeting in Budapest.
- Ukrainian long‑range strikes disrupted electricity and heating in Russia’s Belgorod and sparked a utility fire in Voronezh, with local officials reporting about 20,000 households affected in Belgorod and separate outages in Taganrog.
- Kyiv imposed new sanctions on eight senior Russian figures and five publishing houses, and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the EU’s 20th Russia sanctions package is being prepared within a month with targets tied to energy revenues, child abductions and sanctions evasion.