Skip next section What you need to knowWhat you need to knowThe Kremlin has rejected US President Donald Trump’s claim that Russia would accept Western peacekeepers being stationed in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who will visit the US on Thursday, has announced a massive increase in defense spending.
And Ukrainian parliamentarians have voted to pass a resolution affirming the legitimacy of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy until the end of martial law is declared.
This is a roundup of events regarding the war in Ukraine on Tuesday, February 25
Skip next section Russia attacks in eastern Ukraine kill 2, injure dozensFebruary 25, 2025
Russia attacks in eastern Ukraine kill 2, injure dozensRussian shelling targeting the town of Karmatorsk in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region on Tuesday killed one person and injured at least 13, Donetsk Governor Vadym Filashkin said on Telegram.
The industrial city is located some 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of the front line, and comes under frequent attack by the Russian military.
Filashkin again warned residents to evacuate the area for safer regions.
In the nearby Kharkiv region, at least two civilians were injured by Russian bombs that struck the village of Solochiv.
Governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram that the Russian air force deployed several glide bombs that damaged a dozen buildings.
Overnight into Tuesday, Russia launched an aerial attack with combat drones and cruise missiles, according to Ukraine’s air force.
In the northeastern region of Sumy, one civilian was killed by drones and artillery fire.
In two towns south of Kyiv, several buildings were damaged by drones.
3 years of Russia’s war in Ukraine: A timelineTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/4r3Tz
Skip next section Trump echoes Putin’s positions, EU defense head saysFebruary 25, 2025
Trump echoes Putin’s positions, EU defense head saysMarie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, the head of the European Parliament’s subcommittee on security and defense, told DW that when it comes to his position on the war in Ukraine, US President Donald Trump “sings Vladimir Putin’s song.”
Strack-Zimmerman said she believes Ukraine should become a member of NATO and the European Union, but that “the conditions for it must be fulfilled.”
After Germany’s elections, Strack-Zimmermann said she hopes that conservative leader Friedrich Merz, who’s likely to become Germany’s next chancellor, will be able to bring the country to a stronger position internationally.
“The whole of Europe is watching Germany’s decisions,” she said.
Kallas: ‘So far Putin and Russia do not want peace’To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/4r3Qw
Skip next section UK’s Starmer to host weekend Ukraine meetingFebruary 25, 2025
UK’s Starmer to host weekend Ukraine meetingStarmer announced the meeting after earlier stating that the UK had slashed foreign aid to pay for raising its defense budgetImage: Leon Neal/PA Wire/dpa/picture alliancePrime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday announced that he would host fellow world leaders at a conference to discuss Ukraine and transatlantic relations.
“I am hosting a number of countries at the weekend for us to continue to discuss how we go forward together as allies in light of the situation that we face,” he told reporters.
Starmer, who will meet with US President Donald Trump in the White House on Thursday, also said he had spoken with French President Emmanuel Macron, who himself was hosted by Trump on Monday.
Transatlantic relations have been in turmoil since Trump’s return to power and his upending of US foreign policy.
European leaders have grown increasingly concerned that America under Trump may abandon not only the cause of freedom in Ukraine, but also security commitments to NATO and European allies — notwithstanding outright hostile statements from Trump and his administration that openly call into question whether the US and Europe are allies or adversaries.
https://p.dw.com/p/4r3Qg
Skip next section Kremlin rejects Trump claims on European peacekeepers in Ukraine February 25, 2025
Kremlin rejects Trump claims on European peacekeepers in Ukraine During a meeting with French President Macron, Trump alluded to speaking with Putin about European peacekeepersImage: Tasos Katopodis/Getty ImagesThe Kremlin on Tuesday reaffirmed its stance against peacekeepers in Ukraine, despite US President Donald Trump yesterday claiming the opposite.
On Monday, during a visit from French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump said, “Yeah, he will accept,” when asked, “Will you convince Vladimir Putin to accept European troops as peacekeepers?”
Trump claimed, “I specifically asked him that question. He has no problem with it.”
Trump: Putin will accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
When asked about Trump’s statement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday referred to Russia’s official position as recently articulated by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, saying “I have nothing to add to that.”
Lavrov called the presence of NATO peacekeepers in Ukraine “unacceptable.”
Russia has repeatedly rejected the idea of NATO troops in Ukraine, calling the concept a “direct threat” and an “escalation” of the war in Ukraine.
https://p.dw.com/p/4r3Ih
Skip next section UK’s Starmer announces massive defense spending splurge ahead of US tripFebruary 25, 2025
UK’s Starmer announces massive defense spending splurge ahead of US tripThe UK currently spends 2.3% of GDP on defense and aspires to raise that to 3% by 2035Image: Wojtek Radwanski/AFP/Getty ImagesUK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday announced that his country would raise defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by the year 2027. Starmer said growing insecurity calls for a “generational response.”
The increase will amount to $17 billion (€16.2 billion) annually.
“We must stand by Ukraine, because if we do not achieve a lasting peace, then the economic instability and threats to our security, they will only grow,” Starmer told lawmakers Tuesday in the House of Commons.
“And so, as the nature of that conflict changes, as it has in recent weeks, it brings our response into sharper focus, a new era that we must meet as we have so often in the past, together, and with strength.”
The UK currently spends 2.3% of GDP on defense and aspires to raise that to 3% by 2035.
The current increase will be funded by cuts to overseas development aid. Already a paltry 0.5% of GDP, that foreign aid will be slashed to 0.3%.
Starmer called the cuts a “very difficult and painful decision” brought on by the actions of “tyrant” Vladimir Putin.
The announcement came just ahead of Starmer’s trip to Washington DC to speak with President Donald Trump about the US commitment to Kyiv and his plans to forge a peace deal between Ukraine and invader Russia.
European leaders battle for unity after Trump’s Russia pushTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/4r3Iy
Skip next section Ukraine parliament rules Zelenskyy’s presidential mandate ‘not called into question’ February 25, 2025
Ukraine parliament rules Zelenskyy’s presidential mandate ‘not called into question’ Trump had called Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s mandate as president into question Image: Ukraine Presidency/Planet Pix/ZUMA Press Wire/IMAGOLawmakers in Ukraine’s parliament on Tuesday voted to pass a bill reaffirming Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Ukraine’s rightful and legitimate president until the end of martial law is declared.
The legislation, which failed to pass on Monday in a session marking the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, garnered 268 votes on Tuesday (a total of 226 were needed to pass).
“The Verkhovna Rada [Ukraine’s parliament] once again recalls that the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” read the law, “was elected in free, transparent, democratic elections. His mandate is not called into question by the Ukrainian people or the Verkhovna Rada.”
Zelenskyy says he’s ready to resign for Ukraine NATO statusTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
The move comes as Donald Trump has echoed calls from Russian President Vladimir Putin for Zelenskyy to step down, with Trump going so far as to call Zelenskyy an “dictator”who refuses to hold elections.
Trump has repeated calls for new elections several times. His sidekick Elon Musk has also sought to inject the idea that Zelenskyy is corrupt into the conversation, saying the war is nothing but a “graft machine.”
Zelenskyy’s five-year term as president officially ended in May 2024, but new elections have not been held as the country has been under attack by Russia since its forces launched a full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.
https://p.dw.com/p/4r3J3
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