#WASHINGTON, August 18. #GlobalNews. US President Donald Trump said that Vladimir Zelensky can almost immediately resolve the conflict in Ukraine by abandoning his claims to Crimea and the idea of the country joining #NATO.

"President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight. Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and no going into NATO by Ukraine. Some things never change!!!" he wrote on Truth Social.

Trump added that Monday would be a "big day" for the White House, as it "never had so many European Leaders at one time."

Zelensky is to meet with Trump in Washington on August 18. French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will join him for the meeting with the American leader. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also announced her plans to attend the meeting.

U.S. envoy says Putin agreed to security protections for Ukraine as part Trump summit.


NEW YORK — Russia’s Vladimir Putin agreed at his summit with U.S. President Donald #Trump to allow the United States and its European allies to offer Ukraine a security guarantee resembling #NATO’s collective defense mandate as part of an eventual deal to end the 3 1/2-year war in Ukraine, special U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said Sunday.

“We were able to win the following concession: That the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO,” he told CNN’s “State of the Union.” He added that it “was the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that” and called them “game-changing.”

Article 5, at the heart of the 32-member military alliance, states that an armed attack against one or more of the members shall be considered an attack against all members.

Witkoff, who had joined Secretary of State Marco Rubio for the talks Friday at a military base in Alaska, offered few details on how such an agreement would work. But it appeared to be a major shift for Putin and could serve as a workaround to his long-standing objection to Ukraine’s potential NATO membership.

Outlining some of the details about the private discussions, Witkoff also said Russia had agreed to enact a law that it would not “go after any other European countries and violate their sovereignty. And there was plenty more.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, speaking at a news conference in Brussels with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, applauded the move. “We welcome President Trump’s willingness to contribute to Article 5-like security guarantees for Ukraine and the `Coalition of the willing’ -- including the European Union -- is ready to do its share,” she said.

Zelenskyy thanked the United States for recent signals that Washington was willing to support such guarantees, but that much was unclear.

“It is important that America agrees to work with Europe to provide security guarantees for Ukraine,” he said, “But there are no details how it will work, and what America’s role will be, Europe’s role will be and what the EU can do, and this is our main task, we need security to work in practice like Article 5 of NATO, and we consider EU accession to be part of the security guarantees,” he said.

Witkoff defended Trump’s decision to abandon his push that Russian agree to an immediate ceasefire, which Trump had set as a benchmark going into the meeting. Witkoff said the Republican president had pivoted toward a peace deal because so much progress was made.

“We covered almost all the other issues necessary for a peace deal,” Witkoff said, without elaborating. “We began to see some moderation in the way they’re thinking about getting to a final peace deal.”

Rubio, who appeared on three Sunday news shows, said there was not going to be any kind of truce reached because Ukraine was not at the summit.

“Now, ultimately, if there isn’t a peace agreement, if there isn’t an end of this war, the president’s been clear, there are going to be consequences,” Rubio said on ABC’s “This Week.” “But we’re trying to avoid that.”

Rubio, who is also Trump’s national security adviser, said he did not believe imposing new U.S. sanctions on Russia would force Putin to accept a ceasefire.

“The minute you issue new sanctions, your ability to get them to the table, our ability to get them to table will be severely diminished,” Rubio told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

He also said “we’re not at the precipice of a peace agreement” and that getting there would not be easy and would take a lot of work.

“We made progress in the sense that we identified potential areas of agreement, but there remains some big areas of disagreement. So we’re still a long ways off,” Rubio said.

Zelenskyy and Europeans leaders, who heard from Trump after the summit, are scheduled to meet with him at the White House on Monday.

“I think everybody agreed that we had made progress. Maybe not enough for a peace deal, but we are on the path for the first time,” Witkoff said.

He added: “The fundamental issue, which is some sort of land swap, which is obviously ultimately in the control of the Ukrainians -- that could not have been discussed at this meeting” with Putin. “We intend to discuss it on Monday. Hopefully we have some clarity on it and hopefully that ends up in a peace deal very, very soon.”

Jill Colvin, The Associated Press

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Demonstrators protest Trump-backed redistricting plans at over 200 events across the country. The rallies are a bid to combat Republican-led plans to redraw congressional maps. The main event will take place in Texas, where a new congressional map backed by U.S. President Donald Trump that could net Republicans five additional seats in the 2026 midterm elections inspired the state’s Democratic lawmakers to flee the state – preventing the quorum needed to vote.

“Trump is terrified of the American people,” said the Texas for All Coalition, which is helping organize the events, in a news release. “He knows he can’t win on his ideas, so he’s trying to take Congress by hook or by crook – and he’s doing it by silencing the voices of communities of colour. We’re not going to let that happen.”

Organizers emphasized “a commitment to nonviolence” at all events in event page descriptions.

Over 200 events are planned in 34 states, according to the event’s official website. The Democratic National Committee is helping organize events, it announced in a news release.

“From coast to coast, people will be showing up at their statehouses, city halls, and community spaces to make it clear – we see what Trump is doing, and we won’t stand for it,” said the DNC.

A swath of non-profits and other organizations are also supporting the effort, including Planned Parenthood, the Working Families Party and Human Rights Campaign.

Trump described the proposed Texas congressional map as a “very simple redrawing” at the White House. “We pick up five seats,” he added.

But it doesn’t end with Texas. Republican leaders in other states, too, have proposed changing their congressional maps ahead of next year’s midterms.

The White House is pushing Missouri legislators to consider a special session to redraw maps. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has floated the idea of changing his state’s maps, and has said he thinks the Trump administration should give the state another seat. In Ohio, maps must be redrawn due to a quirk of state law – which may make the state’s delegation even more Republican and carve up two Democratic seats, according to a report in June from CNN’s Fredreka Schouten.

Democratic lawmakers have announced their own plans to fight back, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who kicked off his own redistricting push on Thursday.

Here’s more on what we know about Saturday’s protests.
Austin, Texas, rally

Today’s largest protest is taking place in Austin, Texas. Over 1,000 people RSVPed for the event, which started at the state’s Capitol.

“Texas is being used as a testing ground for extremist policies and partisan games that don’t reflect our values,” reads the event page. “Thousands of Texans have shown up against the racially gerrymandered congressional map lawmakers are trying to force through in order to weaken the voting power of communities of colour.”

Demonstrators filled the area outside the Capitol, waving signs with messages including “Abbott’s letting Trump take over Texas,” “Put Texans first,” and “Compassion over cruelty.” Organizers led chants of “Show me what democracy looks like, this is what democracy looks like” and “Sí se puede” – the motto of the United Farm Workers, which translates to “Yes, you can.”

The demonstration, which began Saturday morning, has included a performance from drag queen Brigitte Bandit and speeches from former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke, United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta, Democratic U.S. Rep. Greg Casar and Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas, as well as local activists.

“The danger we’re facing is so much bigger than any one of us,” Casar said. “This is about the state of our country, and we’re in really hard times here in America right now.”

The congressman criticized Trump’s ongoing deportation campaign and said that he had been prevented from visiting an immigration detention centre.

“Here in Austin, Texas, we’re a shining light,” Casar said of the protest. “Authoritarianism is what we’re facing. And when you feel that pit in your stomach, that despair, and when you ask, ‘What can I even do?’ You are showing people what we do.”

Doggett said the president is deploying National Guard troops “not because of crime or immigrants.”

“It’s because he envisions a day when he will use that military against us,” the lawmaker said.

“We don’t need the National Guard on our streets,” Doggett said. “We need national guard rails on a lawless president.”

O’Rourke said the Republican push for redistricting is because Republicans fear “accountability for their crimes and corruption.”

“They will do everything they can to seek to stop us, including trying to divide us,” he said. “I am afraid that the consolidation of authoritarian power in the hands of this president will be nearly unstoppable.”

Met with raucous applause, O’Rourke also called for “a free, independent, sovereign Palestinian state” and for Texas women to be able to “make their own decisions about their own bodies.”

“So we must stand together, and we must stand in front,” he went on. “It’s up to you and me to show them that in Texas, our knees do not bend.”

Huerta, who is 95, urged attendees to organize politically and fight the redistricting push.

“When we organize, we win,” she said. She ended her speech with a chant of “Who’s got the power? We do.”

Across Texas, events are also happening in Houston, Dallas, San Angelo, Tyler, McAllen, Conroe and Kingwood.
Nationwide demonstrations

Events and rallies are also scheduled in dozens of other states, both in Democratic strongholds and Republican-majority states. Local organizers planned each city-specific event.

In New York City, demonstrators are expected to gather in Central Park. In Washington, DC, where Trump has deployed the National Guard and declared a federal takeover of the local police department, organizers are painting banners and signs to place around the city.

Protesters in Raleigh and Durham, North Carolina, plan to hold a “bridge brigade,” holding signs on 16 different bridges.

Demonstrations are also planned in Cincinnati, Ohio; Sarasota, Florida; and Jefferson City, Missouri, among other cities. The planned events include rallies, teach-ins, banner drops and art-making at locations that include a bookstore in Jacksonville, Florida, and a Tesla showroom in Palo Alto, California.

The demonstrations follow a string of other protests organized since Trump took office for the second time in January, including the “No Kings” protests in June and demonstrations against the president’s deportation campaign in July.

Drucilla Tigner, the executive director of statewide coalition Texas For All, said in a news release that the fight extends far past Texas.

“Across Texas, and across the country, communities are speaking out in a united voice to call for an end to the Trump takeover,” she said. “Though this fight started in Texas, it doesn’t end here. This isn’t just about redistricting or one state’s politics.”

“It’s about the future of our democracy.”

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IN BRIEF: '10 out of 10': What is known about three-hour summit between #Putin, #Trump
The two leaders refrained from answering questions and then briefly conversed on their feet.


#Russian President Vladimir Putin and his #US counterpart Donald Trump have concluded their meeting in #Anchorage, #Alaska. They spoke for nearly three hours in the presence of their foreign ministers and aides.

Then, Putin and Trump made statements to the media. They refrained from answering questions and then briefly conversed on their feet. Afterwards, Putin laid flowers at the graves of Soviet pilots buried in Anchorage and flew back to Russia. Putin's first visit to the US in ten years lasted just over five hours.

#TASS has compiled the main information known about the summit at this moment.
Start of summit

The Russian leader's plane landed at the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson at 10:54 a.m. local time (6:54 p.m. GMT). The welcoming ceremony on the airfield began at 11:10 a.m. local time (7:10 p.m. GMT).

Before taking the official photo on the airfield in Anchorage, Putin and Trump exchanged a few words. The leaders refrained from communicating with the press and did not answer reporters’ questions.

The summit began with a one-on-one conversation in the US president's Cadillac limousine. Thus, the leaders began communicating face-to-face en route to the main venue of the negotiations.
Three-on-three format

The Russian delegation was the first to arrive at the meeting of the presidents, according to footage published by the Kremlin press service. The closed-door talks in the "three-on-three" format began at 11:26 a.m. (7:26 p.m. GMT). In addition to the heads of state, the Russian side was represented by Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, while the US side was represented by State Secretary Marco Rubio and Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff.

When the journalists entered the room where the leaders were meeting, they began pushing each other to get better seats, a #TASS correspondent reported. When asked to leave the room, the journalists began shouting questions, somewhat surprising the presidents and members of the delegations.

The presidents talked for about three hours, counting from their first brief conversation on the red carpet. Then, Putin and Trump held a joint press conference, during which they summarized the results of the talks.
Spotlight on Ukraine

The situation around Ukraine became one of the central issues of the summit, the Russian president said. He expressed hope that the understanding he reached with Trump would pave the way for peace in Ukraine.

Putin said that he and Trump had "established very good business and trusting relations." "I have every reason to believe that, moving along this path, we can reach the end of the conflict in Ukraine sooner rather than later," he said. Putin noted that Russian-US relations had fallen "to their lowest point since the Cold War" in recent years, and that it was necessary to "rectify the situation, moving from confrontation to dialogue."

Immediately before the start of the summit, a TASS source reported that Putin and Trump would discuss global strategic security and that "in one form or another, the topic of sanctions and their destructiveness" would also be addressed.
"Huge progress"

Trump told reporters at the meeting that the leaders had really made tremendous progress.

"There were many, many points that we agreed on. I would say a couple of big ones that we haven't quite got there, but we've made some headway," the US president said.

He later told a Fox News reporter that he rated the meeting with Putin "a 10 out of 10."
Possible continuation

At the end of his speech summarizing the summit, the Russian president suggested in English that the next meeting be held in Moscow. Trump said this was possible, though he acknowledged that he would be criticized for it.
Restrained media reaction

The American media reacted cautiously to the summit, emphasizing the absence of announced agreements or details about the discussions.

The New York Times believes that Putin delayed the introduction of new sanctions, and Bloomberg noted that, after lengthy discussions, "neither leader provided clear details on their discussion or on where they found common ground." The news agency pointed out that this will intensify anxiety in European capitals and in Kiev.
Putin's latest meetings with US leaders

Putin and Trump last held a full-fledged summit in July 2018 in Helsinki, which lasted more than two hours.

They met briefly on December 1, 2018, on the sidelines of the G20 summit, and their conversation lasted about 15 minutes.

Their last meeting took place on June 28, 2019, at the G20 summit in Osaka. Talks lasted one hour and 20 minutes.

On August 16, 2021, after Trump's first presidential term ended, Putin met with Biden in Geneva. The conversation lasted three and a half hours, including a break.

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‘Ridiculous’: How Washington residents view the new troops in town. Wary residents and curious tourists stop to take photos, while inside the elegant Union Station a string trio plays “What a Wonderful World.”

Christian Calhoun, a 26-year-old consultant who was born and raised in the US capital, told AFP that seeing the troops made him “more than disappointed -- I’m furious.”

“It’s a lot of standing around,” he added.

Declaring that Washington is overrun by crime and plagued by homeless people, President Donald Trump has deployed 800 National Guard troops, as well as ordering a federal takeover of the city’s police department.

Over more than an hour on Thursday afternoon, the most that the handful of troops at Union Station interacted with the public was to let a French tourist take a selfie with them.

Larry Janezich, an 81-year-old resident, said he had not seen the troops taking part in “any kind of meaningful action that is dedicated to the prevention of crime.”

Patricia Darby, a 65-year-old retiree, said that the troops “don’t want to be here,” pointing to how some had their faces covered.

Calhoun said he does “feel bad” for them as they wore heavy combat gear as temperatures soared above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (33 Celsius).
‘Fake news’

On his Truth Social platform, Trump this week described Washington as “under siege from thugs and killers,” with higher crime rates than “many of the most violent Third World Countries.”

Residents outside Union Station rejected the apocalyptic image.

“It’s ridiculous, and it really just shows how (Trump) sees the people that live here,” Calhoun said.

“It’s totally false, and obviously promulgated on his media to justify an unwarranted exercise of federal power,” Janezich said.

Gerry Cosgrove, a 62-year-old tourist from the Scottish city of Edinburgh only in Washington for two days, had a simple response when asked about Trump’s portrayal of the city: “To quote a phrase: fake news.”

Trump has also ordered homeless people to “move out” of Washington.

“Where are they going to go?” Darby asked, after fetching a bottle of water for a homeless person in the heat.

Randy Kindle, who volunteers with a protest group in a tent outside Union Station, told AFP he was afraid that homeless people could now end up in confinement or jail “when all they need is help.”

Guadalupe, a homeless man in his late 70s originally from Mexico, told AFP that the troops had asked him to move on Wednesday night.

“They have no manners,” he said in Spanish.

“I almost felt sick” during the interaction, he added.

Calhoun said he had mostly seen the troops outside train stations, adding that he noticed they had “a lot of focus on cannabis use.”

Washington legalized cannabis use on private property in 2015, however it is still prohibited under federal law.

Several residents also raised the cost of deploying the troops in their city.

“It’s a waste of money -- I think D.C. was safe,” Darby said.