After meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida on Sunday, President Donald Trump said he sees real potential for a breakthrough in efforts to end the war between Ukraine and Russia, while cautioning that the human toll will continue to rise without an agreement.
Standing beside Zelensky outside the main dining room at Mar-a-Lago, Trump told reporters, “I do believe that we have the makings of a deal. It’s good for Ukraine, good for everybody. It’s very important.”
Trump emphasized the stakes involved if the conflict drags on, warning that failure to reach an accord would cost countless lives. “If the war continues, ‘millions of additional people will be killed, millions, and no one wants that,’” he said.
The president also underscored how challenging the negotiations have been compared to past efforts he has led. “There’s nothing more important,’’ Trump said. “I solved eight wars, and this is the most difficult one.”
Despite expressing confidence in progress, Trump dismissed the idea of locking in a specific deadline for a final agreement. Describing the talks, he said they were “Pretty complex but not that complex,’’ adding, “No deadlines. ‘You know what my deadline is, getting the war ended.’”
Trump nevertheless predicted swift movement following discussions with Zelensky over unresolved elements in a 20-point peace proposal drafted by both sides’ teams. He said the process is likely to “move very rapidly” as those remaining issues are addressed.
As part of advancing the proposal, Trump said he plans to speak directly with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and to consult with senior European officials. He noted that he had already spoken with Putin before sitting down with Zelensky.
Sunday’s meeting marked the first time Trump and Zelensky have met face to face since October 17, following a period of highly publicized disagreements between the two leaders.
Reflecting on Zelensky’s role in the conflict, Trump offered praise for the Ukrainian president and his country. “This gentleman has worked very hard,’’ he said. “He’s very brave, and his people are very brave, but what they’ve gone through, no nation, very rarely, has a nation ever gone through this.”
{Matzav.com}
President Donald Trump expressed confidence after what he described as a successful phone conversation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, held shortly before Trump’s scheduled meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Mar-a-Lago to discuss a proposed 20-point peace framework.
“I just had a good and very productive telephone call with President Putin of Russia prior to my meeting, at 1:00 P.M. today, with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump’s optimism came against the backdrop of intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine. In the days leading up to the anticipated discussions, Russian forces launched more than 2,100 drone strikes, nearly 800 guided aerial bombs, and 94 missiles, according to Ukrainian officials.
On Saturday alone, Ukraine was hit with 500 drone strikes and 400 missile attacks, leaving parts of Kyiv without electricity. Officials said at least one person was killed and 27 others were wounded in the barrage.
Zelensky, who is traveling to meet Trump, reiterated his country’s determination to bring the conflict to an end, even as the violence escalates. “Ukraine is willing to do whatever it takes to stop this war. For us, priority number one – or the only priority – is ending the war. For us, the priority is peace. We need to be strong at the negotiating table,” he said.
While Trump was preparing for talks, Putin issued a stark warning signaling no immediate softening of Moscow’s position. “If Ukraine does not want to resolve everything peacefully, Russia will resolve all its objectives by military means,” Putin said, according to a translation.
Russia has insisted that Ukraine relinquish control over the entire Donbas region, where Moscow occupies most of the territory while Kyiv still holds several strategically significant cities. Ukrainian leaders have resisted surrendering any land not already lost in combat, viewing the remaining areas as vital to national security and a buffer against future Russian advances.
Zelensky has also noted that Ukraine’s constitution would require a referendum before any territory could be ceded.
Behind the scenes, Ukrainian negotiators have spent weeks in discussions with Trump’s team, helping reshape an initial 28-point proposal viewed as favorable to Moscow into a revised 20-point plan that Kyiv sees as more balanced.
Zelensky told reporters last week that the new proposal is nearly complete but that several critical issues remain unresolved, including territorial questions, the status of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, and long-term security guarantees.
He has publicly stressed the need for Moscow to engage seriously in the diplomatic effort. “The key is that Russia must not sabotage this diplomacy and must take ending the war 100% seriously,” Zelensky wrote on X last week. “If it doesn’t, then additional pressure on Russia must follow. The world has all the instruments needed to make that pressure effective and ensure that peace is achieved.”
Ending the war, which is set to reach its four-year mark in February, has been a central foreign policy goal for Trump.
In an interview with The NY Post last Friday, Trump voiced guarded optimism that progress could be made during his talks with Zelensky. “Well, I think we have a good shot at it,” Trump said. “I think [Ukrainian officials] want to do it now, and I think that Russia wants to do it. But every time one wants to do it, the other doesn’t.”
{Matzav.com}
Satellite imagery and expert assessments reviewed by The Washington Post indicate that China has been quietly but dramatically ramping up its ability to produce nuclear warheads, modernizing sensitive weapons facilities and expanding output at a pace unmatched by any other country.
According to the report, Beijing appears to have moved beyond a long-standing strategy centered on maintaining a limited nuclear deterrent. Analysts now believe Chinese planners are preparing for quicker and more assertive nuclear responses, a shift that could significantly heighten tensions in a future clash with the United States and allied nations.
Independent experts who examined satellite photos told the Post that since around 2019, China has carried out extensive upgrades at several locations connected to nuclear warhead manufacturing. The work spans multiple stages of the production process, from core components to explosive triggers.
Among the most significant expansions are at facilities believed to produce plutonium pits, the central element of a nuclear warhead, as well as plants that manufacture the high explosives used to initiate a detonation. One analyst described the scope of the transformation in stark terms. “The scale of change we’re seeing is unlike anything before,” said Renny Babiarz.
Despite these advances, recent Pentagon assessments estimate that China’s existing stockpile remains in the low 600s. Defense officials, however, say the trajectory is clear, with projections indicating Beijing could surpass 1,000 warheads by the end of the decade.
President Donald Trump has publicly warned that China could come close to matching U.S. nuclear capabilities within five years, reflecting growing alarm in Washington over Beijing’s long-term strategic aims.
Even so, specialists emphasize that China is not expected to rival the approximately 3,700 warheads held by the United States in the near future. What concerns analysts more is the speed and breadth of the buildup, which they say points to preparation for an extended period of nuclear competition.
Images analyzed by experts reveal construction activity and enhanced security across nearly every link in China’s nuclear weapons supply chain. At sites associated with plutonium pit production, observers noted new structures, expanded infrastructure, and security zones that have roughly doubled in size.
One particularly notable location near Pingtong in Sichuan province — the only publicly identified Chinese site tied to plutonium pit production — has seen especially sweeping changes over the past five years. Analysts say its capabilities now rival, and in certain respects exceed, those of the Pantex facility in Texas, where U.S. nuclear warheads are assembled and maintained.
Rapid growth has also been observed at a separate facility in Zitong County, also in Sichuan, believed to manufacture high-explosive components. Satellite imagery shows newly erected security barriers, expanded storage and testing areas, and a massive 430,000-square-foot structure completed last year that could support assembly and transport of warhead parts.
Beyond manufacturing, analysts point to renewed activity at China’s Lop Nur nuclear test site in Xinjiang, where new underground tunnels and shafts have been constructed. Experts suggest this could signal preparations for future nuclear tests, despite China having signed — but never ratified — the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
Some specialists also believe Beijing may be edging toward a “launch-on-warning” posture, under which it would fire nuclear weapons upon detecting an incoming attack rather than waiting for a strike to land.
“Rapid-response nuclear postures raise the danger of misunderstanding and overreaction,” said Tong Zhao of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
{Matzav.com}
An Iranian-linked hacking collective said Sunday that it had gained access to the cellphone of Tzachi Braverman, chief of staff to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and warned that it would soon publish material it says connects him to the so-called Qatargate affair.
The group, which operates under the name Handala, asserted in an online post that it had penetrated an iPhone 16 Pro Max belonging to Braverman and planned to disclose details later in the day regarding his alleged role in the controversy that has shaken Netanyahu’s inner circle.
Handala had already claimed momentum last week, when it said it had successfully hacked the phone of former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett.
Among the initial materials released by the hackers were files they say include contact information for senior officials and other figures close to Netanyahu, including his wife, Sara Netanyahu.
Additional content circulated by the group appeared relatively mundane, consisting of videos and official paperwork, including a document outlining emergency protocols established during the June conflict with Iran.
The hackers dubbed the effort “Bibi Gate,” a label seemingly intended to echo the wider scandal they claim to be exposing.
Responding to the allegations, the Prime Minister’s Office said there was no evidence of a successful intrusion. “No breach has been found. The issue is being investigated.”
In more inflammatory language, Handala asserted that it possesses extensive sensitive material. “We have everything: encrypted chats, hidden deals, shameful moral and financial indulgences, abuse of power, blackmail, payoffs. For years, you performed your little dance, thinking Handala was not among you. But we were in the room, every time,” the group claimed.
In a further message, the hackers warned that additional disclosures were imminent. “The files, the voices, the videos, every thread of Braverman’s double life, every secret that ties your regime to the heart of corruption, are about to surface,” Handala wrote.
{Matzav.com}
