A Russian nighttime attack on the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, the country's second most populous city before the invasion launched by Moscow in February 2022, left four dead and 17 injured, as announced by the mayor in the early hours of Sunday to Monday.
"There are 17 injured. Four people have lost their lives," declared Igor Terekhov, the mayor of this city near the Russian border. "Despite the peace negotiations regarding Ukraine, Russian troops attacked residential buildings," he added.
In addition, Russian air defenses shot down four Ukrainian drones heading to Moscow on Monday, forcing the three airports serving the capital to temporarily restrict all incoming and outgoing flights.
Sanchez expresses support for Ukraine but says "there are still many elements to discuss"
The President of the Government, Pedro Sanchez, stated on Monday that there are still many elements to discuss following the peace plan for Ukraine presented by U.S. President Donald Trump, as the goal is to ensure that peace is not temporary.
Sanchez emphasized that Spain, Europe, and Ukraine have always sought peace and that the country led by Volodymyr Zelensky has never sought war or posed a threat to Russia.
"Therefore, what we need is not to work for a temporary peace, but for a peace that is just and lasting," he added.
Ukraine and its future in NATO
Point 7 of the original agreement plan held in Geneva by Ukraine, the European Union, and the U.S., which stated that "Ukraine agrees to enshrine in the Constitution that it will not join NATO and NATO agrees to include in its statutes a provision that Ukraine will not be admitted in the future," has been modified to state that this decision belongs to the allies and no one else.
"Ukraine's accession to NATO depends on consensus among the members of the Alliance, a consensus that does not exist," proposed the Europeans.
The latest version of the future peace agreement
Ukraine and the European Union (EU) have managed in meetings held with the U.S. in Geneva to eliminate or clarify different elements of the peace plan that would have clearly weakened them against Russia, which has observed this process from the sidelines, crossing several of its red lines.
The main changes proposed by the European countries compared to the original U.S. plan and the red lines of Russia and Ukraine notably include the elimination of point 3 of the U.S. plan: "Russia is expected not to invade neighboring countries and NATO is not to expand further." This point has been removed, according to German diplomacy. It was a red line for both the EU and Ukraine.
Erdogan tells Putin he is willing to mediate for a fair peace in Ukraine
The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said on Monday to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, that he is willing to facilitate negotiations between Kiev and Moscow to achieve a fair peace.
In a phone call, Erdogan told his counterpart that Turkey is willing "to carry out all kinds of diplomatic initiatives that can facilitate contacts between the sides to open the path to lasting peace in the region."
The Turkish leader had previously stated that the 28-point peace plan proposed by the United States could be "a basis" for reaching an agreement, although many aspects will need to be negotiated to satisfy both sides.
Poland arrests a suspected Ukrainian collaborator involved in railway sabotage
The National Prosecutor's Office of Poland ordered on Monday preventive detention for a Ukrainian citizen identified as Volodymyr B., accused of complicity in acts of sabotage on the railway infrastructure that occurred on November 15 and 16, an attack for which Warsaw holds Russia responsible.
The prosecutor's office stated in a release that Volodymyr B., the third accused so far of committing the sabotage, will be in preventive detention for three months, under suspicion of acting "for the Russian secret services and facilitating the commission of the crime by helping the material authors in the reconnaissance and preparation" of the attack.
The investigation has determined that in September of this year, Volodymyr B. took Yevgeni I., another of the accused, to the area of railway line number seven, near Mika (center), so that he could recognize the area and select a place to place explosives, install a recording device, and a metal element on the rails to cause an accident.
The mayor of Moscow raises to four the drones that tried to attack the Russian capital
The anti-aircraft defenses shot down three Ukrainian drones attempting to attack Moscow, reported the mayor of the Russian capital, Sergei Sobyanin.
In four consecutive posts on Telegram in less than two hours, the mayor announced that the Ministry of Defense's anti-aircraft systems had shot down three unmanned aircraft that were preparing to attack Moscow.
Sobyanin added that emergency services specialists are working at the locations where the fragments of the downed drones fell, without reporting if there were casualties or damage on the ground.
Three Moscow airports -Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, and Zhukovsky- temporarily suspended their operations due to flight security threats.
Von der Leyen calls for respecting Ukraine's sovereignty and its ability to decide on its Army
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, stated on Monday that Ukraine's territory and sovereignty "must be respected" and that "only Ukraine" can decide on its Armed Forces, within the framework of the negotiations driven by the United States for a peace plan with Russia.
France and Germany consider negotiations for peace in Ukraine "positive and constructive"
Germany considers the conversations held over the weekend in Geneva on a peace framework to end the war in Ukraine fundamentally positive, stated a German government spokesperson on Monday.
"We see very positively that there are finally advancements again, and we are pleased that things are progressing," the spokesperson said in a regular government press conference.
Meanwhile, the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, stated that the talks held in Geneva with the United States on Ukraine were "constructive and useful."
"Work continues to create the conditions for a peace that respects Ukraine's sovereignty and guarantees the interests and security of Europe," Barrot noted in a statement.
Washington and Kiev affirm that the peace agreement will maintain Ukraine's "full sovereignty"
The sovereignty of Ukraine must be fully respected in a future agreement to stop the war with Russia, stated U.S. and Ukrainian authorities amid peace negotiations in Geneva.
The discussions focused on a 28-point U.S. plan promoted by Donald Trump, aimed at ending nearly four years of conflict triggered by the Russian invasion.
"We have made huge progress," and "I can tell you that the remaining points are not insurmountable. We just need more time," declared the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, to journalists.
Costa speaks with Zelensky before coordinating the EU's stance on peace in Ukraine
The President of the European Council, António Costa, spoke on Monday with the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, before holding a meeting with the leaders of the European Union (EU) to coordinate positions on the peace plan for Ukraine promoted by the United States.
"I spoke with Zelensky before this morning's informal meeting of EU leaders on the peace efforts in Ukraine, to understand his assessment of the situation," Costa stated in a message posted on social media.
He added that "a united and coordinated EU position is essential to ensure a good outcome of the peace negotiations, both for Ukraine and for Europe."