Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin claims conflict ‘coming to an end’ after scaled-back Victory Day parade

Putin also said he would be willing to negotiate new security arrangements for Europe
Vladimir Putin has said the war in Ukraine was “coming to an end” - just hours after vowing victory in the conflict at a dramatically scaled-back parade in Moscow on Saturday.

"I think that the matter is coming to an end," Putin told reporters of the war, which started more than four years ago.

He also said he would be willing to negotiate new security arrangements for Europe, and that his preferred negotiating partner would be Germany's former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

His comments came after the annual Victory day parade on Moscow, which marks the defeat of Nazi Germany in the Second World War.

During the event, the Russian leader had voiced that he was confident of victory in Ukraine .

“Victory has always been and will be ours,” Putin said, as columns of troops lined up on Red Square.

“The key to success is our moral strength, courage and valour, our unity and ability to endure anything and overcome any challenge.”
Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree "permitting" Russia to hold the Victory military parade and said his forces wouldn’t target Red Square, after Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire.

The parade was a far cry from past years, where it has been used to show off Russia 's vast military, including its nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Exclusive: Zelensky says US should use its Iran playbook on Putin
Speaking to world affairs editor Sam Kiley earlier this week, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky drew a number of links between the US-Israeli war with Iran and his own conflict with Russia.

The most immediate impact on Kyiv has stemmed from the fact that the US has used up so many missiles targeting Iran, leaving it “short” of weapons to send to Ukraine.

But without criticising Donald Trump directly, he also urged the US to deal with the aggressor in Europe – Vladimir Putin – in the same way as he deals with the regime in Tehran.

He said that during negotiations with the US, Iran had been told to stop its nuclear programme, stop producing and selling missiles, and stop sponsoring terrorism – or else face the consequences.

“[The US] said, ‘Look, if you’re not ready to stop, [then] one, two, three.’ They would face aggressive steps.

‘If you are not ready [to comply], we will answer [with force].’
“In my case, what I proposed to all the partners was [this]: tell Putin.

One, two, three, the same steps – and then, [if he does not comply], don’t even help us.

Just give us the weapons.”
Zelensky: Trump using up all his missiles on Iran risks leaving Ukraine short
Trump 'sincerely wants to settle' Ukraine conflict, says Putin
In his remarks to journalists after yesterday’s parade in Red Square, Russia’s Vladimir Putin thanked the US for its efforts to end the Ukraine war.

Putin claimed the war – which he started by invading Ukraine in February 2022 – was "coming to an end" and attempted to blame "Western elites" for starting it.

But he reserved praise for US president Donald Trump, saying: "We can see that the current US administration and the President of the US sincerely – I would like to emphasise this – sincerely want to settle this conflict."
"We are grateful for every effort like this," he added.

Germany revives effort to buy US Tomahawks, FT reports
​Germany is reviving efforts to buy Tomahawk cruise missiles from the US, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing ⁠people with knowledge of Berlin's strategy.

Berlin hopes to persuade the Trump administration to agree to the sale of the Tomahawks together with their Typhon ground launchers,?the newspaper said.

Germany's defence minister Boris Pistorius is planning a trip to Washington, the report said, in a bid to revive Berlin's proposal to purchase long-range systems, which was first submitted in July last year.

The US has yet to respond.

The visit, however, hinges upon whether Pistorius can secure a meeting with Pete Hegseth, his US counterpart, unnamed sources told the FT.

The Tomahawk Land Attack Missile is a long-range cruise missile typically launched from sea to attack targets in deep-strike missions.

In February, ‌the Pentagon said ⁠it had signed a seven-year deal with ⁠Raytheon to increase Tomahawk production as its stockpiles have ‌been depleted ​by the war ‌with Iran.

Merz condemns Slovak PM's visit to Moscow
Friedrich Merz has criticised the Slovak prime minister after he laid flowers at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier memorial just outside the Kremlin walls
The German chancellor said: “I deeply regret this, and we will discuss his visit to Moscow with him.”
Speaking at a meeting with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin, Slovakia’s Robert Fico bemoaned what he called a new “Iron Curtain” in Europe that hampered trade, and emphasised the importance of Russia's energy supplies to Slovakia.

Putin hailed the Slovak leader for conducting a “sovereign” foreign policy and honouring the memory of fallen red army soldiers.

Kyiv: Russia has suffered more than 1.34M casualties since its invasion of Ukraine
Russia has lost more than 1,340,000 troops in the war with Ukraine.

In an update on Moscow’s military losses since, the ministry of defence said it had also lost 11,920 tanks, 41,712 artillery systems, 435, and 352 helicopters since its invasion in 2022.

On Friday alone, Ukraine claims it took out 1,080 personnel, 1,479 UAVs, and 82 artillery systems.

'I have lost everything...

We need peace': Ukrainians welcome ceasefire but demand long-term solution
Ukrainians have welcomed a three-day ceasefire in the war with Russia, but say a long-term solution is urgently needed.

Kateryna Kizev, 22, who fled the frontline city of Kherson in the ⁠south and now lives in Cherkasy in central Ukraine, said: “On the one hand, this is very good because, honestly, the sleepless nights have gotten a bit tiresome.

“At least for a few days we will be able to sleep in peace and without the attacks.”
Oleksandr Boik, in Kharkiv, stated: “This ceasefire - for a day, or two or three - these are temporary measures.

We ⁠need peace.

It is the fifth year already.

It is enough.

Another Kharkiv resident, Ramaz Tsytsyashvili, ‌said he hoped that the ceasefire would ​open the way for more talks to end the war.

“I have lost everything...

We need peace.

“And perhaps there ‌will be a miracle and this temporary silence, this ceasefire, ​will hold up a bit and continue, and then step by step it will move to negotiations, and affairs will be solved in offices, not on the battlefield.”
Zelensky: 'Russia will not succeed in breaking Europe'
Volodymyr Zelensky has said “Russia will not succeed in breaking Europe”, as he emphasised Ukraine’s plans to join the EU.

Following a phone call with António Costa, the leader of the European Council, the Ukrainian president said: “We will defend our independence and our people’s right to freely choose their path.

“And in doing so, we will also defend the right of all European peoples to live as they themselves wish.

“Russia will not succeed in breaking Europe or fracturing it – there have been many attempts, but all have failed.

And none will succeed.

“We discussed with António our joint work on Ukraine’s further European integration – Ukraine will take its place as a full member of the European Union.

We are preparing for the opening of clusters and further decisions.

“We also discussed recent steps in diplomacy and our arrangement, mediated by the United States, to carry out a prisoner exchange with Russia in a 1,000-for-1,000 format.

I thank Europe for standing with Ukraine!”
The fear behind the fanfare: Putin’s paranoia amid Victory Day celebrations
The Independent’s Maira Butt writes:
Vladimir Putin used his Victory Day speech to claim confidence in Russia’s triumphs, as he presided over a dramatically scaled-back parade in Moscow on Saturday.

Addressing the crowd at the annual parade, which marks the defeat of Nazi Germany in the Second World War, the Russian leader voiced that he was confident of victory in Ukraine .

Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree “permitting” Russia to hold the military parade and said his forces wouldn’t target Red Square, after Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire.

Putin attempted to use his speech, which lasted less than 10 minutes, to project strength, claiming Russia would succeed in the Ukraine war thanks to its “moral strength, courage and valour”.

But the parade was a far cry from past years, when it had been used to show off Russia 's vast military, including its nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Four years ago, Putin had stood grandly at a podium, surveying a legion of armoured military vehicles.

Weeks earlier, he’d invaded neighbouring Ukraine, sparking a conflict that has dragged on ever since.

During a defiant speech on that day, the Russian president launched an attack on Nato, Ukraine and a host of Western countries.

Surrounded by military hardware, he insisted that Russia was “fighting for the motherland, for her future, and so that nobody forgets the lessons of World War II”.

But this year things are different.

For the first time in nearly two decades, those celebrations went ahead without any showy and heavy military hardware, amid new fears of long-range Ukrainian drone strikes that have been hitting deep inside Russia.

In pictures: Russian service members participate in the Victory Day military parade
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