Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump issues first comment on CIA chief’s mysterious visit to Moscow

Trump issues first comment on CIA chief’s mysterious visit to MoscowUS president Donald Trump has said “something may come out of” the CIA director John Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow on Tuesday.Trump said the US is “working very hard” to end the war in Ukraine, calling the CIA chief a “fantastic guy”.Answering a question on Ratcliffe’s visit to Russia, Trump said that the CIA director made a visit to Russia on a “very semi-routine” basis and “something may come out of it”.The Kremlin revealed yesterday that CIA director Ratcliffe held talks with Russian intelligence officials during a mysterious visit this week but did not meet president Vladimir Putin.Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov framed communication between the two countries’ intelligence agencies as positive.This comes as Kremlin sources said Russia is considering stepping up its ballistic missile strikes on Kyiv.Putin is contemplating hitting targets in the city centre and on critical infrastructure elsewhere in Ukraine, after concluding that efforts to negotiate a peace deal have reached a dead end, they said.Ukraine deploys prominent commanders to lead defence of DonetskVolodymyr Zelensky has appointed two of Ukraine's most prominent commanders to oversee the defence of the country's eastern strongholds, as Kyiv struggles to ⁠beat back a Russian onslaught on a region at the centre of stalled peace talks.Visiting the frontline with his new top general, Zelensky said Third Army Corps leader Andrii Biletskyi and Denys Prokopenko, ⁠commander of the First Corps Azov, will head new groupings aimed ​at ⁠strengthening defences around Donetsk.Both men represent a new generation of experienced field commanders and currently lead what are seen as some of Kyiv's most capable and best-trained forces.Both their corps are already involved in defending that part of the front, and the commanders have been praised for their combat efficiency and planning.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 06:48EU states revive plan to use frozen Russian assets for Ukraine, FT reportsEU countries, including Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain and Poland, are urging Brussels to revive efforts to use immobilised Russian sovereign assets to fund Ukraine, the Financial Times reported today.A ‌letter from a coalition of ‌states to ‌the European Commission will call on ⁠the EU's executive to restart work on plans to fund Ukraine using Russian central ‌bank assets, ​the FT reported, ‌citing four ⁠people briefed ⁠on the document.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 06:10Watch: US military transport plane lands in Moscow with no explanation from Kremlin or TrumpUS military transport plane lands in Moscow with no explanation from Kremlin or TrumpArpan Rai27 August 2026 05:48Trump says 'something may come out of' CIA director's Russia visitDonald Trump has said “something may come out of” the CIA director John Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow on Tuesday.The US is “working very hard” to end the war in Ukraine, he said.“We would like to see the Ukraine war end.”Answering a question on Ratcliffe’s visit to Russia, Trump said that the CIA director made a visit to Russia on a “very semi-routine” basis."Something may come out of it," Trump said, calling Ratcliffe a “fantastic guy”.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 05:29Putin weighs stepping up strikes on Kyiv with talks at dead endRussia is considering stepping up its ballistic missile strikes on Kyiv, including targets in the city centre, and on critical infrastructure elsewhere in Ukraine after concluding that efforts to negotiate a peace deal have reached a dead end, said three people close to the Kremlin.Speaking to Bloomberg, they said negotiation frameworks had effectively collapsed, while president Vladimir Putin remained unlikely to end the ‌war in response ​to sanctions ‌or Ukrainian ⁠strikes on Russian refineries ⁠and logistics networks.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 05:18Dozens of ships stuck in Danube for access to Ukrainian ports, threatening grain price spikeUp to 70 vessels are waiting near the Danube's Sulina Canal for access to Ukrainian ports to load grain for export, traders and analysts said on Wednesday, with a shortage of pilots and priority given to other cargoes creating long delays.After Russian attacks effectively blocked Ukraine's Black Sea ports, which had handled 90 per cent of the country's grain exports, some shipments were rerouted through Danube river ports, which have much lower capacity.Grain cargoes are competing for access with higher-priority shipments such as fuel, slowing exports. Frequent air raid alerts, which force the suspension of all port operations, have added to the disruption.Ukraine is one of the world's biggest grain exporters and disruptions to its shipments can drive up global prices.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 04:55US senator hopes 'sledgehammer' Russian sanctions will pass next monthA US senator sponsoring a bill for wide-ranging sanctions on Russia said on Wednesday he was hopeful it would pass the House of Representatives next month, and be a "sledgehammer" to president Vladimir Putin's efforts to fund his war in Ukraine.Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut who met with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and senior officials during a visit to Kyiv, said the bill ⁠had strong Republican support in ​the House, ⁠after comfortably passing an initial Senate vote last month.“Putin understands only force,” Blumenthal told a news conference. “And the Russia sanctions bill is a sledgehammer that can have the kind of force Putin understands.”Though Democrats are broadly supportive of the sanctions, some have expressed concern that it would give Republican president Donald ‌Trump leeway to impose additional tariffs, including ‌on US allies.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 04:31Falling debris damages vessel in Ukraine's port of ReniA civilian vessel was damaged overnight at the Danube River port of Reni near Ukraine's Izmail, local Ukrainian authorities said this morning.The vessel was damaged due to falling debris likely from an intercepted drone.It is not immediately clear if the incident caused any casualties.Reni sits close to Ukraine's borders ‌with ​Romania ‌and Moldova.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 04:14Explosions rock Kyiv as Russia carries out major attackExplosions were heard in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, ⁠a Reuters witness said, as Russia was hitting Ukraine with drones and ⁠missiles in ​the ⁠early hours today.Kyiv authorities, who earlier issued a drone attack alert, said on Telegram that debris had fallen in the courtyard of a residential building and damage was being clarified.Ukraine's Armed Forces separately ⁠issued a ballistic missile alert for Kyiv.In Kryvyi Rih, a steel-and-mining hub in central Ukraine and president Volodymyr Zelensky's hometown, ‌two were injured as ​missiles hit an ‌industrial facility ⁠and three more were ⁠wounded in Zaporizhzhia, officials said.Arpan Rai27 August 2026 03:56Husband pleads for wife’s release from Russia as health issues worsenThe recent release of Marine veteran Robert Gilman from Russian custody ended more than four years of imprisonment, but his visibly frail condition has raised alarming questions for the families of Americans still detained there.Watching the news coverage from the United States, Harold Jezler saw Gilman's gaunt appearance and immediately worried about what it meant for his 36-year-old wife, Olga, who has been held in Russia since 2022 while suffering from her own deteriorating health issues.Although Gilman’s freedom follows a series of prisoner releases over recent years, numerous Americans remain incarcerated in Russia. Relatives and advocates report that several suffer from unaddressed or inadequately treated medical conditions, escalating the urgency of diplomatic efforts to secure their freedom.Read the full story:James Reynolds27 August 2026 03:00