"The (war) must continue so that we are protected from threats," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

Free fuel sales resumed in 15 Russian regions in October, Russian state-aligned newspaper Izvestia reported on Oct. 29.

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov also ruled out European participation in the upcoming Abu Dhabi meeting.

The Kyiv Independent’s Tim Zadorozhnyy speaks with Tsikhanouskaya about Lukashenko’s support for Russia’s war, the risks of U.S. engagement with his regime, and how political prisoners have become bargaining chips in negotiations over sanctions.

A planned meeting between Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. in Abu Dhabi will focus on de-escalating Russia's war, President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters on Oct. 27, as Moscow seemingly agreed to resume talks with Kyiv after a pause of more than eight months.

Although Ukrainian officials do

President Volodymyr Zelensky's planned Oct. 26 trip to Brussels descended into a diplomatic guessing game, with conflicting signals from his own team leaving EU and NATO officials scrambling to establish whether he was coming — and who was supposed to meet him.

At the center of the confusion

A senior Ukrainian official previously told the Kyiv Independent that the batch awaiting U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's approval was "significant."