Putin says Russia building 'security zone' in Ukraine

Russia is establishing a "security zone" inside Ukraine along their border, which will be non-negotiable in any future talks with Kyiv, President Vladimir Putin has said.

Mr Putin, wearing military uniform and speaking during a visit to a command post, said the operation was in response to Ukraine's 2024-25 incursion into Russia's western Kursk region.

"The Russian armed forces were tasked not only with expelling the enemy from our land but also with establishing a security zone in the adjacent territory. This task is being carried out successfully," he said in televised .

"Our goal is to ensure the absolute security of Russia's border regions for the future, and we do not plan to make this a subject for potential peace negotiations with Ukraine."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the planned security zone spanned 660 km (410 miles), of which 70% was currently under Russia's control.

It comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took aim at US President Donald Trump's diesel deal with Russia and welcomed the prospect of European allies stepping up their role in talks.

At a EU summit in Brussels, Mr Zelensky called Moscow's stance a "parody" of peace negotiations and said that Russia did not want peace.

He added that Ukraine was still experiencing disruptions to the SpaceX Starshield satellite system used for battlefield operations and to down Russian drones attacking cities far from the frontline.

EU leaders rallied around Mr Zelensky after Mr Trump again criticised Ukraine, calling its strikes on Russian refineries a "disgrace".

On arriving at the summit, Mr Zelensky pointedly referred to his counterparts there as "real leaders".

The EU is hosting Zelensky at one of the most difficult moments for Ukraine, with missiles and drones raining down on Ukrainian cities and fears that the US could pull back intelligence sharing and weapons support from Kyiv.

'Money in Putin's pocket'

Mr Trump blindsided Mr Zelensky last weekend by announcing that Ukraine and Russia had agreed not to target each other's energy facilities.

Facing US midterm elections month, Mr Trump has blamed Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries for pushing up energy prices that could cost him at the ballot box.

His diesel deal with Russia angered Ukraine and European allies.

"And now we can see how cash will start flowing back into Russia through the diesel deal," Mr Zelensky told a press conference on the sidelines of the summit.

"This diesel deal will never be enough to offset the impact of the Strait of Hormuz on global markets. But it will put more money straight into Putin's pocket to fund this war."

Mr Zelensky also accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of not being interested in peace talks in any form.

"Putin does not want peace talks at the moment, in any form," he said. "He’s playing with words, claiming they respond... Quite simply, it looks like a parody of a genuine desire to end the war."

The Kremlin said last week that Ukraine had undermined the possibility of an immediate resumption of peace talks after it had hit Moscow with drones during last month's election.

Meanwhile in the latest attacks in Ukraine, Russian drone strikes on the city of Kharkiv killed three people, while strikes elsewhere left hundreds of thousands of people without power.

In an interview, Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal told Reuters that the EU would probably have to provide a new loan to Ukraine to help cover its budget gap for year.

"Last winter was already hell, this one will be once again like hell," Mr Michal said.

"We have a lot of gaps to fill, and this is a European mission to fill the gaps that Ukraine needs. Because always, at the start (and) at the end of every conversation, people need to be reminded that we are sitting

in a warm room, lights are on, heating is on, the coffee is warm, and we cannot get tired of the war in Ukraine, because they are fighting ... for us."

Read: Russia killing as many civilians as possible - Taoiseach

No ready-made European alternative to Starlink

Ukraine's leadership has been alarmed by disruptions to the Starshield satellite system.

A source in Ukraine's defence ministry said yesterday that Starshield receptors were only working at speeds of up to 160km/ph, complicating their use for military missions.

A US official has denied that Mr Trump ordered a deliberate slowdown of Starshield, which is the military-grade version of the Starlink service run by Elon Musk's SpaceX, and Mr Trump said this week intelligence sharing with Ukraine continued.

Europe does not have a ready-made alternative to Starlink, although European governments and companies are working on long-term options.

Mr Zelensky said the operation of SpaceX's satellite communications had improved but had not yet been fully restored, adding that the disruption placed civilian lives at risk.

"Starlink is really necessary for Ukraine. And unfortunately, in short term, Europe can't replace this capability," said the EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.

Ukraine struck a Russian oil refinery after Mr Zelensky declared that Kyiv was abandoning the energy ceasefire that Mr Trump had announced.

"All he's doing is making the world oil price higher. Well, I think that's a disgrace," Mr Trump said in an interview with the Newsmax news outlet.

While EU leaders hit out at the US deal to buy Russian diesel, they are also grappling with how to tackle energy prices that have soared since the Iran war, exposing divisions between member states on day one of the summit yesterday.

"The war will cost €155 billion year. And we need at least €70 billion more from you - for defence, for weapons, and for our resilience," Mr Zelensky said in his address to the EU leaders, which he later posted on X.

"This is a realistic amount. And I ask you to find this support. It will help us hold Russia back."

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Additional reporting Tony Connelly