Ukraine war latest: 'Insane' if West gives Ukraine nuclear weapons, says Russia

EU leader accepts Putin's invitation to Moscow

The Slovakian prime minister has accepted Vladimir Putin's invitation to attend the Victory Day celebrations in Moscow next May.

Slovakia is a member state of both NATO and the EU, but Robert Fico is a known Ukraine sceptic who has called for restoring relations with Russia after the war.

Last month he gave an interview with Russian state television during which he criticised EU governments for escalating the war by supplying weapons to Kyiv.

The Kremlin uses its annual VE Day celebrations to showcase its military power, while Russian propaganda leans heavily on the Soviet victory in the Second World War.

Posting on Facebook, Mr Fico said it was with "pleasure" that he accepted Putin's invite.

Trump picks retired general for Ukraine war envoy role

Donald Trump has nominated Keith Kellogg to serve as his special envoy for Ukraine and Russia.

As we reported earlier, the retired general presented the president-elect with a plan to end the Ukraine war in July (see 15.20 post).

That plan involves telling Ukraine it will only get more US weapons if it enters peace talks with Russia.

Posting on his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump said: "Keith has a distinguished military and business career, including serving in highly sensitive national security roles in my first administration."

He adds that the pair will "make America, and the world, safe again".

Ukraine and South Korea discuss boosting security

Ukraine's defence minister says he discussed joint steps to strengthen security and stability with Yoon Suk Yeol, the South Korean president, on a visit to Seoul today.

Posting on Telegram, Rustem Umerov said the presence of North Korean troops fighting for Russia against Ukraine "poses a serious threat" to Seoul.

"North Korean troops are gaining experience in conducting combat operations, which may create additional security challenges in the region in the future," he said.

"We believe that our arguments about the need to increase cooperation between Ukraine and the Republic of Korea will lead to a tangible strengthening of security for our peoples and regions."

Putin begins two-day Kazakhstan trip

Vladimir Putin has started his two-day trip to Kazakhstan, where the Kremlin says he will be discussing Moscow's energy ties with Astana.

Whole blocks of the Kazakh capital were cordoned off ahead of the Russian leader's arrival, with military helicopters and fighter jets patrolling the sky.

Kazakhstan, which has tried to distance itself from the war in Ukraine, is highly dependent on Moscow for exporting oil to Western markets and for imports of food and electricity.

A Kremlin foreign policy aide told journalists yesterday that Putin and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev would sign a protocol extending an agreement on oil supplies during the trip.

'Real value' in Ukraine lowering conscription age to 18, says US official

Ukraine should consider lowering the military mobilisation age to 18, a senior US administration official has said.

The official noted that Ukraine is not mobilising or training enough new soldiers for its war with Russia and that there would be "real value" in lowering the age of conscription to 18.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed new laws in April that lowered the conscription age by two years, from 27 to 25.

The secretary of Ukraine's national security council, Oleksandr Lytvynenko, told parliament last month that Kyiv will be calling up another 160,000 people to serve in its military.

The US official said the Joe Biden administration believes Ukraine will probably need more than an extra 160,000.

Seven countries to increase support and ammunition for Ukraine

Nordic and Baltic states and Poland have jointly vowed to step up support for Ukraine in the coming months.

The support includes contributing to Ukraine's defence industry and investing in making more ammunition available.

"We are committed to strengthening our deterrence, and defence, including resilience, against conventional as well as hybrid attacks, and to expanding sanctions against Russia as well as against those who enable Russia's aggression," the leaders of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Norway, Poland and Sweden said.

US ambassador says North Korea planning more ballistic missile transfers to Russia

North Korea has transferred at least 100 ballistic missiles and more than 18,000 containers of munitions and other material to Russia for use in its war against Ukraine - and is planning more deliveries, a US diplomat has said.

Robert A Wood, US deputy ambassador to the United Nations, said the arms aid has been used by Russian forces to strike populated areas including Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia.

"The DPRK [North Korea] is preparing to transfer even more ballistic missiles," he told a UN meeting in New York today.

"We also have information a large number of DPRK-origin, 170mm long range self-propelled artillery pieces and 240mm long range multiple rocket launchers are being introduced into the conflict," Mr Wood said. 

Russia, meanwhile, has transferred air defence systems to North Korea, he added, as well as "free and subsidised fuel".

The US is calling on China to use its "influence and capacity" over Pyongyang to "prevent a further escalation of the conflict", said Mr Wood.

The ambassador also called on UN members to "stand by Ukraine" as it continues to fight the Russian invasion.

"Our future is at stake. Russia's war threatens our NATO allies, European security and the fundamental rights enshrined in the UN charter," he said.

Trump considering retired general for Ukraine war envoy role

A retired general who previously presented Donald Trump with a plan to end the Ukraine war is being considered to serve as special envoy for the conflict, sources have said.

The president-elect is mulling handing Keith Kellogg the new role when he returns to the White House in January, three sources told Reuters.

Kellogg, former chief of staff for the White House National Security Council during Trump's first presidency, would likely have a key role in attempting to resolve the conflict if he is selected.

His plan for ending the war, which he presented to Trump back in July, involves telling Ukraine it will only get more US weapons if it enters peace talks.

The US would also warn Russia that if it refused to negotiate, Washington will ramp up support for Kyiv.

The plan also proposes freezing battle lines at their prevailing locations - an idea both sides have rejected.

Trump's spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt refused to comment on Kellogg's possible selection.

-SKY NEWS