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New Round of Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks Set for Wednesday

Firefighters work in a destroyed apartment building after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, July 21, 2025 (dpa) 
Firefighters work in a destroyed apartment building after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, July 21, 2025 (dpa) 
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New Round of Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks Set for Wednesday

Firefighters work in a destroyed apartment building after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, July 21, 2025 (dpa) 
Firefighters work in a destroyed apartment building after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, July 21, 2025 (dpa) 

While Moscow confirmed its readiness to participate in a new round of negotiations with the Ukrainian side, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday the next set of peace talks are planned for Wednesday in Istanbul.

“Today, I discussed with (Ukrainian Security Council chief) Rustem Umerov the preparations for the exchange and another meeting in Türkiye with the Russian side. Umerov reported that the meeting is scheduled for Wednesday. More details will be available tomorrow,” Zelensky said in his daily address Monday.

Ukraine and Russia have so far held two rounds of talks in Istanbul, on May 16 and June 2, that led to the exchange of thousands of prisoners of war and the remains of dead soldiers.

The third meeting will include “technical discussions on a limited range of issues,” several Russian media outlets said quoting sources. The parties are expected to discuss humanitarian aid, prisoner exchanges, infrastructure security, and border protection measures.

Kiev had proposed to Moscow a new round of peace talks this week. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state television in a clip published on Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to move toward a peace settlement for Ukraine but Moscow's main objective is to achieve its goals.

“The Russian Federation supports a third round of negotiations with Ukraine; as soon as an agreement on the dates is reached, the Kremlin will inform immediately,” Peskov said. The composition of the Russian negotiating team on the Ukrainian resolution has not changed, he noted.

Peskov commented on US President Donald Trump's sometimes “harsh” rhetoric but pointed out that Trump had also underscored in comments on Russia that he would continue to search for a peace deal.

“President Putin has repeatedly spoken of his desire to bring the Ukrainian settlement to a peaceful conclusion as soon as possible. This is a long process, it requires effort, and it is not easy,” Peskov told state television reporter Pavel Zarubin.

“The main thing for us is to achieve our goals. Our goals are clear,” Peskov said.

On Monday, Trump announced a tougher stance on Russia, pledging a new wave of military aid to Ukraine, including Patriot missile defense systems. He also gave Russia a 50-day deadline to agree to a ceasefire or face additional sanctions.

Peskov did not rule out the possibility of a meeting between Putin and Trump if the Russian and US presidents were both in Beijing at the same time in September.

“You know that we are preparing for a trip to Beijing, our president is preparing for this trip... But we have not heard that President Trump is also going there, to Beijing,” Peskov said when asked if the two leaders could meet, including possibly in a three-way format with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“If it so happens that (Trump) is there, then, of course, we cannot rule out that the question of the expediency of holding a meeting will be raised,” Peskov told reporters.

The new round of talks between Russia and Ukraine comes amid renewed fighting.

Major Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia sowed chaos at major airports serving Moscow on Monday, with thousands of passengers waiting in lines or sleeping on the floor after flights were cancelled or delayed, Russian media reported.

Videos published by Russian media showed people sleeping on the floor of Sheremetyevo, Russia's busiest airport by passenger numbers, amid long queues.

In return, Russia on Monday launched a barrage of drones and missiles at Ukraine in an overnight attack, killing two people, wounding 15 and causing multiple fires in several parts of the country.

Russia's defense ministry said it had downed 117 drones overnight, including 30 over the Moscow region.

Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsiya, briefly imposed restrictions on flights overnight at Moscow’s main airports - Sheremetyevo, Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Zhukovskiy.

Several thousand people were stranded in the far east of Russia due to the cancellation of flights in European Russia, while extra trains were put on to bring passengers back to Moscow from the northern Russian city of St Petersburg, Russian media said.

Moscow and its surrounding region has a population of at least 21.5 million.

 

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World

Nicaragua Arrests Dozens for Reportedly Supporting Capture of Maduro

People go through a checkpoint near Fuerte Tiuna (Fort Tiuna), which houses the headquarters of Venezuelan Ministry of Defense, in Caracas, Venezuela, 03 January 2026, after multiple explosions were reported across the capital. EPA/MIGUEL GUTIERREZ
People go through a checkpoint near Fuerte Tiuna (Fort Tiuna), which houses the headquarters of Venezuelan Ministry of Defense, in Caracas, Venezuela, 03 January 2026, after multiple explosions were reported across the capital. EPA/MIGUEL GUTIERREZ
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Nicaragua Arrests Dozens for Reportedly Supporting Capture of Maduro

People go through a checkpoint near Fuerte Tiuna (Fort Tiuna), which houses the headquarters of Venezuelan Ministry of Defense, in Caracas, Venezuela, 03 January 2026, after multiple explosions were reported across the capital. EPA/MIGUEL GUTIERREZ
People go through a checkpoint near Fuerte Tiuna (Fort Tiuna), which houses the headquarters of Venezuelan Ministry of Defense, in Caracas, Venezuela, 03 January 2026, after multiple explosions were reported across the capital. EPA/MIGUEL GUTIERREZ

Authorities in Nicaragua have arrested at least 60 people for reportedly celebrating or expressing support for the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, a human rights watchdog group and local media outlets said Friday.

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo are staunch allies of Maduro, who was captured by US military personnel in Caracas last Saturday and taken to New York to face trial on drug and weapons charges.

Since the arrest of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, "at least 60 arbitrary arrests" have occurred over alleged support for the operation, the NGO Blue and White Monitoring, which compiles reports of human rights violations in Nicaragua, said in a post on X.

The group said 49 people remained in detention Friday "without information about their legal status," while nine people have been released and three others were temporarily detained, reported AFP.

"This new wave of repression is carried out without a judicial order and is based solely on expressions of opinion: comments on social media, private celebrations, or not repeating official propaganda," the group said.

According to Confidencial, a Nicaraguan newspaper published outside the country, the arrests took place under a "state of alert" ordered by Murillo following Maduro's capture -- including surveillance in neighborhoods and on social media.

La Prensa, another local newspaper, said the arrests occurred due to "posts in favor" of the US operation.

World

Death Toll Climbs After Trash Site Collapse Buries Dozens in Philippines

A huge mound of garbage that collapsed Thursday afternoon at a waste segregation facility in Binaliw, Cebu city, central Philippines is seen on Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Hernandez)
A huge mound of garbage that collapsed Thursday afternoon at a waste segregation facility in Binaliw, Cebu city, central Philippines is seen on Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Hernandez)
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Death Toll Climbs After Trash Site Collapse Buries Dozens in Philippines

A huge mound of garbage that collapsed Thursday afternoon at a waste segregation facility in Binaliw, Cebu city, central Philippines is seen on Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Hernandez)
A huge mound of garbage that collapsed Thursday afternoon at a waste segregation facility in Binaliw, Cebu city, central Philippines is seen on Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Hernandez)

Hard hat-wearing rescue workers and backhoes dug through rubble in search of survivors on Saturday in the shadow of a mountain of garbage that buried dozens of landfill employees in the central Philippines, killing at least four.

About 50 sanitation workers were buried when refuse toppled onto them Thursday from what a city councillor estimated was a height of 20 storeys at the Binaliw Landfill, a privately operated facility in Cebu City.

Rescuers were now facing the danger of further collapse as they navigated the wreckage, Cebu rescuer Jo Reyes told AFP on Saturday.

"Operations are ongoing as of the moment. It is continuous. (But) from time to time, the landfill is moving, and that will temporarily stop the operation," she said.

"We have to stop for a while for the safety of our rescuers."

Information from the disaster site has been emerging slowly, with city employees citing the lack of signal from the dumpsite, which serviced Cebu and other surrounding communities.

Joel Garganera, a Cebu City council member, told AFP that as of 10:00 am (0200 GMT), the death toll from the disaster had climbed to four, with 34 still missing.

"The four casualties were inside the facility when it happened... They have these staff houses inside where most people who were buried stayed," he said.

"It's very difficult on the part of the rescuers, because there are really heavy (pieces of steel), and every now and then, the garbage is moving because of the weight from above," Garganera said.

"We are hoping against hope here and praying for miracles," he said when asked about the timeline for rescue efforts.

"We cannot just jump to the retrieval (of bodies), because there are a lot of family members who are within the property waiting for any positive result."

At least 12 employees have so far been pulled alive from the garbage and hospitalized.

"Every now and then when it rains, there are landslides happening around the city of Cebu ... how much more (dangerous is that) for a landfill or a mountain that is made of garbage?" Garganera said in a phone call with AFP.

"The garbage is like a sponge, they really absorb water. It doesn't (take) a rocket scientist to say that eventually, the incident will happen."

Garganera described the height from which the trash fell as "alarming", estimating the top of the pile had stood 20 storeys above the area struck.

Drivers had long complained about the dangers of navigating the steep road to the top, he added.

Photos released by police on Friday showed a massive mound of trash atop a hill directly behind buildings that a city information officer had told AFP also contained administrative offices.

Garganera noted that the disaster was a "sad, double whammy" for the city, as the facility was the "lone service provider" for Cebu and adjacent communities.

The landfill "processes 1,000 tons of municipal solid waste daily", according to the website of its operator, Prime Integrated Waste Solutions.

Calls and emails to the company have so far gone unreturned.

Rita Cogay, who operates a compactor at the site, told AFP on Friday she had stepped outside to get a drink of water just moments before the building she had been in was crushed.

"I thought a helicopter had crashed. But when I turned, it was the garbage and the building coming down," the 49-year-old said.

World

China, Russia and Iran Join South Africa for Naval Drills as Tensions Run High

The Chinese guided-missile destroyer Tangshan, left, and the Russian corvette Stoikiy, right, in the Simon's Town harbor, in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP)
The Chinese guided-missile destroyer Tangshan, left, and the Russian corvette Stoikiy, right, in the Simon's Town harbor, in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP)
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China, Russia and Iran Join South Africa for Naval Drills as Tensions Run High

The Chinese guided-missile destroyer Tangshan, left, and the Russian corvette Stoikiy, right, in the Simon's Town harbor, in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP)
The Chinese guided-missile destroyer Tangshan, left, and the Russian corvette Stoikiy, right, in the Simon's Town harbor, in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP)

Chinese, Russian and Iranian warships launched a week of naval drills with host South Africa off the Cape Town coast Friday as geopolitical tensions run high over the United States' intervention in Venezuela and its move to seize tankers carrying Venezuelan oil.

The Chinese-led drills were organized last year under the BRICS bloc of developing nations and South Africa's armed forces said the maneuvers will practice maritime safety and anti-piracy operations and “deepen cooperation.”

China, Russia and South Africa are longtime members of BRICS, while Iran joined the group in 2024.

The Iranian navy was taking part in the drills while protests grow back home against the country's leadership.

It was not immediately clear if other countries from the BRICS group would take part in the drills. A spokesperson for the South African armed forces said he wasn't yet able to confirm all the countries participating in the drills, which are due to run until next Friday.

Chinese, Russian and Iranian ships were seen moving in and out of the harbor that serves South Africa's top naval base in Simon's Town, south of Cape Town, where the Indian Ocean meets the Atlantic Ocean. China's ships include the Tangshan, a 161-meter (528-foot) -long destroyer class vessel. Russia's Baltic Fleet said it sent a smaller warship, the Stoikiy, and a replenishment tanker to South Africa.

South Africa also hosted Chinese and Russian ships for navy drills in 2023.

The latest drills were meant to happen in late November but were delayed for diplomatic reasons because South Africa hosted Western and other world leaders for the Group of 20 summit around the same time.

The drills are bound to further strain ties between the US and South Africa, which is the most advanced economy in Africa and a leading voice for the continent but has been especially targeted for criticism by the Trump administration.

US President Donald Trump said in an executive order in February that South Africa supports "bad actors on the world stage" and singled out its ties with Iran as one of the reasons for the US cutting funding to the country. China and Russia have often used BRICS forums to launch criticism of the US and the West.

South Africa has long claimed it follows a nonaligned foreign policy and remains neutral, but Russian presence on the southern tip of Africa has strained its relationship with the US before. The Biden administration accused South Africa in 2023 of allowing a sanctioned Russian ship to dock at the Simon's Town naval base and load weapons to be taken to Russia for the war in Ukraine. South Africa denied the allegation.

South Africa's willingness to host Russian and Iranian warships has also been criticized inside the country. The Democratic Alliance, the second biggest political party in the coalition government, said it was opposed to hosting drills that included “heavily sanctioned” Russia and Iran.

“Calling these drills ‘BRICS cooperation’ is a political trick to soften what is really happening: Government is choosing closer military ties with rogue and sanctioned states such as Russia and Iran,” the Democratic Alliance said.