Moldova's President Maia Sandu has warned that a peace deal for Ukraine weighted in favour of either side would not deliver lasting peace but merely pause the fighting, allowing Russia to regroup and attack again. She said such an outcome would threaten Ukraine, other former Soviet states, and give the Kremlin dangerous leverage over Europe.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Sandu said she believes President Donald Trump wants peace but that there is not enough pressure on Russia to agree to stop the war. "We want a just peace and we want a peace which will be sustainable. We don't want a peace which is going to provoke Russia in six months from now to come back," she said.
Her comments come after Trump met Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Sunday, claiming that a peace agreement was close to completion. Zelensky has also reiterated his readiness to meet Putin "in any format", according to reports.
Meanwhile, Russian forces have continued their attacks. Overnight strikes on the Odesa region caused "significant" damage to two energy facilities, according to Ukraine's leading energy provider DTEK. Moscow has also accused Ukraine of a 91-drone attack on Putin's residence, a claim Ukraine's foreign ministry said lacked "plausible evidence". Reports also suggest Putin has ordered his armies to expand the war in 2026 and seize more Ukrainian territory, including buffer zones in Sumy and Kharkiv.
In a separate development, Major Oleh Shyriaiev, a decorated Ukrainian soldier, has alleged that Russian forces are systematically executing prisoners of war. He told The Times that he often intercepts transmissions with orders to kill surrendering troops. Combat observers say evidence of alleged war crimes by Russian troops has grown in recent months.
