But as the sketchy details have hardened into a growing prospect of forthcoming demands that will prove impossible for Ukraine to accept, confidence is giving way to unease, not least about the planned meeting in Washington on Monday between Mr Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Expectations are fairly low heading into Friday's meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, but quite a lot is on the line for European construction companies.

Zelenskyy said at a news briefing in Kyiv that Putin wants the remaining 9,000 square kilometers (3,500 square miles) of Donetsk under Kyiv’s control, where the war’s toughest battles are grinding on, as part of a ceasefire plan. He said the Russian position was conveyed to him by U.S. officials.

Ukraine's largest mobile operator Kyivstar successfully tested Starlink's Direct to Cell satellite technology, allowing text messages sent directly from smartphones via satellite, as announced by the Ministry of Digital Transformation and Kyivstar parent company Veon.

As President Trump talks of land swaps, Ukrainians find it difficult to imagine giving up the Donbas, for military, humanitarian and political reasons.

The issue of ending the war launched by Russia cannot be resolved without the participation of Ukraine and Europe, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said in an interview with the BBC. According to him, after the end of Joe Biden's presidency ...