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Zelensky and allies head to White House for Ukraine talks
US President Donald Trump will host Volodymyr Zelensky today [Monday] for their first meeting since the pair’s heated exchange in the White House earlier this year – but this time the Ukrainian president is bringing European allies.
Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte and UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer are among leaders who will join Zelensky in Washington for talks on how to end the war with Russia.
It follows Trump’s summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska that resulted in the US president dropping a demand for a ceasefire and calling instead for a permanent peace deal.
A US envoy said on Sunday that Putin had agreed to a possible Nato-like security pact for Ukraine.
“BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA. STAY TUNED!” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, without elaborating.
Also heading to Washington for Monday’s meeting are French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. It is unclear how many of them will go to the White House.
For so many heads of state to travel with such little notice across the Atlantic to what is essentially a wartime crisis meeting appears without precedent in the modern era, underscoring the sky-high stakes.
Diplomatic sources say European officials are concerned that Trump may try to press Zelensky to agree to terms, after the Ukrainian leader was excluded from the Trump-Putin meeting on US soil last Friday.
But US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the BBC’s US partner CBS that any suggestion Zelensky might be bullied by Trump into accepting a peace deal was a “stupid media narrative”.
Nato leaders also appear eager to avoid a repeat of Zelensky’s February trip to the Oval Office that ended abruptly after an argument with Trump and US Vice-President JD Vance.
The altercation – which saw Trump accuse Zelensky of “gambling with World War Three” – left Washington-Kyiv ties in tatters.
But European leaders have been working diligently behind the scenes since then to mend the relationship. The Ukrainian leader has been coached to talk in terms of deal-making – language that resonates with Trump.
In April, Ukraine signed a minerals agreement that gave the US a financial stake in the country, and Trump and Zelensky spoke privately at the Vatican before Pope Francis’s funeral. Ukraine made clear it was willing to pay for US weapons.
By July, the two leaders had a phone call that the Ukrainian president described as “the best conversation we have had”.
Meanwhile, Trump had begun to express exasperation with Russia’s unrelenting onslaught in Ukraine. He called Putin “absolutely crazy”, drastically shortened his deadline for a peace deal, and threatened economic sanctions on Moscow.
As these deliberations grind on, Russian forces continue to advance on the battlefield. They now occupy almost a fifth of Ukraine since Moscow launched its full scale invasion in February 2022.
A virtual summit was held on Sunday between Zelensky and the so-called coalition of the willing – a group of nations including the UK, France and Germany that have pledged to protect peace in Ukraine once it is achieved.
Afterwards, Emmanuel Macron told reporters their plan was to “present a united front” for Monday’s talks with Trump.
Zelensky and the Nato leaders said they were keen to learn more after US envoy Steve Witkoff told US television that Putin had agreed on Friday to “robust security guarantees that I would describe as game-changing”.
Witkoff said such an agreement could see Europe and the US protect Ukraine from further aggression with a Nato-like defence agreement.
“We were able to win the following concession: that the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in Nato,” Witkoff told CNN on Sunday.
Putin has long opposed Ukraine joining Nato, and Witkoff said the arrangement could be an alternative if the Ukrainians “can live with it”.
Article 5 is a principle at the heart of the 32-member transatlantic military alliance that says its members will come to the defence of an ally that is under attack.
Witkoff also told CNN that Russia made “some concessions” around five heavily contested regions of Ukraine.
In talks with European allies after the Alaska summit, Trump said Putin had reiterated that he wants the key Donetsk and Luhansk regions that make up Donbas, eastern Ukraine, according to European officials.
But at Sunday’s virtual summit with Nato leaders, Zelensky stressed that the Ukrainian constitution makes it impossible to give up territory – and that this should only be discussed by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at a trilateral summit with the US.
The US secretary of state, meanwhile, sought to temper hopes that a deal to end Europe’s deadliest conflict for 80 years could be imminent.
“We’re still a long ways off,” Rubio said on Sunday.
[BBC]
Zohran Mamdani has been sworn in as mayor of New York City, becoming the first Muslim and the youngest person in generations to take the oath of office in the United States’ biggest city.
Mamdani, a Democrat, was sworn in at a historic, decommissioned subway station in Manhattan just after midnight on Thursday, placing his hand on a Quran as he took his oath.
(Aljazeera)
Countries around the world are welcoming the New Year as midnight strikes from time zone to time zone.
The island of Kiritimati – an atoll in the remote Pacific nation of Kiribati – became the first place to enter 2026. One tourist there told us he marked it “on a beach with no satellites, no signs of human life, complete darkness and countless crabs”.
Spectators in the UK have enjoyed thousands of fireworks light up London skies, while in Edinburgh, crowds gathered in true Hogmanay fashion despite weather warnings.
Then Australia lit up the sky over the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.
In Sydney, celebrations were tempered by sadness as the nation reflected on the Bondi Beach attack on 14 December in which 15 people were killed.
At 23:00 local time, Sydney Harbour fell silent for a minute, with crowds holding lights to remember the victims of Bondi. A Jewish menorah was projected on to the pylons of the Harbour Bridge.
Elsewhere, there were more fireworks at Marina Bay Waterfront in Singapore.
Fireworks matched the brilliance of skyscraper lights in Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines. [BBC]
Thousands lined the Chao Phraya river in Bangkok as Thailand welcomed the New Year.
In Dubai, people watched fireworks from the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, following a performance with light displays, music and water jets.
[BBC]
In Hong Kong, spectators enjoyed live performances with fetching headwear.
The Juyongguan Great Wall was lit up in Beijing.
[BBC]
Laser lights dominated the night sky over the Lotte World Tower, South Korea’s tallest building in Seoul.
At the Bosingak pavilion in Seoul, artists performed during the New Year countdown.
A street performer showed off her fiery skills as part of the Procession of Light in Dublin before heading to the Matinee Countdown Concert in Dublin Castle.
In other parts of the world, nations marked the coming New Year with their own traditions.
On a nudist beach in Le Cap d’Agde, southern France, clothed and unclothed revellers took part in a traditional sea dip to mark the New Year’s celebrations.
Swimmers at Islands Brygge Harbour Bath in Copenhagen, Denmark, also braved the cold waters for a traditional splash, known as Nytaarsbad.
In Ommen, the Netherlands, local residents watched the annual carbide shooting – a New Year’s Eve tradition of turning milk cans into cannons.
In Osaka, Japan, young women dressed in traditional kimono took part in a Shinto ritual procession to mark the end of the year at Sumiyoshi Taisha, one of Japan’s oldest Shinto shrines.
Colourful runners braved the December air in Krakow, Poland, for the traditional Krakow New Year’s Run in the Old Town.
Adults and children performed a traditional dance to release the sun of 2025, and to welcome the sun of 2026, in in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.
AFP via Getty Images
Highlighting the spirit of global and regional cooperation, the Sri Lanka Navy acknowledged the invaluable support by foreign warships, which had arrived to take part in the International Fleet Review (IFR) 2025, extending much-needed Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations, during the recent weather disaster in Sri Lanka.
The IFR 2025 was held off the Galle Face seas, marking the milestone 75th anniversary celebrations of the Sri Lanka Navy.
Representing the Government of Sri Lanka, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya graced the event and received the traditional naval salute from onboard SLNS Gajabahu, as the participating foreign warships paid their honours.
Eight (08) foreign naval warships arrived in Sri Lanka by 27 November to take part in the IFR under the theme “Sailing Strong – Together”. The participating warships included the Bangladesh Navy’s BNS PROTTOY, the Indian Navy’s aircraft carrier INS VIKRANT and INS UDAYGIRI, Iran Navy’s IRIS NAGHDI, the Maldivian Coast Guard’s CGS HURAVEE, the Royal Malaysian Navy’s KD TERENGGANU, Pakistan Navy’s PNS SAIF and Russian Navy’s GREMYASCHCHY.
Due to the disaster-situation triggered by severe weather conditions across the island, foreign warships that arrived for the event were promptly redirected to support humanitarian efforts. Particularly, helicopters deployed from the Indian Navy’s aircraft carrier INS VIKRANT and Pakistan Navy’s PNS SAIF played a praiseworthy role in search and rescue missions for affected communities.
Accordingly, the warships representing each nation joined the IFR, honouring proud maritime traditions and in acknowledgement of Sri Lanka and its Navy. Their participation also reinforced collective cooperation and partnership needed to address non-traditional maritime threats in the region, as well as natural disasters driven by climate change.
The Prime Minister expressed gratitude to a group of diplomatic officials, present on this occasion, for their support in the disaster relief operations. The officials, who were present on the occasion, represented the High Commissions and Embassies of Bangladesh, India, Iran, Maldives, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Russia in Sri Lanka.
Zohran Mamdani sworn in as New York City mayor
In pictures: New Year welcomed around the world
Foreign warships commended for their assistance during weather disaster in Sri Lanka
Machu Picchu train crash leaves one dead and dozens injured
I invite you to step into 2026 with renewed energy, hope, and determination – PM
Fairly heavy showers about 75 mm are likely at some places in the Central and Uva provinces and in Batticaloa and Ampara districts
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