Kyiv, Dec. 12 — Ukrainian officials said earlier this week that long-range drones struck a major offshore oil platform in the Caspian Sea, CNN reported, describing the action as part of a broader, undisclosed operation intended to disrupt Russian energy revenues that help finance the war. Authorities gave few operational details but framed the strike as a widening of targets tied to Moscow’s finances.
Separately, the Kyiv Post reported that European leaders have launched an urgent diplomatic effort to prevent U.S. President Donald Trump from pushing Ukraine into what they fear could be a hasty peace agreement favorable to Russia. Officials worry the Kremlin might take advantage of Trump’s apparent desire for a quick foreign-policy victory, with the president reportedly aiming for a resolution before the New Year.
At the White House, Trump warned the protracted Russia-Ukraine war risks spiraling into a wider conflict and said he wants the violence to end. After signing an executive order aimed at avoiding a fragmented patchwork of state-level artificial intelligence rules, he told reporters that roughly 25,000 people — ‘‘mostly soldiers,’’ he said — died in the war last month alone, voicing frustration over the continuing bloodshed and reiterating his call for an immediate halt to hostilities.
In Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed to European partners for increased support, saying Russian attacks continue and that stronger defense aid is essential to save lives and create breathing room for diplomacy toward a just peace. He said Ukraine convened its ‘‘Coalition of the Willing’’ to secure dependable security guarantees featuring substantial European deterrent elements and stressed the importance of continued U.S. backing.
“No one is interested in a third Russian invasion,” Zelenskyy wrote on X, thanking nations that have provided assistance.
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