Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky willing to give up presidency for Nato membership

Britain will ban entry to individuals who provide significant support to the Russian state or owe their wealth to the Russian state, under new sanctions set to be announced on Monday, exactly three years after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Individuals with access to the highest levels of Russian government will also be included in the ban, the UK government said. They could include some senior politicians, government officials and business people.

The new measures would complement Britain’s existing sanctions against Russian “elites” who were supporting Russian president Vladimir Putin’s war effort, it said.

British security minister Dan Jarvis said his message to Putin’s friends in Moscow was simple: “You are not welcome in the UK.”

“The measures announced today slam the door shut to the oligarchs who have enriched themselves at the expense of the Russian people whilst bankrolling this illegal and unjustifiable war,” he said in a statement.

British prime minister Keir Starmer will travel to Washington on Thursday to discuss the war in Ukraine with president Donald Trump.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has said he refused to acknowledge that Ukraine owed the US $500 billion for the wartime aid that Washington has provided to Kyiv, a figure often cited by US president Donald Trump.

Zelensky said on Sunday that grants should not be treated as loans.

Sir Keir Starmer is expected to join world leaders in a call hosted by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion as the UK announces toughened measures against the Kremlin.

The prime minister reiterated Britain’s “ironclad” backing for Kyiv in a series of conversations with allies over the weekend as he prepares to make the case for safeguards to protect the country’s sovereignty on his visit to the US this week.

On Monday, which marks three years since Moscow’s full-scale invasion, he is expected to address leaders from the G7 and across Europe as part of a group call in a show of solidarity amid fragile transatlantic relations.

Meanwhile, the Home Office announced a move to widen travel sanctions for Kremlin-linked elites in a bid to heap more pressure on Russia as the war enters its fourth year.

Local and federal politicians as well as managers or directors of large Russian companies will face exclusion from the UK under the rules, which come on top of existing travel bans on high-profile business figures such as Roman Abramovich.

Defence Secretary John Healey said: “Keeping the Ukrainians in their fight and as strong as possible at any negotiating table is critical not only for them, but for the security of the UK.

“These new measures send a powerful message that we will do what it takes to turn the tables on Putin’s aggression.”

The prime minister will seek to position the UK as a bridge between Europe and America on his visit next week as tensions simmer after Mr Trump hit out at Mr Zelensky and White House officials met Kremlin counterparts to discuss ending the war.

He held his second call in three days with the Ukrainian president on Sunday, promising he would be “progressing important discussions” about Kyiv’s security on his visit to Washington.

The United States has urged Ukraine to withdraw its European-backed UN resolution calling for the immediate withdrawal of Russian forces in favour of a US-proposed draft that omits any mention of Moscow’s invasion, a US official and a European diplomat said on Sunday.

However, Ukraine has refused to withdraw its resolution, and the UN General Assembly is set to vote on it on Monday, marking the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, according to two European diplomats.

Following this, the 193-member General Assembly is expected to vote on the US draft resolution, the diplomats and the US official said, speaking to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity due to ongoing private negotiations.

The Trump administration is also pushing for a vote on its proposal in the more influential US Security Council. The 15-member council is scheduled to meet on Ukraine on Monday afternoon, with a vote planned immediately afterward. However, European diplomats indicated that the vote could be postponed to Tuesday at Russia’s request.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio emphasised the urgency of the moment, stating on Friday that “this is the time to commit to ending the war. This is our opportunity to build real momentum toward peace.”

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said a US troop deployment in Ukraine is logical if a minerals deal between the countries is treated as security guarantees.

Zelensky also said on Sunday that about $15 billion of previously pledged US military aid was yet to be delivered.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that a minerals deal with the US could not work if it asked Ukraine to return the value of aid already given by Washington.

Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said false statements about his ratings and amounts of US aid are dangerous steps to weaken Ukraine.

Ukraine can keep fighting Russia for the rest of the year with European support, Poland’s foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski has said.

“Ukraine can fight on its own with our European support for the rest of this year, and I think Putin has to take this into account,” Sikorski told CNN in an interview on Sunday.

Asked if his impression after talking to the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was that Ukraine would be offered security guarantees by Washington, Sikorski said the best guarantee for Ukraine was its almost million-man army, resisting Russian aggression.

“If you’d asked me three years ago where Ukraine and Russia would be in this war in three years’ time, I don’t think either of us would have guessed that Russia would only capture 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory,” Sikorski said.

“But if we are to have a durable peace, it has to be one that both sides can live with, above all, the victim of aggression.”

Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he believed US President Donald Trump’s team saw a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia as the end of the war.

Kyiv has long argued that it needs to see a long-term resolution to the war for it to feel secure due to the threat of a renewed Russian attack.