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Nato leaders to meet over Ukraine-Russia war
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks as British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, seated from background left, France's President Emmanuel Macron and President Donald Trump listen during a meeting in the East Room of the White House, August 18, 2025

NATO military leaders were expected to hold a virtual meeting last night as Western countries push for an end to the Russia-Ukraine war that addresses Kiev's fears of a future attack by Moscow's forces.

The talks were due to take place after the Morning Star had gone to press.

Italian Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, who chairs the Nato military committee, said 32 defence chiefs from across the Western alliance would join the video conference amid a US-led diplomatic push to end the fighting.

US General Alexus Grynkewich, the Nato supreme allied commander for Europe, was expected to participate, Mr Dragone said on X.

US Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Dan Caine was also set to join, according to a US defence official who spoke anonymously.

Gen Caine met European military chiefs in Washington on Tuesday evening to consider “the best military options for political leaders,” according to the defence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dismissed Western attempts to shape security arrangements in Ukraine without Moscow.

“We cannot agree with the fact that it is now proposed to resolve collective security issues without the Russian Federation. This will not work,” he told a news conference in Moscow today, vowing that Russia would “ensure [its] legitimate interests firmly and harshly.”

US President Donald Trump has held back-to-back meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in recent days, but neither delivered tangible progress.

“We need strong security guarantees to ensure a truly secure and lasting peace,” Mr Zelensky said on Telegram today, after Russian missile and drone strikes hit six regions overnight.

Authorities reported attacks on civilian areas in Sumy and Odessa, injuring 15 people, including a family with three young children.

Strikes also targeted ports and energy infrastructure, officials said.

Kiev’s European allies are considering the deployment of a multinational force to underpin any agreement.

A coalition of 30 countries, including Japan and Australia, has signed up to support the plan, though military chiefs are still debating how it might operate.

Mr Trump has said the US may provide air support to back a peace deal but ruled out deploying ground troops.

In a radio interview, he described his negotiating approach as “probably instinct more than process.”

Russia has repeatedly warned it will not accept Nato troops in Ukraine.

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