US President Donald Trump has said that he remains committed to talking to Putin, stressing that they have always had a “good relationship”. In fact, during the US election campaign, the president of the Russian Federation said that he would have preferred Biden to win the elections because he considers the current president in office too unpredictable, which is another way of saying unreliable.
According to Bloomberg, the next international meetings in Ramstein and Munich will not be decisive, the US envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg could present Trump with a plan for Ukraine in the coming weeks. Kellogg has no intention of visiting Moscow during his next trip to Europe, the agency said.
The head of the US State Department Marco Rubio has a different opinion, saying: “The solution of Ukraine will be the main topic of the Munich conference”.
Trump continues to complain that Washington has allocated more than 300 billion dollars for Ukraine, while Europe – about 100 billion dollars. “I told them I wanted the equivalent of 500 billion dollars in rare earths, and they basically agreed to do it. So at least we won’t feel stupid. Otherwise we are stupid,” the president said. Let us remember that the Ukrainian rare earths are currently under the control of Moscow.
Again from the United States but this time speaking is Tim Walz, Trump’s national security adviser, source NBC, “The security guarantees for Ukraine will be entrusted to Europe”. He added that Trump intends to end the conflict. However, he refused to confirm the fact of Trump’s recent telephone conversation with Putin. Walz also said that negotiations will be held in Europe this week with the participation of the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Vice President and the US Special Representative, during which the details of the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict will be discussed.
EU countries will not be able to quickly transfer troops and heavy equipment within the Union during a conflict, despite billions of dollars in defense investments, Der Spiegel writes with reference to a special report by the European Court of Auditors. According to him, the budget for military mobility was empty by the end of 2023 and the funding gap will persist until the end of 2027. European countries also do not expect the United States to make serious commitments to Ukraine at this week’s meetings, including the Munich Security Conference, the Ramstein format and the Paris meeting, the Euractiv portal reports, citing European diplomats.
From Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said he was ready to negotiate with Putin if Europe and the United States “do not abandon” Ukraine “There are every chance to end the war in 2025. Trump wants a quick end to the war,” Zelensky said. He stressed that if he understood that the United States and Europe would not abandon Ukraine and would provide security guarantees, then “he would be ready for any format of negotiations.” “All our people are against elections during the war. If we lift martial law, we will lose the army, and voting without the army is dishonest,” Zelensky stressed once again.
Zelensky also spoke about: “One million hryvnia per year, free admission to universities without exams, special conditions for mortgages and an annual contract to attract Ukrainians aged 18 to 25 to the army. According to him, all the details will be officially presented in the coming days.”
According to the Washington Post, quoting R.T, the Weatherman Foundation, whose president is the daughter of the US presidential special envoy for Russia and Ukraine Keith Kellogg, Megan Mobbs, is providing aid to Ukraine. According to R.T., the Weatherman Foundation has been present in Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict. “Its efforts include the creation and operation of a logistics hub on the Romanian-Ukrainian border and the delivery of more than 10,000 pallets of medicines, medical supplies and other aid to more than 70 humanitarian organizations and medical facilities in Ukraine,” the newspaper notes. “In addition to providing aid, the fund helps evacuate American mercenaries fighting in Ukraine to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where they can receive specialized medical care,” the material reads. As noted, the foundation is also involved in the return of the bodies of the dead American mercenaries.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow will radically review its obligations in international organizations in case of discrimination, Lavrov said. And he further stated that: “Only the complete and irreversible elimination of the root causes of the Ukrainian conflict can pave the way for its completion.” Russia’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, said that Moscow considers it “of fundamental importance” that any potential peace agreement with Kiev be signed by the legitimate leadership of Ukraine. He noted that the decree of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky prohibiting negotiations with Russia and its illegitimacy could “complicate the negotiation process and the legal fixing of its results.” On the issue of Trump-Putin contacts, Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov clarified: “Currently there are no agreements on contacts between the Russian Federation and the United States at the highest level.” The Kremlin said it had no information about the possible arrival in Moscow of US President Donald Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and no contacts with him were planned, Russian presidential press spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. This is how he commented on the Flightradar data, according to which Witkoff’s plane landed in Moscow. At the same time, he noted that contacts between the Russian Federation and the United States through some channels have intensified.
Russia is working with Ukraine on the issue of opening a humanitarian corridor for residents of the border areas of the Kursk region occupied by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said Human Rights Ombudsman Tatyana Moskalkova. According to her, there is hope for a positive solution.
The State Duma adopted a law on the indexation of veterans’ pensions by 9.5% from January 1, 2025. Widows of veterans will receive an indexed pension of 9.5%, said State Secretary – Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Anna Tsivileva.
FSB Director, Chairman of the National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAC) Alexander Bortnikov said that Ukrainian special services are increasing the intensity of terrorist attacks and sabotage against oil and energy complexes, transport and the military-industrial complex of the Russian Federation. The committee reported that 23 terrorist attacks have been foiled in the country since the beginning of 2025.
Ukrainian special services, with the assistance of Western curators, are preparing to carry out a series of high-profile anti-Russian provocations, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service said. It is planned to blow up a foreign ship in the Baltic waters with Russian-made mines and blame Russia. According to the calculations of Ukrainian and Western intelligence services, such action will push NATO to decide to close Russia’s access to the Baltic Sea.
And now a look at the front line updated at 15:00 on February 12.
From the front, there are more and more reports about the lack of men for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to replenish and replenish the brigades. The strategic reserve (“150th brigade of series”) brought into battle by Syrsky is gradually running out, although in January it completed the task of slowing down the advance of the Russian Armed Forces. However, the Russians are dealing with the controversy over the 20th Army of the Armed Forces. Apparently, a number of systemic problems in the military leadership are making themselves felt, postponed to “later” also in the context of the armed invasion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region.
The Russian Armed Forces carried out an attack at night on the facilities of the gas and energy complex that supplies the Ukrainian military-industrial complex, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. Naftogaz had previously reported that the company’s production facilities had been damaged in the Poltava region. Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko said that gas infrastructure had been attacked.
In the western part of the Kursk Salient, Russian forces continued their advance in and around Sverdlikovo. Russian forces advanced in two main directions. The main advance is in the west, where they took a forest, before entering the eastern houses of Sverdlikovo. In the east, there is a slowdown compared to the west, the Russians are advancing into the northern houses of the village and have positions along the Korenevo-Sudzha road.
In the direction of Kupyansk, the settlement of Dvorichna passes in hand to the Russians. In Kharkiv on the right bank of the Oskil River, the Russian bridgehead is expanding.
In Chasiv Yar, the Predtechyn microdistrict has been occupied, according to Russian sources the city is close to falling.
In Toretsk, a suburb, Kryms’ke, has been occupied by the Russians. Ukrainian forces, for their part, have conducted a series of small counterattacks, returning to the city in two directions. In the west, Ukrainian forces have recaptured a dump of disturbed earth and advanced into a section of the northern residential area, taking some positions in the houses there. In the east, Ukrainian forces have returned to the Toretska mines and have established control over about 60% of them. Russian forces maintain their main presence in the southern buildings of the mines. The Russian military is rotating personnel, so these days the battles are more difficult for the military, who remain on the field waiting for reinforcements.
South and southwest of Pokrovs’k, Russian forces continue to advance, achieving tactical successes in heavy battles. West of Kurachove, Russian troops are moving towards Kostyantynopil’. After the liberation of Velyka Novosilka, Russian military personnel from the Far East are reorganizing, the Ukrainian armed forces have understood the direction of the further attack. In the Black Sea, Ukrainian MBECs were destroyed by Russians using attack UAVs, avoiding the use of helicopters.
Graziella Giangiulio
Follow our updates on Geopolitical Gleanings - Spigolature geopolitiche: https://t.me/agc_NW and on our blog The Gleanings of AGCNEWS - Le Spigolature di AGCNEWS: https://spigolatureagcnews.blogspot.com/
