Zelensky demands access to Russian assets in the West

In addition to aid from banks and allies, the share of frozen Russian assets must also be increased. "We are talking about tens of billions," said Selenskyj according to a statement from the presidential office in Kiev. He will raise the issue at the Munich Security Conference from February 14 to 16 in talks with European partners.

The group of seven major Western industrialized nations (G7) has so far decided to grant Ukraine a loan of 50 billion US dollars (around 48 billion euros) - for which Russia is to pay indirectly. The loan is secured by interest income from Russian state assets frozen in the West. Ukraine also wants access to the assets itself.

Selenskyj: Internally displaced persons need housing

"The funds could be used to help people acquire housing and find a place to live," said Zelenskyi at a meeting with the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Odile Renaud-Basso, in Kiev. The talks were about support for people who had become refugees in the country because they had lost their homes due to the war.

This is an urgent issue for millions of Ukrainian internally displaced persons, Selensky said in his evening video message broadcast in Kiev. He had instructed the government to implement a clear and effective support program for the internally displaced persons within the next two weeks.

Renaud-Basso said in a statement after her fifth visit to the country since the start of the war that the EBRD had transferred 6.2 billion euros to Ukraine in the almost three years of the large-scale Russian invasion, including 2.4 billion euros last year. She also said that support for the country would continue - for example for the implementation of energy projects.

Zelensky thanks for fighter jets from France and the Netherlands

In his video message, Zelensky thanked the country's allies for the latest arms deliveries. French President Emmanuel Macron had fulfilled the agreement to strengthen the Ukrainian air force with Mirage fighter jets. According to French and Ukrainian sources, the aircraft have now been delivered. This will help to carry out more combat missions, said Selenskyj. The delivery of US-made F-16 fighter jets from the Netherlands is also significant, said Selenskyj. He did not specify the number of units.

Moscow politicians: Putin to meet Trump soon

Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump could soon meet to discuss the conflict over Ukraine, according to reports from Moscow. Prominent Russian foreign policy expert Leonid Sluzki expects a meeting to take place in the near future. "February or March, we don't want to guess and give the two leaders the opportunity to prepare for it carefully and comprehensively, but it will take place soon," said Sluzki, who is head of the State Duma's Foreign Affairs Committee, according to the Russian news agency Interfax. Preparations for the meeting are at an "advanced stage".

So far, Trump and Putin have only ever publicly declared their willingness to agree on a solution to the Ukraine conflict at a meeting. However, there is no location or date for such talks. The Kremlin has so far only confirmed that there are now contacts between the Russian and US sides, but has not provided any details.

Sluzki, who was also involved in the first negotiations for a solution to the conflict in 2022, has now expressed the hope that the meeting between the two presidents will be constructive. "It will be about Ukraine, the Middle East and more generally about issues of world politics and international relations in the near future. I am sure that this meeting will be a milestone," said Sluzki.

Dissolution of US task force against Russian oligarchs

Meanwhile, US Attorney General Pam Bondi ordered the dissolution of a Department of Justice law enforcement unit tasked with enforcing sanctions against Russian oligarchs. The employees working in the "KleptoCapture" task force are to return to their former posts and the resources deployed are to be used to combat drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations. This is contained in a memorandum signed by Bondi, which was made public on Thursday (local time) according to media reports.

The "KleptoCapture" task force was set up after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine in 2022 under then US Attorney General Merrick Garland to "bring corrupt Russian oligarchs to justice", according to a memorandum from the Department at the time. The unit was intended to help enforce the sanctions and export restrictions introduced by the USA and other countries in response to Russia's attack.

Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and has been waging a war of aggression against the neighboring country marked by death and destruction ever since.