Ukrainian war, GB media: Meloni also on the shortlist of EU candidates to negotiate with Russia. LIVE

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni would be among a shortlist of five names among which the EU must decide to choose a mediator with Vladimir Putin's Russia in the peace talks to put an end to the conflict in Ukraine. The Daily Telegraph writes this, citing diplomatic sources. In addition to Meloni, the names of Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Czech President Petr Pavel, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store were mentioned in the Brussels shortlist.

Meanwhile, Moscow for the first time does not close a trilateral Putin-Trump-Zelensky summit on Ukraine. “The discussion is ongoing,” says Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov, confirming that the topic was raised in talks between the Russian leader and Witkoff. Putin sets limits on future negotiations. He reiterates that "territories of eastern Ukraine are historically Russian" and underlines how the trilateral must address "security guarantees also for Moscow". However, the glimmers of dialogue are contrasted by the situation on the ground. Zelensky denounces three new waves of missiles on Kiev.

Russia will respond to the expulsion of its diplomats from Austria, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Dmitry Lyubinsky said. "The response will be inevitable," Lyubinsky said, quoted by Tass. Three employees of the Russian diplomatic mission in Vienna and one of the Russian Permanent Mission to the OSCE have been declared persona non grata by the Austrian authorities.

The EU will provide two-thirds of the additional 70 billion euros requested by Ukraine to continue the fight against Russia next year. The President of the European Council Antonio Costa stated this in an interview with Rapporteur. "Normally we cover two thirds of Ukraine's financial needs. At the last European Council we agreed to ensure that Ukraine's additional needs are met and we instructed the Commission to present concrete solutions in this regard. The Commission is working and I assume that in November we will be able to take a decision on this matter", explained Costa, then focusing on another sensitive dossier for Brussels, the multiannual budget. "I am working to reach an agreement at the November Council. The basic budget should be approved in November, and it is possible to reach an agreement in that month," Costa underlined.

A vast incense has developed at a chemical plant in Russia's Perm region, at the foot of the Ural Mountains, hit by Ukrainian drones. According to the independent Telegram channel 'Astra', this is the 'Azot' plant, owned by 'Uralchem', a major producer of mineral fertilizers. The plant produces ammonia, nitric acid, ammonium and potassium nitrates, urea, nitrite and nitrate salts, as well as other chemicals, some of which are used in the manufacture of explosives. The fire was confirmed by residents near the plant. The local airport has suspended operations: over 20 flights have been postponed and four have been cancelled. According to the Ministry of Defense, in the last 12 hours air defense systems have "intercepted and destroyed 433 fixed-wing Ukrainian drones" in 20 Russian regions, in the Crimean peninsula (annexed by Russia) and in the Black and Azov seas.

Romania launched a rescue operation following a distress call from a ship. “Rescue units managed to recover nine people alive and one body from the water,” the Romanian Naval Authority said in a statement, adding that three crew members of the vessel Khoryv – which was “in difficulty outside Romanian territorial waters” – were missing. The causes of the emergency still remain to be ascertained, as the authorities have not provided official information. However, the episode is part of a worrying trail of incidents in the Black Sea, where a series of attacks conducted with drones - suspected of being Russian - recently targeted several merchant ships off the coast of Romania and Bulgaria.

Ukrainian police have arrested a 17-year-old girl suspected of helping Russian security services poison Ukrainian soldiers, resulting in the deaths of two of them. According to a police statement, the young woman - whose name was not disclosed - is suspected of having prepared lethal substances and sending them to Ukrainian soldiers, with whom she had come into contact via Telegram. She was stopped in Zhytomyr, west of Kiev, after allegedly following the instructions of a Russian handler in exchange for at least 5,000 hryvnias (about 100 euros). According to the note, the soldiers, once they received the packages containing "free drugs", were "invited to take them in front of the camera". “The recipients did not know that the capsules contained a lethal dose of methadone,” the statement continues, adding that “two soldiers died from poisoning in the Zytomyr region.” Police said they had identified other recipients of the packages, thus managing to "prevent four more murders" in the country. "The young woman has been notified that she is suspected of complicity in the premeditated murder of two people, as part of a pre-arranged plan," police say. She is also accused of "shipment of narcotic and psychotropic substances for the purpose of distribution" and, if convicted, faces up to 15 years in prison. Law enforcement officials stressed that Russia's goal is "to kill our people and destabilize the internal situation in the country." Since the conflict began in 2022, Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of recruiting minors to carry out acts of sabotage, including poisoning. Since the start of the large-scale Russian invasion in February 2022, Ukrainian authorities report having launched thousands of investigations for collaboration with the enemy, frequently arresting individuals accused of working for Moscow. In 2023, Ukraine accused Russia of poisoning the wife of Kyrylo Budanov, then the head of Ukraine's military intelligence and now a presidential advisor.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni would be among a shortlist of five names among which the EU must decide to choose a mediator with Vladimir Putin's Russia in the peace talks to put an end to the conflict in Ukraine. The Daily Telegraph writes this, citing diplomatic sources. In addition to Meloni, the names of Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Czech President Petr Pavel, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store were mentioned in the Brussels shortlist. In recent weeks, the British newspaper reports, the urgency in Europe to find representatives to be included in the peace negotiations has grown, due to the fear that American President Donald Trump will not protect the interests of the continent. However, previous attempts to agree on a single leader capable of gaining the support of capitals across the continent have failed. A source familiar with the discussions said a group of leaders would likely be chosen, thus avoiding competition between countries for the role and the risk of vetoes on individual candidates.

Swedish defense group Saab more than tripled its order book in the third quarter, thanks in particular to a major contract for Gripen fighter jets for Ukraine; the company has also announced its intention to increase its production capacities, according to what emerges from the quarterly report published today. “Growing customer demand is resulting in significant orders, in particular for Gripen fighters destined for Ukraine, for the GlobalEye aerial surveillance system and for a contract related to new German frigates,” said Micael Johansson, the group's chief executive, quoted in the report. “We continue to invest in our future capabilities and develop our manufacturing capabilities; at the same time, our strong order book and progress on ongoing programs place us in a favorable position to continue our growth path,” he added. The value of new orders reached 65.8 billion crowns (5.9 billion euros), compared to 20.9 billion recorded a year earlier. The overall order book thus stands at 364.2 billion crowns, with an increase of 80% on an annual basis. Turnover reached 20.6 billion crowns, marking an increase of 30 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. Saab's net profit jumped 47 percent in the third quarter to 1.43 billion crowns. At the end of June, Ukraine signed a contract for the purchase of 16 Gripen E aircraft, the latest version of this aircraft model. And in July, Saab signed a contract worth around 783 million euros (8.7 billion crowns) with German shipbuilder TKMS (Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems) to equip four new frigates for the German navy.

A Russian drone hit a house in the Zhytomyr region (in northern Ukraine) during the night, injuring nine people, including two minors, according to local authorities. “Russia continues its deliberate terrorist action against the peaceful Zhytomyr region,” regional governor Vitalii Bunechko wrote on Telegram. Two of the injured were taken to hospital, Bunechko added.

Zhytomyr is a city located in northwestern Ukraine, with over 200,000 inhabitants. In recent weeks, the city's energy infrastructure has come under repeated Russian attacks. While Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure, it has stepped up attacks against it in recent weeks ahead of the winter months. Attacks on energy infrastructure earlier this month caused repeated power and water outages for hundreds of thousands of citizens in Kiev and frontline cities.

Russian armed forces struck a railway depot in the Poltava region, the territory of which is used by the Ukrainian armed forces for storage and repair of military equipment. This was reported by the Russian Ministry of Defense. "Tonight, the Russian Armed Forces continued to conduct drone strikes against railway infrastructure, Ukrainian ports and ships employed on behalf of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The attack damaged the Poltava railway depot in the Poltava region, the territory of which is used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces for storage and repair of military equipment," the statement read.

European leaders are vetting potential negotiators to engage with Vladimir Putin in talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. Diplomatic sources told the Telegraph that contact had been made with possible candidates for the role. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and Czech President Petr Pavel have all been put forward for the position, as have Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Prime Minister, and Jonas Gahr Støre, the Norwegian Prime Minister. In recent weeks, a sense of urgency has grown across Europe to find representatives to join peace talks, amid fears that Donald Trump no longer represents the continent's best interests.

“What Europe has learned is that there must first be a consensus that we need to negotiate with the Russians,” a source familiar with the discussions told the Telegraph. “Second, there has to be a consensus on what that position is.” Europe's push to take a bigger role in negotiations between Kiev and Moscow was sparked by more than a year of unsuccessful U.S. mediation. Trump's attempts to broker a peace deal have largely stalled due to Putin's refusal to abandon his maximalist territorial demands in Ukraine. On Wednesday, Steve Witkoff, the US president's envoy, announced that trilateral talks between the US, Ukraine and Russia will resume next month. However, the discussions will take place against the backdrop of the White House's decision to lift sanctions on Moscow and a deal to import diesel from Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Russians will intensify ballistic attacks against Ukraine, especially in light of the country's dwindling supplies of interceptor missiles. He told journalists before a meeting with Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, a Ukrinform correspondent reported. "The Americans have reduced their supplies and they (the Russians, ed.) will strengthen the ballistics. It is very clear what they are doing," Zelensky said. He stressed that the supply of interceptor missiles to the Patriots, including from European partners, depends on the United States. “The Europeans can only supply the missiles if the American side accepts, that's all,” the president noted, adding that, in his opinion, the United States has now sent most of the interceptor missiles to the Middle East. At the same time, Zelensky noted that he expects a positive dialogue with the American side, in particular with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on this issue.

During the night, Russian troops massively attacked Sumy with attack drones, wounding at least two people and damaging civilian infrastructure. The news was spread on Telegram by the head of the military administration of Sumy, Oleg Hrygorov, as reported by Ukrinform. “This night, the enemy conducted a massive drone attack on Sumy. Unfortunately, some of the enemy drones achieved their objectives. The Russians' targeted attacks hit infrastructure