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Yuri Ushakov

Yuri Ushakov

Kremlin foreign policy adviser

Appears in 2 stories

Stories

Russia tries to break Ukraine’s winter: Odesa blacked out after 450-drone barrage

Built World

Kremlin foreign policy adviser - Publicly signaling Russia’s postwar security presence demands in Donbas

Russia didn’t just strike Ukraine overnight. It tried to turn the lights off on a whole region. Ukrainian officials say more than 450 drones and about 30 missiles slammed energy and port infrastructure, pushing Odesa and surrounding areas into blackout.

Updated Dec 13, 2025

Trump’s contentious push to end the Ukraine war

Force in Play

Top Foreign Policy Aide to Vladimir Putin - Lead Russian interlocutor on U.S. drafts, pressing for “serious, radical changes”

In late 2025, the Trump administration’s drive to broker an end to Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine entered a decisive phase. U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said a peace deal was “really, really close,” with only two core disputes left: the fate of the Donbas region—especially the remaining Ukrainian‑held parts of Donetsk—and the future of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest. Kellogg estimated over 2 million combined Russian and Ukrainian casualties since Russia’s 2022 invasion, as Moscow now holds roughly 19% of Ukraine’s territory, including Crimea and most of Donbas.

Updated Dec 11, 2025