US President-elect Donald Trump has announced the appointment of General Keith Kellogg as Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia.
“I am very pleased to nominate General Keith Kellogg as Assistant to the President and Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia. Keith has had a distinguished military and business career, including serving in very important national security positions in my first administration,” Trump wrote on TruthSocial.
Previously, Kellogg served as National Security Advisor to Vice President Mike Pence, as well as Executive Secretary and Chief of Staff of the National Security Council in the first Trump administration. He served as National Security Advisor after Michael Flynn resigned.
According to The Wall Street Journal on November 6, Kellogg’s plan to end the war in Ukraine includes Ukraine’s refusal to join NATO for 20 years, freezing the front line and creating a demilitarized zone. It also provides for the transfer of the occupied Ukrainian territories to Russia.
Republican Mike Walz, Donald Trump’s future national security adviser, congratulated Keith Kellogg on his appointment as special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, confirming that Kellogg will seek a peace agreement.
“Keith has dedicated his life to protecting our great country and is committed to a peaceful resolution of the war in Ukraine,” he wrote on social media platform X.
In July 2024, in an interview with Voice of America, Keith Kellogg confirmed that Donald Trump had been given proposals to end the war in Ukraine, “an option that the president could use if elected.” In particular, according to him, such a plan involves encouraging Ukraine and Russia to start peace talks as soon as possible. It was said that the United States would continue to arm Ukraine to deter Russia from aggression during or after an agreement is reached. However, this will be done if Kyiv agrees to start negotiations.
According to the plan, to encourage Russia to negotiate, the United States and other NATO partners could postpone Ukraine’s membership in the alliance for an extended period in exchange for a “comprehensive, verifiable peace agreement with security guarantees.”
It is noted that in this version of a peaceful settlement, Ukraine may try to return its territories, but over a long period of time. It may be possible to complete this process only after Putin’s death, and through diplomatic means. It is also proposed to partially lift sanctions against Russia to encourage Moscow to take certain steps towards peace, and to establish a tax on imports of Russian energy resources for the restoration of Ukraine.
Ukraine has exported 17.764 mln tonnes of grains and pulses since the beginning of 2024-2025 marketing year as of November 27, of which 3.365 mln tonnes were shipped this month, the press service of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food reported, citing the data of the State Customs Service of Ukraine. According to the report, as of the same date last year, the total shipments amounted to 12.693 mln tons, including 3.453 mln tons in November.
In terms of crops, since the beginning of the current season, Ukraine has exported 8.73 million tons of wheat (989 thousand tons in November), 1.841 million tons of barley (142 thousand tons), 10.8 thousand tons of rye (0.2 thousand tons), and 6.886 million tons of corn (2.205 million tons).
Total exports of Ukrainian flour since the beginning of the season as of November 27 are estimated at 30.5 thsd tonnes (5 thsd tonnes in November), including 27.8 thsd tonnes of wheat (4.5 thsd tonnes).
Starting November 26, the restored version of The Color of Pomegranate will be available on Kyivstar TV. The film, which made Parajanov famous all over the world, is now available for viewing in high quality on Kyivstar TV on a subscription basis, starting with the Basic package.
The film is distributed in Ukraine by Arthouse Traffic.
The plot of The Color of Pomegranate tells the story of the life of the 18th century Armenian poet Sayat-Nova, from his childhood to his last days. The film takes you into the poet’s world, showing his spiritual quest, creative peaks and internal conflicts.
The film, which was shot in 1968, was shown in Ukraine in a restored version by the Martin Scorsese Film Foundation on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the birth of the prominent Ukrainian director of Armenian origin, Sergei Parajanov. It was part of the UNESCO’s declaration of the Parajanov Year.
During the presentation of the restored version at the Toronto Film Festival, Martin Scorsese told future viewers that they would see images and visions “that are almost unlike anything else in the history of cinema.”
Interestingly, it was thanks to the movie The Color Purple that the director managed to gain worldwide fame. Viewers in Ukraine have only now been able to fully appreciate the plot and the picture, because due to Soviet censorship, Ukrainian society lost the original version of the film, and Parajanov himself was imprisoned in Soviet prisons a few years after the film was shot.
“It is important for us to add films by legendary Ukrainian filmmakers to our video library, and it is one of the important missions for Kyivstar TV to reproduce and show Ukrainian culture,” said Pavlo Rybak, CEO of Kyivstar TV.
All Kyivstar TV users, regardless of their mobile operator and Internet provider, can watch The Color of Pomegranate on Kyivstar TV. Among the platform’s useful features is the ability to view the platform’s content on five devices simultaneously.
Kyivstar TV is a joint project of 1+1 media and Kyivstar, founded on December 11, 2019. It is a film and television platform that provides users with access to hundreds of thousands of hours of domestic and foreign content, live programs, and regularly offers exclusive pre-premiere screenings of projects. The platform has more than 430 TV channels and a VOD library of 20 thousand movies, series, cartoons and shows. For more information: tv.kyivstar.ua
DIM has put into operation the VITA 2.1 house in the Park Lake City eco-complex in Pidhirtsi, Kyiv region, which is the third facility commissioned since the beginning of 2024, the company’s press service reports. As Interfax-Ukraine was told, on November 26, 2024, the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate of Ukraine issued a Certificate of Readiness for a residential building, which confirms that the facility complies with the project documentation and is ready for operation. This document proves the reliability of DIM, which, despite the difficult economic times, is ready to assume obligations to investors and guarantee their fulfillment.
The VITA 2.1 building with a total area of 3678.1 sq. m. consists of two sections on four floors, it has 30 apartments with a total living area of 2619.87 sq. m.
Park Lake City is a modern business-class suburban complex of a new formation with almost 2 thousand apartments, which is being built on the territory of more than 80 hectares. DIM continues the construction of eight VITA 2 houses of the Park Lake City business class eco-complex, which is scheduled to be completed in 2025-2026.
Founded in 2014, DIM Group specializes in the full cycle of development, including design, construction, and property management. During this time, the company has commissioned 15 buildings in eight residential complexes, a total of 3,640 apartments, and built more than 332.7 thousand square meters of residential and commercial space. Six residential complexes of the comfort+ and business class categories are under construction: “Metropolis, Park Lake City, Lucky Land, A136 Highlight Tower, Olegiv Podil, The One.
The Asian Development Bank will provide $250 million in policy interventions to support the Government of Uzbekistan’s efforts to strengthen the institutional framework for climate transition, enhance integration and alignment of climate change adaptation priorities, and accelerate climate change mitigation measures.
The Climate Transition Acceleration Program will support the Government of Uzbekistan in three reform areas: strengthening institutions and public financial management; enhancing climate resilience in water and land management, agriculture, and social protection systems; and accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy in sectors such as transport and energy.
This program, which is ADB’s first programmatic response to climate change in Central Asia, is in line with the updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), the 2030 Strategic Framework for the Transition to a Green Economy, and ADB’s Country Partnership Strategy for Uzbekistan 2024-2028.
“The program prioritizes decarbonizing the economy and building resilience to natural disasters and climate change, while supporting vulnerable populations,” said Evgeny Zhukov, ADB’s Director General for Central and West Asia. “Uzbekistan is among the world’s most energy-intensive economies, so the program will support the government’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions per unit of GDP by 35 percent by 2030. The reduction will be achieved through the development of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency.”
European Commission president says average spending in Europe is 1.9% of GDP, while Russia’s is 9%.
The head of the EU executive, Ursula von der Leyen, has called for more defence spending in Europe over the next five years, as her top team was voted in by a wafer-thin majority of MEPs.
The European parliament’s endorsement of the new EU executive by the narrowest-ever margin, clears the way for von der Leyen and her chosen 26 European commissioners to start a five-year term on Sunday.
The EU faces acute challenges, including the war in Ukraine, the return of Donald Trump and the climate crisis, all against a backdrop of deepening fears of economic decline as von der Leyen starts her second term.
She told MEPs ahead of the vote there was “something wrong in [the] equation” where Russia was spending up to 9% of GDP on defence while the European average was 1.9%.
“War is raging at Europe’s borders and we must be ready for what lies ahead, working hand in hand with Nato,” she told MEPs. “Our defence spending must increase,” she said, calling for efforts to boost the European defence industry and common defence projects.
Von der Leyen said Europe faced difficult choices that required “massive investments in our security and our prosperity”.
MEPs voted by 370 to 282 to confirm the officials proposed by Ursula von der Leyen in September – the most right-leaning in the EU’s modern history – after a political deal between leaders of the centre-right European People’s party, the Socialists and the centrist liberals. It was the narrowest margin since the European parliament gained the power to approve the EU executive in the 1990s, and split political groups across the spectrum of the European parliament.
The vote was equal to 51.3% of the total number of 720 MEPS, or 53.7% of those present in the chamber.
Fifteen of the 27 new commissioners, including von der Leyen herself, are members of or allied to the centre-right European People’s party (EPP), with two more commissioners on the nationalist and far-right side. The outgoing commission had 10 EPP commissioners and one allied to an anti-EU nationalist party.
The vote draws a line under a ferocious row that had threatened the prospects of Spain’s deputy prime minister, Teresa Ribera, and Italy’s Europe minister, Raffaele Fitto, who will both now become European commission vice-presidents.
Ribera’s appointment was held up by a bitter partisan dispute over the deadly floods in Valencia. Spain’s centre-right Popular party voted against the commission, while Socialists and other left-leaning MEPs opposed Fitto, a former Christian Democrat, because he is now a member of Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party.
The nationalist European Conservatives and Reformists, the fourth largest group, with 78 MEPs was split, with Meloni’s Brothers of Italy and Belgium’s Flemish separatist party voting for the commission, while Poland’s Law and Justice party voted against.
The Green group, which has 53 MEPs, was also divided, but its co-leaders chose to support von der Leyen’s commission. Their support was cemented on Monday when von der Leyen said the Greens were “part of the pro-European majority in the European parliament”, while announcing the appointment of the former Green MEP Philippe Lamberts to an advisory role on the EU’s climate targets.
The appointment of Lamberts, an outspoken former IBM executive, was already known and Green leaders insisted it was von der Leyen’s extension of an open hand to their group, rather than the appointment, that swayed them. The Green co-leader Bas Eickhout said it was “a lie” that Lamberts’ appointment had determined their decision, saying the important factor had von der Leyen’s language, which made it “very clear where she stands politically”.
Von der Leyen told MEPs on Wednesday that she would always “work from the centre” and vowed to “stay the course” on the European green deal, the EU’s flagship policy to tackle the climate crisis. But her speech put more emphasis on strengthening Europe’s economy and defence, with no mention of the climate or the escalating crisis European nature is facing. During her last mandate, the EU scrapped plans to curb pesticides after large protests by farmer and scaled back plans to cut pollution and protect habitats.
In response to a report published earlier this month by the former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi, which starkly warned that Europe risked an “slow and agonising decline”, von der Leyen pledged “a competitiveness compass” that aimed to close the innovation gap with the US and China; boost Europe’s decarbonisation and competitiveness; and increase security, including ensuring supply of critical raw materials.
Amid growing alarm about the European car industry, von der Leyen announced she would lead “a strategic dialogue” on the future of Europe’s carmakers. Many in the EPP and critics on the right have denounced EU targets to phase out the internal combustion engine by 2035, as European carmakers fall behind Chinese competitors in the race to develop electric vehicles.
All 26 commissioners underwent three-hour hearings at the European parliament in November, but for the first time in more than 20 years, none were rejected over their competence, or their European commitment.
The lengthy process underscored how the hearings have morphed into a political battle in an increasingly fragmented, right-leaning parliament, rather than a true assessment of the officials.
Roberta Metsola, the president of the European parliament, said Wednesday’s vote for the commission showed “the centre held”. The parliament, she said, would require “different types of majorities for different types of legislation, but without the centre, you cannot work”.
