This Week in the Russia-Ukraine War (March 7)

A snapshot of recent news from sources around the world on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

European Council President Costa, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, and European Commission President von der Leyen ahead of the special European Council meeting of 6 March 2025. Source – European Commission

Political Developments

American and Ukrainian officials will meet next week in Saudi Arabia for dialogue on ending the war. President Volodymyr Zelensky said he plans to travel to Saudi Arabia for the talks, as well.

In his address to Congress on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Russia is “ready for peace,” adding that the U.S. has been holding ‘serious’ negotiations with Russia over the war in Ukraine. However, Axios reported on Friday that Trump’s frustration with Moscow has grown as the Russian military continues operations against Ukraine despite the peace negotiations.

French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, meanwhile, have continued to lobby for a ‘coalition of the willing‘ that would put European troops in Ukraine as part of a peace settlement with Russia.

Eutelsat Communications has held talks with Ukrainian officials over the possibility of replacing Starlink in Ukraine. CEO Eve Berneke said in an interview that the company could match the number of Starlink terminals in the country within “a couple of months, not years.” Reports in late February suggested that Washington could cut off Ukraine’s access to Starlink as part of a pressure campaign to bring Kyiv to the negotiating table.

Elbridge Colby, nominated by Trump to be the undersecretary of defense for policy, refused to say that Russia invaded Ukraine during a Senate confirmation hearing. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has also been reluctant to characterize Russia as the instigator of the war, which is reflective of the significant policy shift on Ukraine within the new administration.

Military Assistance to Ukraine

On Monday, the Trump administration paused military aid to Ukraine, cutting off the transfer of military equipment and ammunition to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Alongside the pause of military aid, the U.S. has also cut off intelligence-sharing with Ukraine – affecting its operation of HIMARS and other hardware – and reportedly requested that Maxar Technologies block Kyiv’s access to the satellite company’s imagery.  U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, in a rare expression of dissent from within the Republican party, chastised the administration for “walking away from our allies and embracing Putin.”

Officials have indicated that the military aid freeze will be temporary, but is intended to put pressure on Zelensky to negotiate with the U.S. on a minerals agreement as well as agree to a peace deal with Russia.

In wake of the announcement, both Paris and London confirmed that their intelligence-sharing with Ukraine will continue.

A GBP1.6 billion deal announced by the U.K. will supply thousands of advanced air defence missiles to Ukraine. The contract supports 700 existing jobs at Thales in Belfast.  The company will manufacture more than 5,000 lightweight-multirole missiles (LMM) for Ukraine’s defence. The United Kingdom and Ukraine  also inked a GBP2.26 billion ($2.9 billion) loan to “bolster Ukrainian military capability,” which will be paid back using the proceeds of frozen Russian securities.

Anduril UK will supply more Altius 600m and Altius 700m drones to the Ukrainian military under a GBP30 million contract announced by the British Ministry of Defense on Thursday.

Norway announced a major increase to its military aid pledge to Ukraine for this year, increasing the total to NOK85 billion ($7.9 billion). Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said, “We are increasing support because there is a need for it, and it is a solid contribution to peace and stability in Europe. It is a very, very high amount. It is needed in the defense struggle that Ukraine is in.”

Incoming German chancellor Freidrich Merz said on March 4 that he wants to quickly deliver over EUR3 billion ($3.2 billion) in military aid to Ukraine and hopes the measure will be passed already before he takes office, by the outgoing parliament.

Battlefield Updates

Russia has hit Ukraine with 1,500 drones and more than 20 missiles over the past week.  The attacks come as the United States is attempting to negotiate an end to the war between Ukraine and Russia.

The Ukrainian military is using modified civilian aircraft as unmanned bombers.  These modified light civilian aircraft have attacked Russian military positions during nighttime missions along the frontline.  Aircraft converted under this program include platforms such as the E-300 SkyRanger and A-22 Foxbat.

Russia has launched another missile and drone attack on Ukraine.  The attack took place during the night of March 5.  Russia fired four three Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles, a single converted S-300 anti-aircraft missile and 181 Shahed-type drones.

Russian troops are putting heavy pressure on Ukraine’s Kursk salient, aiming to force the Ukrainian Armed Forces out of Russian territory. A Ukrainian official warned this week that Russia is hoping to create a breakthrough into Sumy, which would cut off the Ukrainian positions in Kursk.