Senator Lindsey Graham urged Trump to seize ships carrying sanctioned Russian oil. He called for Trump to back his bill imposing tariffs on countries like China that buy cheap Russian crude, label Russia a state sponsor of terrorism for abducting Ukrainian children, and treat Russian oil tankers like those from Venezuela.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warns that China and Russia could coordinate attacks on Taiwan and Europe. He believes if China acts militarily, Russia, its junior partner, won’t hesitate to divert the West’s attention by escalating in Europe. “We must be prepared,” Rutte stressed.

A new major logistics hub for Ukraine will open in Romania by the end of January 2026, becoming the second-largest in Europe after Rzeszów. It will allow NATO to double the flow of military aid to Ukraine, including through the PURL mechanism, where the U.S. supplies arms and Europe covers the cost.

Swedish authorities have detained the Russian cargo ship Adler, whose owner is under EU and US sanctions for allegedly transporting weapons used in the war against Ukraine. The ship anchored in Swedish waters after engine failure. Customs boarded after the crew failed to present required declarations. The inspection is still ongoing.

Rare footage from Ukraine’s 25th Airborne Brigade shows multiple Russian FPV drones striking a single target within minutes in Pokrovsk. Russian forces are using swarms of drones in an attempt to overwhelm defenses and destroy everything in sight.

Putin personally picked U.S. real estate developer Steve Witkoff as a key backchannel negotiator with the U.S., WSJ reports. The Kremlin’s outreach reportedly began via Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who passed a message to Witkoff that Putin wanted to meet him directly. Moscow vetted Trump’s circle and saw Witkoff as acceptable. His involvement included close coordination with Putin aide Kirill Dmitriev.