At the end of the day, the EU needs U.S. weapons to keep Ukraine afloat into its struggle for survival against Russia.”

Russia's President Vladimir Putin promised Russian soldiers a hero's welcome when they return from Ukraine, but the BBC has found cases of servicemen robbed and scammed for their salaries and pay-offs by government officials.

Part of the agreement involves a commitment to buy American oil and gas. Over the course of the Russia-Ukraine war, now in its fourth year, most of the EU has slashed its dependence on unreliable energy supplies from Russia, but Hungary and Slovakia still have not.

DA WEI is Director of the Center for International Security and Strategy and a Professor in the Department of International Relations at Tsinghua University.

Russia’s flagship Urals crude is trading at its narrowest discount relative to benchmark prices since the Kremlin started its war against Ukraine in 2022, suggesting that fresh European sanctions have so far failed to make an impact.

Oil prices rose on Tuesday, extending the previous day's rally, on optimism that a trade war between the United States and its major trading partners was abating and as President Donald Trump ramped up pressure on Russia over its war in Ukraine.