The Russian president is not well regarded among Republicans, 78 per cent of whom view him unfavourably. The survey by The Economist and YouGov America

 “The true aim of Trump and Putin, in their nefarious pact, is the destruction of the European Union and the historical-political concept of Europe,” reads the editorial in the latest issue of Il Regno, the long-established Catholic magazine of the democratic tradition.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has put forward a proposal to establish a European Security Council and an emergency security protocol to deal with the possibility of an attack resulting in casualties – a scenario that is bound to become a reality sooner or later, given Russia’s increasingly brazen attacks. EU Member States are discussing how to manage the escalation. This is good news. However, Europe must confront three harsh truths 

A potential meeting between Trump, Xi and Putin would cement the diplomatic and political objectives of the US, Russia and China at the expense of Ukraine and Europe. The price of this convergence is clearly being borne entirely by Ukraine at present, which is suffering massive daily attacks from the Russians 

From the Gemelli Hospital, the Pope received a phone call from the Russian president in which he “expressed deep concern over the grave humanitarian situation in the town of Oleshky”. The town is one of the symbols of the Kremlin’s brutality. According to the Interfax news agency, the Russian president replied that the responsibility lies with “the Kyiv regime”.

The Kremlin is working to shape the perception that the Ukrainians have been defeated; this is intended to convince the US president that such a protracted war is down to Zelensky’s stubbornness, and that the best way to end it is therefore to stop him. The front line amongst civilians in Kyiv