Kremlin is already building high-level team for direct talks with US on Ukraine, sources say
The Kremlin is assembling a high-level negotiating team to engage in direct talks with the United States to end the war in Ukraine, sources with knowledge of the issue have told CNN.
Members of the Kremlin team have not been publicly announced, but CNN has learned it will include top-level political, intelligence and economic figures, including the Russian official who played a key behind-the-scenes role in a recent US prisoner release deal.
Kirill Dmitriev, a close Putin adviser, will focus on restoring economic ties between the US and Russia as the two sides attempt to forge a Russia-Ukraine peace agreement, according to sources with knowledge of the appointment.
Recently, Dmitriev worked closely with US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff – and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia – to secure the release from Russia of American teacher Marc Fogel, sources familiar with the deal told CNN.
“There’s a gentleman from Russia. His name is Kirill, and he had a lot to do with this. He was important. He was an important interlocutor, bridging the two sides,” Witkoff told CNN on Wednesday.
Russia”s President Vladimir Putin meets with Kirill Dmitriev at the Kremlin in Moscow January 13, 2025
Alexander Kazakov/AFP/Getty Images
Dmitriev, the head of Russia’s sanctioned sovereign wealth fund, has been an outspoken Trump supporter from within Russia’s political elite, saying his US presidential election victory “shows that ordinary Americans are tired of the unprecedented lies, incompetence, and malice of the Biden administration.” He added that Trump’s win “opens up new opportunities for resetting relations between Russia and the United States.”
Born in Soviet-era Ukraine and educated at Harvard and Stanford in the US, Dmitriev worked as consultant at US consultancy firm McKinsey and as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs.
The Kremlin’s inclusion of Dmitriev, indicates that a key focus of Russia’s negotiating strategy in likely to be on sanctions reduction, as well as on repairing battered economic ties with the West.
Dmitriev has been a prominent Russian contact point with both the first and current Trump administrations, consistently calling for closer US-Russian ties, and engaging in private back-channel talks with US officials.
After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Dmitriev was sanctioned by the US Treasury Department, which designated him a “close associate of Putin” and his family.
Source: CNN
Iran is rearming its missile program and a ship of supplies just arrived from China, Western sources say
The first of two vessels carrying 1,000 tons of a Chinese-made chemical that could be a key component in fuel for Iran’s military missile program has anchored outside the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on Thursday, ship tracking data shows. It could be a signal that Iran’s missile production is back to business as usual after the devastating, and embarrassing, attacks by Israel on key factories last year.
The ship, Golbon, left the Chinese port of Taicang three weeks ago loaded with most of a 1,000-ton shipment of sodium perchlorate, the main precursor in the production of the solid propellant that powers Iran’s mid-range conventional missiles, according to two European intelligence sources.
The sodium perchlorate could allow for the production of sufficient propellant for some 260 solid rocket motors for Iran’s Kheibar Shekan missiles or 200 of the Haj Qasem ballistic missiles, according to the intelligence sources.
The shipment comes as Iran has suffered a series of regional setbacks with the collective defeat suffered by its allies: the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria and Hezbollah’s losses in Lebanon. Following Israel’s strike on Iran’s missile production facilities in October, some Western experts believed it could take at least a year before Iran could resume solid-propellant production. This delivery points to Iran being not far from – or that they could already be back to – the production of its missiles.
Iranian demonstrators march next to a domestically built missile during a rally commemorating the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Tehran earlier this week.
Vahid Salemi/AP
The shipment was purchased on behalf of the Procurement Department of the Self Sufficiency Jihad Organization (SSJO), part of the Iranian body responsible for the development of Iran’s ballistic missiles, according to the sources.
The second ship, Jairan, has yet to be loaded and leave China, with both vessels operated by the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) company, the sources told CNN. The Jairan is due to ferry the remainder of the 1,000 tons to Iran. The Golbon left the Taicang port for Iran on January 21.
CNN has reached out to IRISL for comment.
The sources could not say if the Chinese government knew of the shipments prior to media reporting about their movement late January. The delivery of sodium perchlorate in itself is not illegal, nor does it breach Western sanctions.
In a response to a request for comment from CNN, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was “not aware of the specifics of the case” mentioned and reiterated that it opposed “illegal unilateral sanctions” and “arbitrary smearing and accusations that lack evidence.”
“China has consistently abided by export controls on dual-use items in accordance with its international obligations and domestic laws and regulations,” the statement said, adding that “sodium perchlorate is not a controlled item by China, and its export would be considered normal trade.”
Sanctions backdoor
The United States and United Kingdom have levied sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines company, with the State Department saying the firm is the “preferred shipping line for Iranian proliferators and procurement agents.”
The UK treasury said the company was “involved in hostile activity” by Iran and highlighted its links to the Iranian defense sector.
Both the Golbon and Jairan are under US sanctions.
Meanwhile, China has remained a diplomatic and economic ally for sanctions-hit Iran, decrying “unilateral” US sanctions against the country and welcoming Tehran into Beijing- and Moscow-led international blocs like the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS.
Israel”s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets after Iran fired a salvo of ballistic missiles on October 1, 2024.
Amir Cohen/Reuters
China also remains by far Iran’s largest energy buyer, though it has not reported purchases of Iranian oil in its official customs data since 2022, according to analysts.
Despite China’s historic ties to Iran’s defense sector, observers say Beijing has scaled back security ties over the past decade as it seeks to bolster relations with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states. The US has in recent years, however, sanctioned a number of Chinese entities for alleged roles supporting Iranian military drone production. Recent joint naval drills between China, Iran and Russia have also signaled a potential deepening of government-to-government strategic ties.
A key ingredient
While Iran would need solid propellant for a range of missiles, including smaller air defense weapons, the lion’s share of such deliveries would likely be headed towards Iran’s ballistic missile program, Fabian Hinz, research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, told CNN.
Although sodium perchlorate trade is not restricted by Western sanctions, it can be chemically transformed into ammonium perchlorate – a fuel and oxidizer which is a controlled product.
“Ammonium perchlorate is the material that was used in the solid rocket propellants of the Space Shuttle,” Andrea Sella, professor of inorganic chemistry at University College London, told CNN.
“There really aren’t very many alternative things” that the chemical in the Chinese deliveries can be used for, aside from for rocket propellants, fireworks and fuel, he said, adding: “Perchlorates have a fairly narrow range of uses.”
Increasing controls on perchlorates in the West have seen China become a major alternative supplier of such chemicals, he said.
China has long been “a primary source of sodium perchlorate for Iran’s missile programs, dating at least to the mid-2000s,” Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, told CNN.
“This is just the latest shipment in a decades-old pattern,” Lewis added.
Supply troubles
Defense analyst Hinz said that while Iran has previously boasted of its ability to produce ammonium perchlorate itself, this delivery hints at supply chain bottlenecks as domestic precursor supply has been unable to meet missile production needs. It’s a problem even countries like the US can face, he added.
Hinz said that Iran’s solid propellant production infrastructure has “dramatically expanded in the last few years – and potentially even since October 7, (2023),” with new sites built and existing ones enlarged.
Kheibar Shekan missiles have a range of 880 miles (around 1,420 km), with their Haj Qasem cousins able to reach targets 900 miles (around 1,450 km) away, according to the Western intelligence source. Although not the most technically advanced weapons in Iran’s arsenal, their range does make them valuable for attacks on Israel.
Hinz said that variants of such missiles have been used by Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen against Israel, despite the distance ostensibly outstripping the missiles’ standard range. Modifications of the warhead mass or secondary propulsion units could lengthen their reach, he said.
Solid propellant is also used in Iran’s short-range missiles – like those used in the past against US bases in the region and in exports to Russia, Hinz said. Iran’s largest and most powerful ballistic missiles typically use liquid propellant.
Missiles are seen during a joint exercise called the “Great Prophet 17,” in Iran”s southwest in 2021.
Saeed Sajjadi/Fars News/WANA/Reuters
According to the Israel Defense Forces, wreckage from at least one Kheibar Shakan missile was recovered following Iran’s October 1, 2024 barrage against Israel. Analysis from one of the Western sources confirmed that some 50 medium-range missiles with solid propulsion were fired at Israel by Iran in this attack.
Iran’s arsenal is believed to hold “over 3,000 ballistic missiles,” US Air Force Gen. Kenneth McKenzie told Congress in 2023 – but exact numbers of each type of missile are unknown.
A western intelligence official told CNN that, although relevant US government agencies are aware of the delivery, there is limited concern over the shipment. If Iran does funnel the chemicals towards missile fuel production, especially on weapons destined for Russia, that will be of greater concern, the source said.
The Iranian government declined to comment in response to questions posed by CNN for this article.
This story has been updated with additional information.
Source: CNN
Ukraine says Russia drone attack hits Chernobyl nuclear plant, radiation levels normal
A Russian drone struck the former nuclear power plant at Chernobyl in an attack overnight into Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
The strike hit the concrete shelter that covers the plant’s destroyed former fourth power unit, sparking a fire that was later extinguished, he said. Chernobyl was the site of the 1986 disaster that spread radioactivity across parts of the Soviet Union and Europe.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN’s nuclear watchdog, said that its team at the site heard a large explosion shortly before 2 a.m. local time Friday (7 p.m. ET Thursday).
Despite “significant” damage to the shelter, Zelensky said radiation levels have not increased. Ukraine’s State Emergency Service has also said radiation levels in the area remain within normal limits.
Later on Friday, Chernobyl’s chief engineer Oleksandr Tytarchuk said, “The shelter ceased to fulfill its function” following the damage, according to Ukrainian state media Ukrinform.
“There is a potential risk of radioactive substances being released due to certain actions that may occur at the old shelter facility,” Tytarchuk said.
While Tytarchuk also emphasized that the situation is currently under control he added that repairs may require significant time and effort.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Friday that Moscow was not behind the attack.
“Most likely, this is yet another provocation,” Peskov told reporters. “This is exactly the kind of thing the Kyiv regime is known for and sometimes does not hesitate to do.”
Russia has repeatedly been accused by Ukrainian and IAEA officials of risking a major nuclear incident during the conflict. During intense fighting near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) in early 2022, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said “every principle of nuclear safety” had been “violated.”
Friday’s reported attack comes two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin and US counterpart Donald Trump held what Trump described as “lengthy and highly productive” telephone call ahead of potential peace talks aimed at bringing Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine to an end after nearly three years of grueling war.
Zelensky shared photos of the inside of the sarcophagus on Friday.
Volodymyr Zelensky/X
A tear could be seen in the protective cover.
Volodymyr Zelensky/X
In a boost to the Kremlin, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told European leaders in Brussels on Wednesday that Ukraine joining NATO – one of Kyiv’s key requests – is not a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement, and that European security is no longer an American priority.
Other Trump administration officials have, however, taken a tougher stance. Speaking to the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, US Vice President JD Vance said the option of sending US troops to Ukraine was “on the table,” as well as economic punishment if a peace deal doesn’t guarantee Kyiv’s long-term independence.
Unit 4 at Chernobyl – near Ukraine’s border with Belarus – exploded in 1986, sparking a radioactive disaster. The reactor was later encased in a concrete and steel sarcophagus.
The sarcophagus was the work of an international coalition and took decades to build. It was finally finished in 2017 and weighs 35,000 tons.
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s chief of staff, noted that the US “invested a lot of money and effort” in the sarcophagus, which was completed during Trump’s first term.
Ahead of the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Yermak said that Ukraine “will give a lot of information to our American partners” about the overnight attack, and the “threats” to nuclear safety he said Russia poses.
The IAEA said its team responded to the explosion within minutes and that no casualties were reported.
Ukraine’s military reported that Russia launched 133 drones across the country in its overnight attack, 73 of which were shot down and 58 of which did not reach their target. The numbers are broadly in line with the recent average of drone attacks. The military said drones were shot down in 11 regions, covering much of the country.
The incident came hours before the beginning of the high-level Munich Security Conference, where Vance is set to meet with Zelensky.
Trump’s unexpected phone call with Putin on Wednesday also sparked fears in Europe of a “dirty deal” being struck to end the war in Ukraine on terms favorable to Moscow without Kyiv’s involvement.
Zelensky said the nightly drone attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure meant that Putin “is definitely not preparing for negotiations — he is preparing to continue deceiving the world.”
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CNN’s Anna Chernova and Victoria Butenko contributed reporting.
Source: CNN