Zelenskyy says he and Trump share ‘common view’ on Ukraine war
Joanna Walters
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has spoken after his meeting in New York with Donald Trump and says the two men had a “very productive” talk.
He said the two “thoroughly reviewed” the situation in Ukraine since Russia’s invasion more than two and a half years ago, Reuters reports.
We share the common view that the war in Ukraine must be stopped. Putin cannot win. Ukrainians must prevail.
It’s unclear if he and Trump reached a genuine consensus behind the scenes. Trump, the Republican nominee for president, has been making magic-wand type claims that if he wins the White House he’ll have a peace agreement that all sides will like very quickly.
But he has previously talked in terms that implied he would allow Russia to prevail over what it has already claimed.
Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival for the White House, warned yesterday after meeting with Zelenskyy that he should not accept “proposals of surrender”, without mentioning Trump but clearly signaling in his direction.
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Updated at 14.13 EDT
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FBI director on Iran hacking investigation: ‘We’re going to disrupt you’
In a video address on Friday, FBI director Christopher Wray spoke of the indictment of three Iranian nationals for their role in a “wide ranging hacking campaign sponsored by the government of Iran.”
Wray said:
“These individuals, employees of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted a US political campaign, current and former US officials and members of the American media, all in an attempt to sow discord and undermine our democracy…
He added that the individuals impersonated US government officials via fake personas.
Wray continued:
“What we’re talking about here – attempts by a hostile foreign government to steal campaign information from one presidential candidate and then shop it around both to that candidate’s opponent and the media. And while there’s no indication that any of the recipients of the stolen campaign information actually replied, Iran’s intent was clear – to sow discord and shape the outcome of our elections.”
In a warning to Iran, Wray said:
“If you try to attack our infrastructure or commit violence against our citizens, we’re going to disrupt you. And as long as you keep attempting to flout the rule of law, you’re going to keep running into the FBI.”
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If you’re keeping an eye on the other big news in the US today, so are we. We’re liveblogging the aftermath of Hurricane Helene as, still a very dangerous storm, it roars through North Carolina. At least 20 people have been reported dead since the hurricane made landfall in Florida late last night and, now a tropical depression, it is leaving a trail of destruction and bringing major storm hazards to a huge area. Flooding is particularly acute across parts of the south-east, from Tennessee to Georgia. You can follow Helene news as it happens, here.
And in New York, as well as Donald Trump meeting Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, addressed the United Nations general assembly amid protests. We’ve been blogging that and covering the sudden escalation of conflict in Lebanon, too.
Netanyahu had not long finished speaking before fresh airstrikes were delivered by Israeli military forces against Lebanon on the outskirts of the capital, Beirut, in Israel’s latest wave of counterattacks on militant group Hezbollah.
Iran, which backs Hezbollah, called the latest explosions, which targeted Hezbollah’s Lebanese headquarters, a “dangerous gamechanging escalation”, according to Reuters just now. The US said it was not given a heads-up by Israel before the latest explosions. International leaders have been putting on pressure at the UN this week for de-escalation and ceasefires by Israel in Lebanon and Gaza. We have all these developments in our global Middle East live blog, here.
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Updated at 14.38 EDT
In what appeared to be a slightly awkward moment between Donald Trump and Voldymyr Zelenskyy after their meeting, the former president said, “We have a good relationship,” adding: “I also have a very good relationship with President (Vladimir) Putin.”
“If we win, I think we’re going to get it resolved very quickly,” Trump said, referring to the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia.
Zelenskyy, who stood alongside Trump, then interjected and said, “I hope we have more good relations with us,” gesturing between him and Trump.
In 2019, Trump threatened to withhold military aid from Ukraine as he put pressure on Zelenskyy to investigate Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine, which ultimately resulted in Trump’s impeachment.
The two men have had a fraught relationship, with Trump saying earlier this week at a campaign event in North Carolina: “The president of Ukraine is in our country. He is making little nasty aspersions toward your favorite president, me … We continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal: Zelenskyy.”
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Updated at 14.09 EDT
Zelenskyy says he and Trump share ‘common view’ on Ukraine war
Joanna Walters
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has spoken after his meeting in New York with Donald Trump and says the two men had a “very productive” talk.
He said the two “thoroughly reviewed” the situation in Ukraine since Russia’s invasion more than two and a half years ago, Reuters reports.
We share the common view that the war in Ukraine must be stopped. Putin cannot win. Ukrainians must prevail.
It’s unclear if he and Trump reached a genuine consensus behind the scenes. Trump, the Republican nominee for president, has been making magic-wand type claims that if he wins the White House he’ll have a peace agreement that all sides will like very quickly.
But he has previously talked in terms that implied he would allow Russia to prevail over what it has already claimed.
Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival for the White House, warned yesterday after meeting with Zelenskyy that he should not accept “proposals of surrender”, without mentioning Trump but clearly signaling in his direction.
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Updated at 14.13 EDT
Interim summary
Hello again, US politics live blog readers, it’s an extremely dynamic news day and there is a lot more to come, so stick around and we’ll bring you all the main developments as they happen.
Here’s where things stand:
The US justice department unsealed criminal charges on Friday against three Iranian operatives accused of hacking Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and disseminating the stolen information to media outlets.
Later this afternoon, Kamala Harris will arrive in Arizona for election campaign events. She’s currently en route from Washington, DC, to Tucson. Shortly after landing in Tucson the US vice president and Democratic nominee for president will make her way to the US-Mexico border.
Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are tied among voters in North Carolina, a new poll shows. The CNN poll released today and conducted from the 20 to 25 September, shows Harris and Trump both receiving 48% of the support among likely voters in North Carolina.
New York City mayor Eric Adams pleaded not guilty to corruption charges when he appeared in court in Manhattan. He denies federal bribery and fraud charges. The mayor’s arraignment began just after noon local time at a federal courthouse in New York. It is the first time that a sitting mayor of the city has been charged with crimes.
Donald Trump had a meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in New York today. Appearing on Fox News afterwards, Trump told reporters that he wants a “fair deal for everybody” and also said that he “learned a lot” during his meeting. Zelenskyy, for his part, said: “We need to do everything to pressure” Russia’s Vladimir Putin to “stop this war”.
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared together at Trump Tower in New York. “It’s an honor to have the president with us, and he’s been through a lot,” Trump said, referring to Zelenskyy, who was standing next to him. “He’s going through a tremendous amount,” Trump said. The former president, who is running again this November, claims he can bring about a peace agreement that both sides will approve of. He has not said how.
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Updated at 13.23 EDT
Justice department charges three Iranian operatives over hacking Trump campaign
The US justice department unsealed criminal charges on Friday against three Iranian operatives accused of hacking Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and disseminating the stolen information to media outlets.
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Updated at 13.02 EDT
Harris and Trump tied in North Carolina – CNN poll
A new CNN poll released today shows Kamala Harris and Donald Trump tied among voters in North Carolina.
The poll, conducted from the 20th to 25th of September, shows Harris and Trump both receiving 48% of the support among likely voters in North Carolina.
Trump currently leads Harris among White likely voters in the state, according to the CNN poll, and Harris is now leading Trump among Black likely voters.
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Updated at 13.01 EDT
The defense lawyer for Eric Adams said that he will be filing a motion next week to dismiss the charges.
The arraignment on Friday lasted less than 30 minutes. Adams and his lawyer have now been escorted out of the courtroom, according to reports.
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Updated at 12.50 EDT
Eric Adams has pleaded not guilty all five charges in the indictment, which included wire fraud, bribery, two counts of receiving campaign contributions from a foreign national, and conspiracy.
He is due back in court on Wednesday for a case conference.
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New York City mayor Eric Adams pleads not guilty to corruption charges
Adams has pleaded not guilty to federal bribery and fraud charges.
The mayor’s arraignment began just after noon local time at a federal courthouse in New York.
Earlier this week, Adams became the first sitting mayor of New York City to be criminally charged while in office in modern history, when he was indicted on bribery and fraud charges.
Since his indictment, the mayor has faced calls to resign from New York representatives including Jerry Nadler and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as several from New York City officials and leaders.
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Updated at 13.01 EDT
Trump says he wants ‘fair deal for everybody’ after meeting with Zelenskyy
As Eric Adams, Mayor of New York City, waits to appear at his arraignment at a federal court in Lower Manhattan, uptown, former president Donald Trump has seemingly just wrapped up his meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Appearing on Fox News after the highly anticipated meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy, Trump told reporters that he wants a “fair deal for everybody.”
Trump, appearing with Zelenskyy on Fox News, also said that he “learned a lot” during his meeting with Zelenskyy on Friday.
“We need to do everything to pressure” Vladimir Putin to “stop this war”, Zelenskyy added.
When asked whether there will be another meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy, Trump said that it could “very well happen.”
At the end of the appearance on Fox, Zelenskyy turned to Trump and invited him to come to Ukraine, to which Trump said he would, adding “it’s a beautiful country, beautiful weather, beautiful everything.”
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Updated at 11.49 EDT
Eric Adams, the mayor of New York City, was indicted on bribery and fraud charges this week and is scheduled to be arraigned today at noon local time, where he will enter a plea.
Earlier this morning, Adams was seen entering a federal courthouse in lower Manhattan.
Adams has maintained that he is innocent, and is expected to enter a plea of not guilty.
According to the New York Times, the judge overseeing the case has also set a second hearing for Wednesday, which will be to discuss the trial schedule, among other things.
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Updated at 11.37 EDT
In a statement posted on social media, Representative Jerry Nadler, who serves New York’s 12th congressional district which covers parts of New York City, responded to the indictment of New York City’s mayor, Eric Adams, on foreign bribery and corruption charges, and called on him to resign.
“While the charges outlined in the indictment by the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York are very serious, Mayor Adams deserves the right to due process and to be treated as presumed innocent until proven guilty” Nadler said.
Nadler added that he believes that Adams has “lost the ability to effectively lead the City of New York and therefore, he must resign”.
On Thursday, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also of New York, also called on Adams to resign, saying that she cannot see how Adams “can continue governing New York City”.
Adams arrived in court this morning for his arraignment.
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Updated at 11.13 EDT
Ahead of Kamala Harris’s visit to US-Mexico border in Arizona today, her presidential campaign released a new ad on Thursday focused on immigration.
The ad highlights Harris’s past experience prosecuting drug traffickers and cartel members.
“She will secure our border,” the narrator says in the video, adding that if elected, Harris plans to “hire thousands more border agents, enforce the law, and step up technology and stop fentanyl smuggling and human trafficking”.
Harris’s visit to the border today comes as several polls show that when it comes to immigration, voters appear to think that former president Donald Trump would do a better job at securing the southern border than Harris.
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Updated at 11.15 EDT
