Burnham says UK refuses to invite Putin to G20 summit as Trump claims envoy talks could yield agreement

Dispute over the G20 invitation

Andy Burnham said Putin would not be invited to the G20 summit next year. The position differs from comments made in September by Marco Rubio, who said the United States had invited Putin to the December meeting in Miami.

Trump signals possible agreement

Trump met Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, on Thursday and said a deal with Ukraine might be close. He suggested that ending the war could require involvement from beyond Ukraine, potentially including all of Europe.

At the White House, Trump described the prospective deal as large and said it would leave people pleased. The report gives no details of an agreement or confirmation that one has been reached.

Diplomatic contacts continue

Melania Trump is due to host Russian and Ukrainian representatives at the White House on Thursday. The White House said she would speak about a six-day local ceasefire near the Russian-held town of Oleshky, which she helped mediate.

Zelensky arrived in Spain for talks on strengthening Ukraine’s air defences and meetings connected to the Ibero-American summit. He said he expected contact with US officials ahead of three-way talks in Abu Dhabi next week that would include Russia.

Attacks reported in Luhansk

Seven people died in two separate attacks on buses in the Russian-controlled Luhansk region, according to Russian-installed governor Leonid Pasechnik. He said 14 people were injured, including two boys aged 15 and 17.