‘God willed it’: Putin claims divine mandate to defend Russia amid Trump outreach

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday declared that “God willed it” for him and his army to defend Russia, framing the war in Ukraine as a mission of fate.

“Fate willed it so, God willed it so, if I may say so,” Putin told Russian soldiers on the eve of the third anniversary of his full-scale invasion. “A mission as difficult as it is honorable—defending Russia—has been placed on our and your shoulders together.”

His remarks came as the Kremlin welcomed direct talks between Putin and US President Donald Trump, calling their dialogue “promising.” Trump recently broke with Western policy by phoning Putin to discuss ending the Ukraine war, a move that signaled a potential shift in US-Russia relations.

‘No one will sell off these territories’Despite Trump’s overtures, the Kremlin made clear it has no intention of retreating from Ukrainian territories it has seized.

“The people decided to join Russia a long time ago,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, referring to Moscow-staged referendums condemned as illegitimate by Ukraine and the West. “No one will ever sell off these territories.”

Peskov also stressed that nothing should stand in the way of Trump and Putin’s “political will” to engage in talks—excluding Ukraine from discussions over its own future.

Ukraine faces intensified assaultsAs Putin justified his war as a divine mission, Russia launched a record 267 drone attacks on Ukraine overnight, Kyiv’s air force reported. Ukrainian officials said 138 drones were intercepted and 119 were “lost,” while several regions, including Kyiv, suffered damage.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, reacting to both the ongoing attacks and Trump’s diplomatic shift, warned Western allies against faltering in their support.

“We must do our best to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine,” Zelensky said on Telegram. “This is possible with the unity of all partners: we need the strength of the whole of Europe, the strength of America, the strength of all those who want lasting peace.”

Trump-Zelensky rift benefits MoscowTrump’s outreach to Moscow has deepened tensions with Zelensky, with Trump falsely claiming Ukraine started the war and criticizing the Ukrainian leader’s popularity. The Kremlin, meanwhile, has reveled in the public rift between the two leaders.

“Zelensky makes inappropriate remarks addressed to the head of state,” Peskov said Sunday. “No president would tolerate that kind of treatment. So his (Trump’s) reaction is quite understandable.”

Europe scrambles to respondAs Trump signals a shift in US engagement with Russia, European leaders are moving to reinforce support for Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will travel to Washington next week to urge continued military and financial backing for Kyiv.