Russian “Security Strip” in Sumy, “Biggest Ukraine Drone Attack” on Crimea, US “Won’t Fly Around…”

The US will scale back its role as a mediator in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, saying a ceasefire was now up to the two warring countries The State Department said US officials will no longer “fly around the world at the drop of a hat” for peace talks. “The methodology of how we contribute to this will change in that we will not be the mediators,” said State Department spokesperson, Tammy Bruce. The policy shift comes as Washington and Kyiv signed a new minerals deal, mending ties that frayed after President Trump took office in January. Meanwhile, Russia said its forces were continuing to create a “security strip” in Ukraine’s Sumy region after driving Ukrainian troops out of the Kursk region. Ukraine launched a drone attack on Russian-annexed Crimea overnight, the most massive in 2025, the Russian TASS news agency reported. 01:25 WASHINGTON CHANGES TUNE AFTER MINERALS DEAL04:15 RUSSIAN “SECURITY STRIP” IN SUMY n18oc_world n18oc_crux