Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump hints at US air support and says ‘it’s better’ if Putin and Zelensky meet without him

German prosecutors have charged a Russian national they suspect of planning an attack on the Israeli embassy in Berlin and of trying to join militant organisation Islamic State, they said on Wednesday.

Prosecutors believe the accused, identified only as Akhmad E. in line with German privacy rules, obtained instructions from the Internet on how to make explosives but the plan failed as he could not get the components he needed.

“From the beginning of February, he planned to carry out an attack in Germany, for example on the Israeli embassy in Berlin,” said federal prosecutors in a statement.

He has been detained since his arrest at Berlin airport in February. Prosecutors suspect he was on the way to Pakistan for military training with IS and that he funded the trip by selling expensive smartphones that he obtained via signing up for mobile phone plans.

He is also accused of translating propaganda into Russian and Chechen for IS, said the statement.

Prosecutors charged him on August 7 with preparing and incitement to commit a serious act of violence endangering the state and, as a minor, of trying to join a terrorist group abroad.

Defence Secretary John Healey has reiterated the UK’s willingness to “consider putting boots on the ground” to help provide security guarantees to Ukraine as part of a peace deal.

Speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain, he said: “The Prime Minister has made clear that he’s ready to consider putting UK boots on the ground in the circumstances of a negotiated peace.”

He added that the UK and “many other nations” want to support Ukraine in being able to deter future Russian aggression and to reassure them that “we will stay with them to try and secure a long-term peace”.

Nato defence chiefs are due to hold a virtual meeting, a senior alliance official said, as countries pushing for an end to Russia’s war on Ukraine devise possible future security guarantees for Kyiv that could help forge a peace agreement.

Italian admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, chair of Nato’s Military Committee, said that 32 defence chiefs from across the alliance would hold a video conference as a US-led diplomatic push seeks to end the fighting.

US general Alexus Grynkewich, Nato’s supreme allied commander in Europe, will take part in the talks, Mr Dragone said on social platform X.

The meeting will take place at around 1.30pm local time (2.30pm CET).

Senator Lindsey Graham has said that Trump is ready to “crush” the Russian economy if Putin avoids talks with Zelensky.

“Trump believes that if Putin doesn’t do his part, that he’s going to have to crush his economy. Because you’ve got to mean what you say,” Graham told reporters on Tuesday.

“If we don’t have this thing moving in the right direction by the time we get back, then I think that plan B needs to kick in,” he added.

Pope Leo has asked Catholics and other religious faithful to observe a day of fasting and prayers for peace in Ukraine and other war-torn countries on Friday.

“As our Earth continues to be wounded by wars in the Holy Land, in Ukraine, and in many other regions … I invite all the faithful to live the day of August 22 in fasting and prayer,” the pontiff said during his weekly audience at the Vatican on Wednesday.

Leo suggested the faithful could ask God to “grant us peace and justice and to wipe away the tears of those who suffer because of the ongoing armed conflicts.”

Polish authorities are not ruling out that an unidentified object that exploded over eastern Poland overnight could be an act of Russian sabotage or a smuggling drone, Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said on Wednesday.

The army had said earlier that an object which fell and exploded in a cornfield may have been a component of an old propeller engine, adding that there had been no violation of Poland’s airspace from Ukraine or Belarus.

Here are the potential destinations where a summit between Putin and Zelensky could take place:

• Hungary – The White House has said they are considering Budapest as a potential venue for trilateral talks having spoken to Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban.
• Switzerland – The traditional choice, Switzerland has said they are ready for the warring leaders to meet in its Neutral country despite the fact it’s a signee of the Rome Statute.
• Turkey – Talks between Russia and Ukraine have previously taken place in Istanbul. French president Emmanuel Macron has favoured this location.
• Russia – The New York Times reported that Vladimir Putin suggested Moscow as a potential venue, however the American side has rejected this idea.
• Belarus – Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko’s press secretary has said Minsk is ready to mediate a possible meeting between Russia and Ukraine. Bordering Russia and Ukraine, Belarus has maintained close ties with Putin.