Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (right) welcomes US Vice President JD Vance at Palazzo Chigi prior their meeting in Rome on Friday. — AFP ROME, Apr 18 (Reuters/AFP): The United States is optimistic it can put an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine, Vice President JD Vance said on Friday as he met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for the second time in 24 hours.
Vance saw Meloni in Washington on Thursday and the two have since flown to the Italian capital ahead of the Easter holidays.
"I want to update the prime minister on some of the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine ... even in the past 24 hours, we think we have some interesting things to report on," Vance told reporters sitting alongside Meloni.
Russian drone hits bakery preparing Easter cakes, killing one
A Russian drone strike early on Friday hit a bakery in northern Ukraine where traditional Easter cakes were being prepared, killing one man, Ukrainian officials said.
Images shared by Ukrainian emergency services, which said they were filmed at the scene of the strike in the city of Sumy, showed trays of Easter cakes - known as paska in Ukrainian - covered in grey dust, and a smashed window nearby.
Ukraine PM to visit Washington next week
Ukraine's prime minister will visit Washington next week for talks with top US officials aimed at clinching a long-fraught minerals and resources deal by April 26, according to a memorandum released on Friday.
Kyiv and Washington had planned to sign a deal on extracting Ukraine's strategic minerals weeks ago, but a clash between presidents Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky in February temporarily derailed work on the agreement.
Trump wants the deal-designed to give the US royalty payments on profits from Ukrainian mining of resources and rare minerals-as compensation.
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