President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was proud of the “absolute heroism” shown by the Ukrainian people in withstanding three years of unprovoked Russian aggression, as European leaders gathered in Kyiv on Monday to mark the third anniversary of Moscow’s full-blown war.

By Tom Balmforth, Max Hunder and Yuliia Dysa KYIV (Reuters) -Ukraine hosted European leaders on Monday to mark three years of all-out war with Russia since Moscow's invasion, while top U.S. officials stayed away in a clear illustration of President Donald Trump's lurch towards Moscow since returning to power.

Ukraine and the US are working out details of an agreement that would give Washington access to Ukrainian natural resources in exchange for US support.

Russia wants a long-term peace deal over Ukraine that tackles what it regards as the root causes of the conflict and not a quick U.S.-backed ceasefire followed by a swift restart of fighting, a senior Russian diplomat told the RIA news agency.

Earlier, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the package would be Britain's largest against Russia since the early days of the Ukraine war, including more measures against vessels used to help Russia evade sanctions and targeting companies in China and elsewhere who supply military components.

EU foreign ministers adopted a 16th package of sanctions against Russia on, which targets a cryptocurrency exchange for the first time, a Council statement said.