"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
The United States embassy in Kyiv on May 9 issued a warning that Russia could launch "a potentially significant" attack in the coming days, despite Putin's self-declared Victory Day "truce."
The sanctioned oil tankers have transported over $24 billion in cargo since 2024, according to Downing Street. The U.K. has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other country.
Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
The remnants of a destroyed Russian Shahed drone at an exhibition in Kyiv on May 12, 2023. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Oleksii Samsonov /Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
At least 76 apartments were damaged, and 215 windows were shattered in a drone attack on Russia's Rostov-on-Don overnight on Feb. 9, Mayor Alexander Scriabin claimed in a social media post.
A state of emergency was declared in the affected district of Rostov-on-Don as Russia's Defense Ministry claimed 18 drones were shot down over the region.
The Kyiv Independent couldn't immediately verify these claims.
"Measurements for window replacements are taking place in eight buildings, work will begin in the remaining six buildings tomorrow," Scriabin said on Feb. 8. Natural gas service resumed following a disruption, he added. No casualties were reported.
Ukraine regularly strikes targets inside of Russia to reduce its ability to wage its full-scale invasion against Ukraine. An oil refinery was targeted in Russia's Volgograd Oblast early on Feb. 8.
In the meantime, Ukraine's Armed Forces have launched a new offensive in Russia's Kursk Oblast, Russian media claimed on Feb. 6.
According to Russian military bloggers, Ukrainian forces allegedly attacked southeast of Sudzha, advancing toward the settlements of Fanaseevka and Ulanok.
Volodymyr Ivanyshyn is a news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He is pursuing an Honors Bachelor of Arts at the University of Toronto, majoring in political science with a minor in anthropology and human geography. Volodymyr holds a Certificate in Business Fundamentals from Rotman Commerce at the University of Toronto. He previously completed an internship with The Kyiv Independent.
Olena Goncharova
