"We have a plan B and a plan C. But our focus is plan A, the essence of which is to get everyone's support" for Ukraine's accession, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
"(T)he presence at the Victory Parade of a country that bombs cities, hospitals, and daycares, and which has caused the deaths and injuries of over a million people over three years, is a shame," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
"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 aftermath of a Russian drone strike on a residential building in Kharkiv on the night of May 2, 2025. (Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office/Telegram)
Russia launched an overnight attack on Ukraine using two Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 183 drones of different types, killing five civilians and injuring at least 61 others, Ukrainian authorities reported on May 3.
Ukraine's air defense forces intercepted 77 drones, while another 73 were lost from radar without causing damage, according to the Air Force report.
The heaviest casualties were reported in Kharkiv, where 51 people, including two children aged 11 and 16, were injured in a mass drone attack late on May 2, according to the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office. Russian forces launched at least 15 Geran-2 drones at the city, triggering fires and widespread destruction across the Osnovianskyi, Slobidskyi, Saltivskyi, and Kyivskyi districts.
In other parts of Kharkiv Oblast, including Kupiansk and Bohodukhiv districts, Russian strikes killed one, damaged homes, a store, an apartment building, and a warehouse. In total, four settlements and the city of Kharkiv were hit, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said earlier.
In Kupiansk district, strikes damaged a private home, store, apartment building, and other civilian infrastructure. In Bohodukhiv district, two homes and a warehouse were damaged or destroyed.
In Donetsk Oblast, four people were killed, and eight more were injured, Governor Vadym Filashkin said. He emphasized that casualty figures exclude Russian-occupied Mariupol and Volnovakha.
In Sumy Oblast, Russian forces injured two civilians in the Seredyna-Buda community amid nearly 130 attacks across 43 settlements in one day, regional officials said. Russian attack damaged homes, a post office, educational institutions, and other infrastructure across several communities.
In Mykolaiv Oblast, Russia launched Shahed drones at Mykolaiv city, targeting industrial sites overnight. No injuries were reported, according to Governor Vitalii Kim. Additional drone strikes hit settlements in the Mykolaiv and Ochakiv districts throughout the day on May 2, also without casualties.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly called for a 30-day ceasefire, saying on April 23, Ukraine insists on an "immediate, full, and unconditional ceasefire."
"For over 50 days now, Russia has been ignoring the American proposal for a full and unconditional ceasefire," Zelensky wrote on X on May 1.
He added that Ukraine had also proposed halting strikes on civilian infrastructure and establishing "lasting silence" across land, sea, and air.
"Russia has responded to all this with new shelling and new assaults," he said.
Anna Fratsyvir is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent, with a background in broadcast journalism and international affairs. Previously, she worked as a TV journalist at Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne, covering global politics and international developments. Anna holds a Bachelor's degree in International Communications from Taras Shevchenko National University and is currently an MA candidate in International Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Francis Farrell
