"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.
Former actor Maksym Kovtun, depicted in this undated photo, was killed on the front line. (Dnipro Academic Youth Theater/Facebook/Screenshot)
Actor-turned-soldier Maksym Kovtun was killed on the front line, the Dnipro Academic Youth Theater said on May 2.
"Maksym went to the front to protect our country, our freedom, and our future," the theater said in a post to social media.
Kovtun was a member of the youth theater before he began serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
"Maksym Kovtun died defending Ukraine. His roles — bright, sincere, full of warmth — will forever remain in our hearts. He played for children and adults, giving joy, laughter, and deep emotions," the theater said.
"Our entire theater team, colleagues, and friends express their deepest condolences to Maksym's family, his loved ones, and everyone who was by Maksym's side in life," the theater said.
More than 45,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since the start of Russia's full-scale war in 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in February.
Ukraine repatriated the bodies of 909 soldiers killed in Russia's war, Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of POWs announced on April 18.
Many have abandoned their careers to defend on the front line as Russia continues to wage its war against Ukraine.
Artur Shybalov, a former cameraman and editor who joined the Ukrainian Armed Forces, was killed fighting in Russia's Kursk Oblast on March 13, his mother said on March 20.
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.
Kateryna Denisova
