A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, claiming in an interview with ABC News on May 10 that it would be "an advantage" for Ukraine.
"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
"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.
Fighters of the Russian Volunteer Corps attend a presentation for the media in northern Ukraine, not far from the Russian border, on May 24, 2023. (Photo by Sergey Bobok/AFP via Getty Images)
One of the anti-Kremlin militias fighting in Russia's Belgorod Oblast claimed that fighting is ongoing in the region and that it is continuing to take prisoners.
The Freedom of Russia Legion, the Siberian Battalion, and the Russian Volunteer Corps launched cross-border incursions into Russia's Belgorod and Kursk oblasts on March 12, allegedly resulting in clashes with Russian forces in several settlements.
The militias claimed to have captured 25 Russian soldiers on March 17 following their incursions, and the Siberian Battalion said it had taken control of the local administration building.
Speaking on Ukrainian TV on March 19, the commander of the anti-Kremlin armed group Russian Volunteer Corps, "Fortune," conceded that it had sustained losses, but nowhere near the 1,500 claimed by the Kremlin over the weekend.
“There are losses, but not on such a scale,” Fortune said, adding: “There are new Russian prisoners.”
He described intense combat in Belgorod Oblast and claimed it was having the desired effect on Russia’s forces both there and in Ukraine, saying: “We are using all the potential and reserves along the entire line of contact."
“The fighting is ongoing, the enemy’s casualty figures are constantly increasing," he said. “This means that we are achieving one of our goals – to pull back Russian troops from the front."
Fortune also claimed that “small numbers” of Russian special units had been deployed by the Kremlin to deal with the ongoing incursion.
Russia initially tried to play down the scale of the attack, which began last week, initially saying there were no hostilities in the region. In the days since, Russian authorities have been forced to acknowledge a series of strikes and attacks and have even begun the evacuation of children from the areas affected.
Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine’s military intelligence chief, said on March 16 that Ukraine would help anti-Kremlin militias in their operations on Russian territory and support them “to the extent possible.”
Budanov noted that the militias have helped Ukraine from the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion and that they are no longer a “grouping”, but they are now “becoming a force.”
Chris York
