"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.
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.
Illustrative image: A sign reading Bryansk Oblast sits on the side of a road entering the region, which borders Ukraine, on March 2, 2023. (Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP)
Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
A chemical plant in Russia's Bryansk Oblast was allegedly damaged in an aerial attack on the night of Jan. 13, Russian media reported.
Regional Governor Alexander Bogomaz reported that Russian air defense units were repelling a drone attack over Bryansk Oblast. Later in the evening, the Astra Telegram news channel reported that the Bryansk chemical plant had been hit — possibly by a long-range ATACMS missile — and posted footage showing explosions at the site.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
The Bryansk chemical plant produces gunpowder and explosives, according to Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine's counter-disinformation center.
"It is important for the production of artillery ammunition and missiles for the Russian army," Kovalenko said in a Telegram post after the alleged attack.
"This enterprise is one of the key elements of the Russian military industry."
The plant was reportedly damaged in a previous attack in November.
Kovalenko also said on Jan. 13 that explosions had occurred at the "Kremniy El" microelectronics plant in Bryansk, though Russian sources have not reported an attack on that site and the Kyiv Independent could not verify the claim.
Abbey Fenbert is a senior news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a freelance writer, editor, and playwright with an MFA from Boston University. Abbey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine from 2008-2011.
Sonya Bandouil
