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.
Romanian presidential candidate Calin Georgescu speaks to the media after voting at a polling station during the Romanian parliamentary elections near Bucharest, Romania, on Dec. 1, 2024. (Andrei Pungovschi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Romanian Constitutional Court annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election, which had been led by anti-NATO, pro-Russian independent candidate Calin Georgescu, Digi24 reported on Dec. 6.
Georgescu emerged as the frontrunner after the Nov. 24 vote, securing 23% of the ballots. Pro-EU candidate Elena Lasconi came in second with 19%.
Georgescu, who has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and Romania's pro-Nazi World War II-era leader Ion Antonescu, had been expected to face Lasconi in the Dec. 8 runoff. However, the government must now schedule a new election date.
The Constitutional Court judges overturned the results after reviewing newly declassified documents from the Romanian Supreme National Defense Council. According to the documents, Georgescu's campaign was "the result of organized manipulation from abroad."
The records reportedly revealed an "artificial increase" in Georgescu's popularity from 1% to 22% through a large-scale manipulation effort shortly before the election, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported.
Nearly 25,000 TikTok accounts, allegedly used to boost Georgescu's visibility, "became very active two weeks before the election date." Before Nov. 11, about 800 of these accounts showed minimal activity, but "the entire network was activated at full capacity" shortly thereafter, the documents stated.
The pro-Russian candidate's campaign also involved recruiting influencers on TikTok and creating accounts that falsely reported on Romanian state institutions’ activities.
The current Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, who did not make it to the second round, called the decision of the Romanian Constitutional Court "the only possible way out" in light of unveiling the records. Ciolacu came in third in the initial round, behind Lasconi by 0.03%, equivalent to 2,742 votes.
Lasconi criticized the court's decision, equating it with "interference in democracy."
This week, Georgescu announced that if elected, he would ban Ukrainian grain exports through Romania and halt further military aid to Ukraine.
While Georgescu's voters may not be "profoundly anti-Ukraine," they "voted for an anti-Ukraine candidate because the (political) establishment is pro-Ukraine," said Razvan Petri, a colleague of Adrian Adamescu at Politica La Minut.
If Georgescu takes office, he would join a small but growing group of Ukraine-skeptical leaders within NATO and the EU, including Hungary's Viktor Orban and Slovakia's Robert Fico.
Martin Fornusek
