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.
Former Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Brussels, Belgium, on Aug. 29, 2024. (Thierry Monasse/Getty Images)
U.S. Senator Benjamin Cardin received a Zoom call from an unknown person claiming to be former Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, the New York Times (NYT) reported on Sept. 26, citing a letter from the Senate security service and its undisclosed sources.
The senator's office received an email from a person posing as Kuleba on Sept. 19 requesting to contact him via a Zoom call. During the video call, the person looked and spoke like Ukraine's former foreign minister.
The senator became suspicious when the person posing as Kuleba began to behave atypically, asking "politically charged questions in relation to the upcoming election" and demanding opinions on sensitive foreign policy issues such as the launch of long-range missiles into Russian territory, the media outlet wrote.
The senator ended the conversation and informed the State Department, which confirmed that the person introducing himself as Kuleba was an impostor who had used "deepfake" technology.
Deepfake video technology uses artificial intelligence to create videos with fictional people who look and sound like real ones. This technology has also been used to impersonate public figures, such as in 2022, when a video that purported to show President Volodymyr Zelensky announcing Ukraine's surrender in the war with Russia was circulated on social media. The video was later debunked.
While the Senate security email did not specify that Cardin was involved, two Senate officials familiar with the matter confirmed it to the NYT.
Cardin, a Democrat from Maryland and the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also confirmed in a statement on Sept. 25 that "the malign actor" had fraudulently attempted to communicate with him by posing as a "known individual." Cardin did not specify that the "known individual" was Kuleba.
It was not clear at first who had organized the operation against Cardin, the NYT said.
Intelligence officials have warned that foreign actors such as Russia, Iran, and China are using artificial intelligence, including "deepfakes," to bolster their election interference efforts, with Russia generating the most content, the NYT reported, citing the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
The presidential election will be held on Nov. 5, 2024. Democratic candidate and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will face Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump.
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Andrea Januta
