"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.
EU Ambassador to Ukraine, Katarina Mathernova, in conversation with the Kyiv Independent on Nov. 8 2023. (Liza Pyrozhkova / The Kyiv Independent)
The European Union will dedicate 2.1 billion euros ($2.4 billion) in revenue generated from frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank to Ukraine's defense industry, the EU's Ambassador to Ukraine, Katarina Mathernova announced on April 10.
"I have some good news to share, as there have been concrete announcements yesterday — clear proof that the EU stands, and will continue to stand, firmly with Ukraine," Mathernova said in a Facebook post.
"The EU will use 2.1 billion euros in revenues from the Russian frozen assets to give Ukraine the much needed air defenses and ammunition."
About 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) of these funds will directly support Ukraine's defense industry via the "Danish model," according to the ambassador.
In 2024, Denmark became the first country to offer to donate arms to Ukraine via direct purchases from the Ukrainian defense industry – establishing the Danish model as a successful mechanism for boosting Ukraine's defense capabilities.
Mathernova also noted that in August 2024, the EU invested 400 million euros in Ukraine's defense industry.
Separately, on April 9, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced that the EU is allocating another financial assistance tranche of 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) as part of the G7 loan program for Ukraine.
Chris York
