"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.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
European Investment Bank President Nadia Calvino and Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal (Denys Shmyhal/Facebook)
Ukraine will receive 560 million euros ($596 million) from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for a number of projects this year, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said during a visit to the U.S. on April 19.
Shmyhal met with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in Washington the day prior, where they held talks on the long-awaited U.S. aid bill for Kyiv, strengthening sanctions against Russia, and the ongoing debate on confiscating frozen Russian assets.
The memorandum, signed with EIB President Nadia Calvino, includes the allocation of funds for projects in the energy sector, transport infrastructure, housing reconstruction, and those that will support Ukraine's economic recovery and business, according to Shmyhal.
"The memorandum will contribute to Ukraine's rapid recovery and bring us closer to the European Union," the prime minister said.
Shmyhal added that Ukraine is planning to accelerate work on current projects and will focus on preparing new EIB investments "in critical public and private initiatives."
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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that Ukraine will need at least $42 billion in international aid to support its budget in 2024.
Foreign aid is crucial for Ukraine as the economic pressure caused by the full-scale Russian invasion mounts. The besieged country received $42.5 billion in external financing last year, allowing it to function amid the ongoing war.
The EU approved the four-year Ukraine Facility in February, allocating 33 billion euros ($35 billion) in loans and 17 billion euros ($18 billion) in grants.
The first tranche of 4.5 billion euros ($4.8 billion) was given to Ukraine on March 20.
Chris York
