The visit marks Merz’s first trip to Ukraine, and the first time all four leaders have travelled there together.
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.
"As in the past, it is now for Russia to show its willingness to achieve peace," the EU's statement reads.
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."
The number includes 1,310 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
"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.
Oleh Ivashchenko appointed as new head of Foreign Intelligence Service

President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed on March 26 Oleh Ivashchenko as the new head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service after its current chief, Oleksandr Lytvynenko, was picked to replace Oleksiy Danilov as the National Security and Defense Council's secretary.
The decision was announced on the Presidential Office's website.
At the moment, no reason was provided for the new personnel changes.
Between 2017 and 2019, Ivashchenko served as a deputy chief for intelligence of the Ukraine's Armed Forces' General Staff. He later held the position of deputy head of Ukraine's military intelligence agency, also known as HUR.
Ivashchenko holds the rank of a lieutenant general.
The Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, known by the acronym SZRU, collects intelligence on political, economic, military, scientific, and technical spheres and is subordinate directly to the president.
Ivashchenko's predecessor, Lytvynenko, has served in the post since 2021.

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