"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.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi walk together following their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia on Dec. 7, 2023. (Sergei Bobylyov / POOL / AFP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi will visit Moscow for consultations with Russian officials ahead of the second round of nuclear program negotiations, a spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry said on April 14.
Following years of heightened tensions, Iran and the U.S. held their first round of indirect talks in Oman on April 12, according to Iranian media sources. The negotiations aimed to address Iran’s advancing nuclear program, amid U.S. threats of potential military action if no agreement is reached.
The talks were mediated by Oman, with delegations in separate rooms exchanging messages through Oman’s foreign minister—an arrangement preferred by Iran, in contrast to U.S. calls for direct talks.
The Iranian spokesperson said that Araqchi will visit Moscow before the next round of talks are scheduled to be held on April 19 in Oman.
Russia has previously expressed interest in mediating the relationship between the U.S. and Iran.
"Russia is ready to make every effort, to do everything possible to contribute to this problem's resolution by political and diplomatic means," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on April 7.
Russia and Iran have deepened ties since the start of the full-scale invasion. Notably, Iran has provided Russia with thousands of Shahed drones used in attacks against Ukrainian cities, as well as short-range ballistic missiles.
In January, the two countries signed a strategic partnership agreement, strengthening cooperation in security and defense, as well as energy, finance, transportation, and other areas.
Dmytro Basmat is a senior news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.
Katie Marie Davies
