"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.
John Ratcliffe, director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and his wife Michele Ratcliffe during a swearing-in ceremony in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. Ratcliffe was confirmed Thursday in a 74-25 vote, the second Trump nominee to be approved by the Senate after Secretary of State Marco Rubio's confirmation on Monday. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The U.S. Senate formally confirmed John Ratcliffe as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on Jan. 23.
Ratcliffe, who served as President Donald Trump's director of national intelligence during part of Trump's first term in office, was confirmed with 74 senators voting in favor and 24 voting against the appointment.
Ratcliffe becomes the second Trump nominee to secure an appointment from the Senate, days after State Secretary Marco Rubio was sworn into his new post.
Ratcliffe replaces Bill Burns as the head of the spy agency.
During his term as the head of the CIA, Burns reportedly regularly communicated with Ukrainian officials for purposes of intelligence sharing. Burns made his final visit to Kyiv on Dec. 21 to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky, marking a rare public acknowledgment of their discussions during Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Zelensky noted that he and Burns had met multiple times throughout the war, but such encounters were typically kept confidential
The United States under former President Joe Biden had been Ukraine's key ally, providing substantial financial and military aid since the all-out war began nearly three years ago. Washington is also reported to have consistently shared military intelligence to bolster Ukraine's defense.
In his Senate hearing last week, Ratcliffe alluded to foreign adversaries Russia and China, referring the need for the U.S. to improve the use of artificial intelligence. Ratcliffe, a staunch supporter of Trump, also echoed comments from the president that the Russia-Ukraine war threatens to draw the U.S. into a conflict with a "nuclear country."
It is unclear if the Trump administration will continue to provide the same level of intelligence sharing with Ukraine as it received during the Biden administration.
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.
Boldizsar Gyori
