"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.
Illustrative image: The Russian-chartered vessel ANSHUN II with "Yokohama" fenders prepared and pipelines connected to receive another tanker and transfer Russian crude oil, 20 miles off Ceuta, on March 5, 2023, in Ceuta, Spain. (Photo credit: Antonio Sempere/Europa Press via Getty Images)
The amount of oil spilled in the Kerch Strait by two Russian oil tankers is "significantly less than the initial estimate," Russia's Transport Ministry claimed on Jan. 2.
TwoRussian oil tankers,Volgoneft 212 and Volgoneft 239, suffered severe damage during a storm on Dec. 15. Both vessels were reportedly carrying a total of 9,200 tons of fuel, which began leaking into the Black Sea.
Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti initially reported that some 3,700 tons of low-grade fuel oil have spilled into the Kerch Strait, forcing Russia to declare a federal state of emergency in response to the spill.
Russian scientist Viktor Danilov-Danilyan said in a press conference on Dec. 25 that about 200,000 tons of soil along the Black Sea coast have been contaminated, while Greenpeace Ukraine warned on Dec. 16 that the destruction of the Russian oil tankers could cause "significant" environmental damage.
On Jan. 2, Russia's Transport Ministry claimed that only about 2,400 metric tons of oil had spilled, citing a skewed account "of one of the tanker captains." The Transport Ministry added that the M100-grade fuel oil spilled into the sea solidifies at a lower temperature, thus sinking to the surface instead of remaining at the surface.
The Kyiv Independent cannot verify claims made by Russian officials.
The Kerch Strait separates mainland Russia from Russian-occupied Crimea.
In October, the Kyiv School of Economics Institute warned that Russia's "shadow fleet" of old and poorly insured tankers pose significant environmental risks, as these vessels increase the danger of oil spills.
Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine has caused massive environmental damage, including the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka Dam and subsequent flooding, widespread forest fires, and the devastation of wide stretches of farm land.
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.
Abbey Fenbert
