U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
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.
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."
"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."
Jordan Bardella, president of the National Rally (Rassemblement National-RN), a French nationalist and right-wing populist party, delivers a speech after the results of the second round of the French parliamentary elections in Vincennes, France, on July 07, 2024. (Artur Widak/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Editor's note: The article was updated with the election results published on July 8.
The French left-wing coalition, New Popular Front (NFP), won the most seats in France's parliamentary elections, outpacing President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Ensemble alliance and the far-right National Rally (RN) party.
Following a bruising defeat in the European Parliament elections earlier in June, Macron called for snap elections to be held on June 30 and July 7. The first round resulted in a shocking victory for the right-wing National Rally (RN) party.
In an unexpected twist, both the left-wing NFP and Macron's centrist coalition overtook the RN and its allies in the second round. The NFP won 182 of the 577 seats, becoming the leading force in the parliament's lower chamber.
The president's coalition has secured 168 seats, while the RN and its allies trailed third with 143. No bloc has been able to achieve an absolute majority.
After the far right's unexpected victory on June 30, the left-wing alliance withdrew at least 130 candidates from three-way races in which the far right was projected to win. NFP leadership then advised its supporters to vote against the RN candidates in these races.
This strategy, aimed at staving off further far-right election success, appears to have worked.
People gather to celebrate the victory of the left-wing union after the partial results of the second round of the French parliamentary elections in Paris, France on July 07, 2024. (Luc Auffret/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The left-wing coalition includes a number of parties, including the far-left party, France Unbowed, the more moderate Socialist party, and the Communists, among others.
According to CNN, thousands of people have already gathered at the Place de la Republique in Paris, waving French flags and celebrating the election outcome.
Rachel Amran is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked on the Europe and Central Asia team of Human Rights Watch investigating war crimes in Ukraine. Rachel holds a master's degree in Russian, Eastern European, and Eurasian Regional Studies from Columbia University.
Martin Fornusek
