"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.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Oil derricks on the outskirts of Baku on Oct. 5, 2023. (Emmanuel Dunand/AFP via Getty Images)
The group, which includes Russia in its expanded framework, on May 3 agreed to a large oil production hike in June, Reuters reported on May 4.
The Kremlin largely uses oil sales to fund Russia's war against Ukraine. Lower oil prices could jeopardize Russia's ability to fund its war and put additional strain on its already struggling economy.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) includes nations such as Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and Iran. OPEC+ includes additional members such as Russia, Kazakhstan, and Brazil.
2.2 million barrels per day of current voluntary production cuts could be undone by the end of October, five sources from OPEC+ told Reuters.
Russia’s economy is dependent on oil revenues, which make up around 30% of its total state budget. Lower oil prices have repeatedly concerned Russian authorities.
Additional hikes of about 411,000 barrels per day will likely be made in June, sources said, adding that OPEC+ has held back oil production, but Saudi Arabia now insists production is increased amid non-compliance from members such as Kazakhstan and Iraq.
Saudi Arabia warned against members failing to comply at a meeting held on May 3, an unnamed source told Reuters.
OPEC+ is expected to make additional production hikes in the coming months if non-compliance with voluntary cuts continues, sources have said.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Jan. 23 he will ask OPEC to lower the price of oil, saying it would end Russia's war against Ukraine "immediately."
"If the price came down, the Russia-Ukraine war would end immediately," he said via videolink at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
"Right now the price is high enough that that war will continue, you gotta bring down the oil price and end that war," he added.
Volodymyr Ivanyshyn is a news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He is pursuing an Honors Bachelor of Arts at the University of Toronto, majoring in political science with a minor in anthropology and human geography. Volodymyr holds a Certificate in Business Fundamentals from Rotman Commerce at the University of Toronto. He previously completed an internship with The Kyiv Independent.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
