"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.
An overview shows Ukraine's Olga Kharlan (top R) celebrating with teammates after winning in the women's sabre team gold medal bout between South Korea and Ukraine during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Grand Palais in Paris on Aug. 3, 2024. (Photo by Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images)
Ukraine won three gold, five silver, and four bronze medals at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, placing 22nd among 84 competing countries as the games came to an end on Aug. 11.
Ukraine received the biggest number of gold medals at the Olympics since 2012, when it won five at the London Games.
Ukraine's Olympic triumphs were celebrated back home, where positive news is rare and Russian troops continue to launch daily attacks against civilians while steadily advancing on the battlefield.
The Olympics kicked off on July 24, with some events held two days before the opening ceremony on July 26.
Only 140 Ukrainian athletes competed at the Olympic Games in Paris this year, the smallest number in the history of the country's participation in the games, as Russia's war has damaged or destroyed sports' facilities and frequent air raid alerts interrupt training.
China took first place at the Olympics, winning 40 gold, 27 silver, and 24 bronze medals, followed by the U.S. and Japan.
Russian and Belarusian athletes were allowed to compete in the games as Individual Neutral Athletes (AINs) with "strict eligibility conditions" – which included being banned from team participation and displaying any flags or official identification with either country.
Among Ukraine's highlights of the Olympics are the women's saber fencing team winning the war-torn country's first gold at the games and two of its athletes placing first and third in women's high jumps.
Fencer Olga Kharlan led her team to the finals in women's saber fencing after taking bronze on July 29. The six-time Olympic medalist beat South Korea's Choi Se-bin 15-14 in a fiercely contested match.
Ukrainian high jumpers Yaroslava Mahuchikh and Iryna Gerashchenko won gold and bronze at the Olympics. The 22-year-old Mahuchikh, currently the world record holder for women's high jump, won the competition with a jump of 2.00 meters.
Ukrainian wrestlers Parviz Nasibov and Zhan Beleniuk also won silver and bronze, respectively, at the Olympics. Beleniuk, who won gold in Tokyo and is also a Ukrainian lawmaker, retired after winning bronze in men's Greco-Roman wrestling in the 87-kilogram category, beating Polish athlete Arkadiusz Kulynycz.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
Elsa Court
