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.
The visit marks Merz’s first trip to Ukraine, and the first time all four leaders have travelled there together.
"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."
The number includes 1,310 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
"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.
The sanctions list includes 58 individuals and 74 companies, with 67 Russian enterprises related to military technology.
Poland has right to shoot down Russian missiles over Ukraine for national security, Polish FM says

Poland and neighboring countries to Ukraine are "responsible for protecting their own airspace," despite NATO's opposition, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in an interview with the Financial Times published on Sept. 2.
Russian drones and missiles have previously entered Poland's airspace during attacks on Ukraine. However, Polish allies advised the government to exercise restraint when dealing with unidentified airspace violations, according to Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
"Membership in NATO does not trump each country's responsibility for the protection of its own airspace – it's our own constitutional duty," Sikorski told the Financial Times.
"I'm personally of the view that, when hostile missiles are on a course of entering our airspace, it would be legitimate self-defense (to strike them) because once they do cross into our airspace, the risk of debris injuring someone is significant."
In early July, Ukraine and Poland signed a bilateral security agreement, which included a commitment by both sides to examine "the feasibility of possible intercepting in Ukraine's airspace missiles and UAVs fired in the direction of the territory of Poland, following necessary procedures agreed by the states and organizations involved."
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, in turn, was skeptical about this point of the agreement, saying that it puts the alliance at risk of "becoming part of the conflict."
Sikorski began to insist on Poland's right to shoot down air targets after a Russian drone reportedly crossed the country's border in an attack against Ukraine on Aug. 26. The minister said that the risk of Polish casualties increases the closer a missile is to its target when intercepted, so it was better to shoot it down at a higher altitude over Ukraine.
"Ukrainians have told us: you're welcome," Sikorski added.
Most Poles believe the Polish military should shoot down Russian drones that enter Polish airspace during aerial attacks on Ukraine, according to a survey published on Sept. 1 by the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita.
Previously, a Russian missile entered Polish airspace during a massive aerial attack launched against Ukraine in March, staying in Polish airspace for 39 seconds.
In another incident on Nov. 15, 2022, a missile flew onto Polish territory during a Russian mass strike, killing two civilians.
Polish investigators later concluded that it was a stray Ukrainian surface-to-air missile launched to intercept a Russian attack.

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