"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.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio greets Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski at the State Department on Feb. 21 in Washington, DC. Sikorski is in the U.S. to attend meetings on the war in Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski met U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio during his trip to the U.S. on Feb. 21, saying it was a "powerful conversation between close allies."
Sikorski said their meeting was "substantial and cordial" and it "confirmed the durability of the Polish-American alliance," Polish RMF FM reported.
When asked about the Ukraine peace negotiation tactics of U.S. President Donald Trump, Sikorski said it was better to ask the U.S. side about them, adding he "got the impression that the United States wants lasting peace."
Sikorski and Rubio's meeting comes amid growing concerns in Kyiv and among European allies about Washington's shifting stance on the war, particularly after the U.S. held direct talks with Russia in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 18.
Earlier on Feb. 21, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed Zelensky is not essential to negotiations to end Russia's war in Ukraine. He previously also accused Zelensky of being a "dictator" and espoused false claims about Ukraine.
"I don't think he's very important to be at meetings, to be honest with you," Trump told Fox News Radio on Feb. 21. "When Zelensky said, 'Oh, he wasn't invited to a meeting,' I mean, it wasn't a priority because he did such a bad job in negotiating so far."
According to Polish media PAP, when speaking about security guarantees for Ukraine, Sikorski said that "it is about Ukraine being able to determine its own future."
Sikorski also told journalists the issue of the possible presence of European soldiers in Ukraine as part of security guarantees was not raised during his meeting with Rubio.
Earlier on Feb. 21, Sikorski wrote on X that he had brought the "Shahed" drone, shot down by Ukrainian forces, to the Conservative Political Action Conference in the U.S.
"The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington is one of the most influential political events in the world. This year, visitors can see the downed drone provided by Poland, which symbolizes the death of thousands of innocent lives: the Iranian 'Shahed.' Together, we are effectively countering the axis of evil," he wrote.
Martin Fornusek
