"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."
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.
Pope Francis leads a mass with newly appointed Cardinals at St. Peter Basilica at the Vatican on Dec. 8, 2024, in Vatican City, Vatican. (Alessandra Benedetti - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
Pope Francis called upon politicians and global leaders to bring about a ceasefire across the globe, including Russia’s war against Ukraine, during his Sunday prayer on Dec. 8.
"I appeal to governments and the international community that a ceasefire may be reached on all war fronts by the Christmas celebrations," Pope Francis said.
His words came as Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is about to enter its third year, with 2024 marking the 10th anniversary of Russia’s illegal occupation of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, as well as the Crimean Peninsula.
"Let us continue to pray for peace, in tormented Ukraine, in the Middle East — Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, and now Syria — in Myanmar, in Sudan, and wherever people suffer from war and violence," the pope said.
The pope earned a controversial reputation in Ukraine with his earlier remarks that relativized the responsibility of Russia’s war, encouraging Ukrainians to have the "courage" to negotiate for peace.
Pope Francis also met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Vatican in October, exchanging symbolic gifts. Zelensky received a bronze bas-relief with a flower and an inscription, "Peace is a fragile flower," while Pope Francis received a painting of the Bucha massacre.
Chances that the Russian military would halt for Christmas appear slim as they gather speed in eastern Ukraine, ratcheting up their offensive operations before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January 2025.
Moscow's losses also mount, with reported daily losses of well over a thousand troops in recent months.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Martin Fornusek
