"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
The announcement follows mounting fears that the two nuclear-armed countries were on the brink of engaging in another full-scale war.
Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into suspected embezzlement, money laundering and bribery.
Iran is preparing to send Russia Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile launchers, Reuters reported on May 9, citing Western security and regional officials familiar with the matter.
"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
The visit marks Merz’s first trip to Ukraine, and the first time all four leaders have travelled there together.
A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
"As in the past, it is now for Russia to show its willingness to achieve peace," the EU's statement reads.
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.
"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.
Putin achieved none of his strategic objectives after nearly 1,000 days of war against Ukraine, Austin says
Russian President Vladimir Putin has not achieved a single one of his strategic objectives after nearly 1,000 days of full-scale war against Ukraine, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in his op-ed published by Foreign Affairs on Nov. 1.
"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky didn’t flee. Kyiv didn’t fall. And Ukraine didn’t fold," the Pentagon chief said.
Putin's original goals in his full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in early 2022 were to “liberate the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts, "demilitarize and denazify" the country which in the Kremlin's eyes, envisioned the removal of its Jewish president, and the occupation of its capital city Kyiv.
After swiftly failing to achieve these goals, with the exception of Russian forces occupying all of Luhansk Oblast, Putin was forced to lower his ambitions and said Russia's "main goal" was to capture all of Ukraine's eastern Donbas area that also includes the adjacent Donetsk Oblast.
According to Austin, Russia has paid "a staggering price for Putin’s imperial folly," with more than $200 billion squandered. Russia has lost almost 700,000 troops killed and injured since Feb. 2022, Ukraine's General Staff reported.
Austin's article was published days ahead of the U.S. presidential election. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump questioned future U.S. military assistance for Ukraine while insisting he can broker a swift peace agreement.
In the meantime, Ukraine is facing one of Russia's "most powerful offensives" since the beginning of the all-out war, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Nov. 2.
Moscow's forces continue to press forward on its offensives across the eastern front, primarily on the Toretsk, Kurakhove, and Pokrovsk axes in Donetsk Oblast, where outnumbered and outgunned Ukrainian soldiers are forced to withdraw little by little.
Austin called Putin's invasion a warning, describing it as a sneak preview of "a world built by tyrants and thugs."
"So we face a hinge in history," the U.S. Defense Secretary said. "If Ukraine falls under Putin’s boot, all of Europe will fall under Putin’s shadow."
Owen Racer
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