"(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.
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a televised address to the nation at the Kremlin in Moscow on Nov. 21, 2024. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Dec. 28 signed a decree approving the updated "Strategy for Combating Extremism in the Russian Federation," according to the country's official web portal.
The new decree names Ukraine among the "main sources of extremism" and enshrines the concept of "Russophobia" for the first time.
Russia's previous anti-extremism strategy, approved by Putin in 2020, did not include the term or single out Ukraine as a threat.
The latest version of the document warns of "serious threats" from Ukraine and repeats Russian propaganda claims about the rise of neo-Nazi activity among Ukrainians. It alleges that radical armed groups receive support from "external forces that encourage the commission of criminal acts on the territory of Russia."
The document also outlines a definition of "Russophobia," which it describes as "an unfriendly, biased, hostile attitude towards Russian citizens, the Russian language and culture, expressed, among other things, in aggressive sentiments and actions on the part of individual representatives and political forces, as well as discriminatory actions on the part of the authorities of states unfriendly to Russia."
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WTF is wrong with Russia?
Russia has used claims of "extremism" to crack down on awide range of organizations, including news outlets, social media platforms, and what it calls "the international LGBT social movement."
Russia's communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, announced on Dec. 13 that it had blocked access to the Viber messaging app due to alleged violations of regulations combating terrorism and extremism.
The Kremlin is also considering blocking WhatsApp, an app owned by Meta, a company labeled as an "extremist organization" in Russia.
The Russian government designated a record 65 organizations as "undesirable" in 2024, exposing members and employees to criminal prosecution.
Putin has intensified state repressions of dissent since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, arresting thousands of citizens accused of hate crimes and supporting "extremist" groups.
Abbey Fenbert is a senior news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a freelance writer, editor, and playwright with an MFA from Boston University. Abbey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine from 2008-2011.
Kate Tsurkan
