"(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.
Russia's Manizha performs during the finale of the 65th Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam on May 22, 2021. Russia was banned from the contest the following year due to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP via Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Feb. 3 ordering the revival of the Intervision song contest, the Soviet Union's equivalent to Eurovision.
The Eurovision Song Contest banned Russia from participation in 2022 following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Putin's order instructs officials to host Intervision in Moscow in 2025 for the purpose of "developing international cultural and humanitarian cooperation." The decree appoints Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko as chair of the organizing committee and Deputy Chief of Staff Sergei Kiriyenko as chair of the contest's supervisory board.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed in December 2024 that over 25 countries had expressed interest in participating in Intervision, including several in Latin America. Mikhail Shvydkoi, Putin's culture envoy, previously claimed that all BRICS nations would take part.
The original Intervision contest ran from 1965 until 1968, then again from 1977 to 1980. The competition served as the Soviet bloc's answer to Eurovision, which began in 1956 and is organized annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
Russia first competed in Eurovision in 1994 and has sent many performers to the contest in the years since. Russian singer Dima Bilan is the country's only Eurovision winner, taking first place in 2008. Moscow hosted the competition the following year.
Russia has been barred from Eurovision since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Later that year, Ukraine won the song contest, but was unable to host the event in 2023 due to the ongoing war.
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.
Andrea Januta
