"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.
The headquarters of the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is pictured shortly after the official opening of RFE/RL's new headquarters in Prague, Czech Republic, on May 12, 2009. (Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images)
The editorial office of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Ukraine announced on April 11 that it was reducing its broadcasts and placing a number of it employees on leave as the U.S. government-funded media organization continues to endure "financial challenges" amid the Trump administration's efforts to eliminate grant funding.
RFE/RL Ukraine announced that it had ended its popular Freedom.Morning daily broadcast as a means to save costs, while also sending an unspecified number of employees in its Kyiv and Lviv offices on leave.
"This is a forced step at a time when Radio Liberty is fighting for the right to receive funding from the U.S. Congress in American courts," Mariana Drach, director of the Ukrainian editorial office said. "Ahead of this, some employees in Prague from various language services went on partially paid leave from April 1."
U.S. President Donald Trumpordered the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the government agency overseeing RFE/RL, to be dismantled, while cutting grant funding to the organization.
Following a court challenge, a U.S. District Court granted RFE/RL a temporary restraining order, blocking what the court deemed an unlawful attempt by USAGM to cut congressionally appropriated funds.
USAGM reversed its decision to terminate grant funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) for the fiscal year 2025, RFE/RL reported on March 27. Despite the reversal, financial challenges continue to persist as future funding for the media organization remains in limbo.
RFE/RL was founded early in the Cold War to counter Soviet propaganda in Eastern Bloc countries. It has since continued providing coverage of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and countries in Central Asia, the Balkans, the Caucasus, and elsewhere.
Dmytro Basmat is a senior news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.
Dmytro Basmat
